The principles of all genuine fellowship with God

The principles of all genuine fellowship with God

1 John 3:13-15 Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.

We often read in the bible that the world will hate us, but I think we often overlook just who “the world” is referring to. When that term is used in the Bible it is referring to all people who are not truly saved. That means your neighbor, your co-worker and the people in your family who aren’t saved. This is the part I think we tend to over look a lot when we read about this. We don’t like to think that the people we like actually hate us. However, God says that if we are truly saved and living our faith, in a close personal relationship with Him, then those people cannot help but hate us. Why, well, first because God says so, but He says this because we have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us and when unsaved people are around us, they feel the spirit of God convicting them of their sins and they don’t like that at all!

Does this mean that we can’t have friends that aren’t saved? That depends entirely on how you define the word “friends”. For example, my neighbors are very friendly toward me and I like them; however, they know exactly what I believe and it makes them very uncomfortable. Therefore they don’t call me to chat or to “hang out” with them. They do that with each other and not with me. When they are around me they try to “fit in” pretending that they are “religious”too. Thankfully though, when they have questions, they know who they can ask that will tell them the truth. So, you could call them my “friends”. I know some people would. However, they really aren’t. I don’t spend time with them and they don’t spend time with me.

Romans 13:10  Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Romans 15:2  Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.

Romans 12:17-18 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

We are neighbors and I do take the responsibility of being a good neighbor to them as God commands to heart. So we make sure they’re safe when there have been storms, or we help when they need snow shoveled or a car worked on, or whatever the problem might be. We watch their house when they’re away etc, and they do the same for us. We do this because the Lord commands it. It causes them to see the light of Christ and hopefully one day they will be drawn to the light because of it, instead of pushing away from it as they do now. In the true sense of the word friendship however, I am not “friends” with my neighbors; I am simply “friendly” towards them. Do you see what I mean?

Do they hate me? Yes, actually they do. They don’t like the idea that I know of their sins. It makes them feel “dirty” and no one likes that. They do not yet understand how to “fix” it. In their minds right now, they would have to become “fanatical” like me to fix it and they’re not willing to go that far and they don’t want to give up their sins. Oh they don’t act hateful toward me, but it’s there. I can see it and they know I know it. They also know I’m ok with it, and that I don’t think they understand at all. Since this was covered much more thoroughly in another study I won’t go into it more now, but I didn’t want to let this just pass by without addressing it either.

1 John 3:13-15 Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.

After reminding us that the world hates us, John once again tells us that we are to love one another. He is not talking about loving the unsaved here, he’s talking about loving fellow believers. He again states in no uncertain terms that those who do not love their fellow believers, “remains in death” and does not have “eternal life in him”. This is easier to explain if we look at how this is translated in the NKJV:

1 John 3:14-15 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

Notice the word “abides”. What this is saying is that if a Christian hates another Christian then they are not “abiding in Christ” at that time. They have slipped into their old nature. Thus they are not abiding in eternal life. This has nothing to do with anyone's salvation. This is again saying that we need to maintain a constant close relationship with the Lord in order to live this Christian life.

We cannot be abiding in Christ and have hatred in our hearts for another believer. John says this so strongly that he says it is the moral equivalent to murder if we hate a fellow believer! (just as looking at someone in lust is the moral equivalent of adultery). If we have these things in our heart then we certainly cannot claim a close personal relationship with the Lord. A believer that hates another believer is disastrously and dangerously out of touch with their Lord, They will be living in death, in sin, until they confess and repent of their sin and draw near to the Lord again. Only then can they reestablish their relationship with the Lord.

Romans 8:12-14 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

This is not talking about eternal death or losing their salvation. Again it means that they will no longer experience their spiritual life as they did before this sin or enjoy the indwelling of the Spirit until the repent. As long as they are in this state of mind they cannot please God.

Romans 8:5-8 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

We see in this that we can also tell when someone has a real relationship with the Lord by their (or our) obedience to Him. Love is a fruit of the spirit, so this is something that constantly grows as a believer becomes more and more mature in Christ.

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Love is a test of true faith;

Galatians 5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

1 John 3:19-20 This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.

1 John 2:9-11 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.

Love also provides us the assurance that we have in fact been saved. Remember that scripture is always telling us to test ourselves to see if we are in the faith.

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?

This is what that verse is talking about. We are to constantly be checking ourselves to determine if we are abiding in Christ of if we have slipped and are acting out of our fallen nature instead. I know when I first read that verse about examining myself, I thought it meant to check and may sure I was saved. While that’s a good idea if you’re not sure, what it’s really saying is to check and see if we are still abiding in Christ, or if we have slipped and are acting out of our old nature instead. Praise God that when we do slip we can repent and confess our sin and return to the Lord’s embrace!

Today we looked at what love is not and what it means when hate for a believer rears it’s ugly head in our hearts. Tomorrow we’ll look at what love really is and how we experience it and share it with others.

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I can't find something in the Bible

I have looked and looked and looked, but nowhere in the Bible can I find absolute proof of either a Jew in the Old Testament or a Jew or Christian in the New Testament praying TO anyone other then God. The Only examples of people praying to anyone/thing other then God that I can find in the bible are examples of folks who prayed to pagan gods like Baal.

I knew I had to just be missing something obvious so I even went so far as to ask current Jewish religious leaders if they were allowed to pray to anyone other then God, now or in their past. Surely they must have prayed or still pray to perhaps Moses, or Joseph or David, Solomon, or Isaiah, or maybe Abraham....

One of them was so shocked at my question that they basically called me a blasphemer and refused to answer me. The others were nicer about it though and I guess they just assumed I was really ignorant. Anyway they told me that they have never ever prayed to anyone other then the One True God and never would. They even showed me one of their religious statements which I guess could be likened to our "statements of faith", although it is of course much much older then anything any Christian religion could come up with. Here's what they said about it:

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Here are the Thirteen Principles of Faith that Judaism rests on, according to Maimonides. Please pay particular attention to number 5. 1) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Blessed is His Name, creates and guides all creatures, and that He alone made, makes, and will make everything. 2) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Blessed is His Name is unique, and there is no uniqueness like His in any way, and that He alone is our G-d, Who was, Who is, and Who always will be. 3) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Blessed is His Name, is not physical and is not affected by physical phenomena, and that there is no comparison whatsoever to Him. 4) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Blessed is His Name - is the very first and the very last. 5) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Blessed is His Name - to Him alone is it proper to pray and it is not proper to pray to any other. 6) I believe with complete faith that all the words of the prophets are true. 7) I believe with complete faith that the prophecy of Moses our teacher, peace upon him, was true, and that he was the father of the prophets - both those who preceded him and those who followed him. 8) I believe with complete faith that the entire Torah now in our hands is the same one that was given to Moses, our teacher, peace be upon him. 9) I believe with complete faith that this Torah will not be exchanged nor will there be another Torah from the Creator, Blessed is His Name. 10) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Blessed is His Name, knows all the deeds of human beings and their thoughts, as it is said, "He fashions their hearts all together, He comprehends all their deeds." (Psalms 33:15) 11) I believe with complete faith that the Creator, Bless is His Name, rewards with good those who observe His commandments, and punishes those who violate his commandments. 12) I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah, and even though he may delay, nevertheless I anticipate every day that he will come. 13) I believe with complete faith that there will be a resuscitation of the dead whenever the wish emanates from the Creator, Blessed is His Name and exalted is His mention, forever and for all eternity.

Here are copies of my emails to some of the leading Jewish teachers which will show you how scandalized they were at the thought of praying to someone other then God:

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Is it permissible to pray to anyone or anything other than God? Dear Cynthia LaFreniere: No, absolutely not. In Jewish Law the only entity that can be prayed to is God. Best regards, Rabbi Reuven Lauffer

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Can you please tell me if it is acceptable in the Jewish faith to pray to anyone other than G-d for any reason? Dear Cynthia, No it is not acceptable. If you need further assistance feel free to contact us again, Best wishes, Chani Benjaminson

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Cindy LaFreniere asked: Can you please tell me if it is acceptable in the Jewish faith to pray to anyone other than G-d for any reason? Dear Cindy, Thank you for your inquiry. Here are the Thirteen Principles of Faith that Judaism rests on, according to Maimonides. Please pay particular attention to number 5. They are written here as they are commonly printed in Jewish prayer books: (I already quoted this one so I won't re-quote this part) Rabbi M. Younger Aish.com

These were all emails so no links are possible; however the last Rabbi did list his site under his signature. And yes, I still have the original emails. There is one other one, but that one is the one where the Rabbi was so incensed that I would even have to ask such a think that he got a bit rude so I won't post it as I wouldn't want to embarrass him. I'm sure if he understood why I had asked that he then would have been incensed at the RCC and not me.

There is a Jewish CULT that did and does allow prayers to others like Rachel, but again this is a CULT and not representative of the real Jewish religion as Jesus would have honored.

So why would I, as a Christian be looking at what the Jew's believe? Well, basically because there can't be a better source for information about the Jewish people and their belief systems. If anyone would know if the Jewish people would/could/should pray to someone/thing other then God, I would think that it would be the Jewish people! Since my Savior came to this earth as a Jew and lived a sinless life as a Jew, I thought that I could find out for sure if Jesus would have prayed to someone/thing other then God or if He would have taught others to do so.

From everything I've read and learned, Jesus or anyone living in Old Testament times or the New Testament times that tried to teach or even simply "tolerate" someone praying to someone/thing other then the One True God, would have been put to death immediately as a blasphemer! So that leaves me with quite a problem. Where then do the catholics get the idea that it's OK for them to do this?????

God says in His Word that He does not change. He says He doesn't lie. He says that His Word doesn't change either. Nor have I found anywhere in the New Testament anyone including Jesus saying that Jesus came and died on the cross so that we might have life and so we could pray to other people too. Therefore, we must still be only allowed to pray to Him and no other. But that can't be right, because the RCC says it's not right...

You can see my confusion on this surely...both can't be true. Either God is True and men are liars, or the RCC is true and God is lying....which one do you think it is?

 

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