King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Wednesday, November 01, 2023
Chapters: LUKE 19
Message: To Live or Die is Christ
Hello My Friend,
My mother has been in the hospital for the past three days, she was in AFIB, which stands for atrial fibrillation, meaning her blood pressure was so high and heartbeat so fast that the blood that pumps from the heart to other areas of the body clots up and cannot flow to the brain causing a stroke. The bad news is that she did have a stroke, but the good news is that thanks to my husband I knew enough to give her some aspirin before the paramedics came so it was only a mild stroke. Praise God, that right now she is only suffering with some brain fog and a little weakness as they try to get her the right medication to treat her. I thank God that she knew enough to realize that something was wrong with her when she woke me up.
High blood pressure is known as the silent killer because it can often go undetected until something life threatening happens. While most people know how their bodies feel normally when something is abnormal they tend to put it off, thinking it will subside. This got me thinking about the soul and how sin is its silent killer. A soul without Christ is more than a lost soul, it is a dead soul, the only thing to keep it from plummeting down to hell right now is the breath of life that God has given us. However, once the body dies the soul has nowhere else to go, but hell. Now, high blood pressure can be treated with medicine and so can a dead soul, it can be treated and actually cured with blood and not just any blood, the sinless shed blood of Jesus Christ, [1 Peter 1:18-19 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:]
As we continue in the reading of the Gospels, we learn about Zacchaeus, a tax collector. Zacchaeus, had everything he could possibly imagine, but knew something was missing from his life that money could buy. He heard the stories about Jesus, how He healed the sick, raised the dead, and fed thousands of people, and perhaps thought that Jesus could give him that one thing that was missing. When he heard that Jesus was passing through Jericho he quickly found the crowd, but there were so many people that he could not see Him, beside the fact that he was too short to see anything. He saw a tree and decided to climb it, and as he began to look around for Jesus, he hears a voice shouting his name, only to discover that Jesus was right below him.
[Luke 19:2-5 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature. 4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house.]
[for to day I must abide at thy house.] If Jesus just walked up to you and told you that He must stay at your house what would your response be? Now, since I know who Jesus is I would be ecstatic and welcoming. Would I be that way if I did not know who He is? Probably not. I come to realize that I am not very hospitable to strangers, which is something that I need to work on because that is not how Jesus operates. Well, if we have accepted Him as our Saviour then He lives within us already just as the Father abides in the Son we abide with Him as well, [John 17:20-21 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; 21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.]
You see, the people hated Zacchaeus because he was not only a tax collector, he was in charge of them, and also very rich. Most tax collectors were very deceitful, they collected money for the king, but also pocketed much of it for themselves. Zacchaeus, did not hesitate, he wasted no time coming down from that tree and gladly brought Him to his house. So, you can imagine the crowd when they saw Jesus walking with Zacchaeus.
[Luke 19:7-10 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner. 8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. 9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.]
[forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.] Why did Jesus feel the need to tell the people that Zacchaeus was also a son of Abraham? He was trying to show the people that even though he was a sinner just like the rest of them, he was still one of them and had the same opportunity to be saved from his sin as they did. It does not matter what earthly family we descended from or how little or much we have sinned, we all have the same opportunity, [Romans 10:12-13 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.]
[for to day I must abide at thy house.] You see, when we seek Jesus, He is the one who literally comes to us, and it does not matter where we are when He does. Notice that Jesus tells Zacchaeus that He must abide in his house, this is actually the only way that we can be saved. If Jesus does not abide in us, then we will not be saved, but He does just force Himself in, we must believe in and receive Him joyfully into our home (our soul), just like Zacchaeus did, [John 15:4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.]
Talk about true equality, Jesus, does not care what your past was like, all He cares about is whether or not your future resides with Him. We must understand that unless we invite Jesus into our house, He will not come in. That does not mean that He does not knock on that door asking for us to invite Him in, [Revelation 3:20-21 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. 21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.]
When we discover that it was our soul that was missing life to it and that Jesus is the one gives it life, not everyone believes that we should be saved. I will tell you what, we can praise God that we are saved by grace because religion and the world itself would have us all in hell if we trusted in them. They may tell us that we are all equal, but in reality what they mean is that we are equal as long as we believe in what they believe. You see, the worldly Jews automatically thought that since they were Jews they were automatically saved while the religious Jews automatically thought that since they were “all righteous” based on their “good” works that they were saved. This prompted Jesus to speak another parable.
[Luke 19:11-14 And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. 12 He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. 13 And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. 14 But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.]
[But his citizens hated him…saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.] These are those who would neither receive the Gospel or submit to Him and therefore have judged themselves as being unworthy of everlasting life. Remember, one can deny Christ, but He cannot deny Himself, He knows who He is and those who reject Him are guilty of their own blood, [2 Timothy 2:11-13 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: 12 If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: 13 If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.]
Do not let the world or religion fool you, they all want to be in heaven when they die, and even those who say there is no such thing as heaven secretly hope that it is true. The harsh reality is that they do not want Jesus to be the way, the truth, and the life, because if they did then that would mean every false doctrine they taught to the ones who believed them would be exposed. They can deny that fact or alter it to suit their cause, but Jesus is still going to return for His people, and only those whom have accepted Him will be saved. Jesus, tells us this as He continues the parable.
[Luke 19:15-17,20-22 And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. 16 Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. 17 And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. 20 And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: 21 For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. 22 And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:]
[to whom he had given the money,] So, the money is the Gospel, each and every person that has some kind of faith in God is presented with the Gospel, those who accept it and receive Christ as their Saviour will go on and be witnesses for Christ. Those who ignore it, well, their fate is no better than the reprobates, [Titus 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.]
Today’s Prayer: God, You have sent the greatest treasure that cannot be bought or sold on any level, that treasure is eternal life with You, and the only way that we can obtain that is by believing in the Gospel of Your Son and receiving Him as our Saviour. Once we receive Christ as our Saviour we are instantly granted eternal life, it is Your gift to us for solely putting our faith and trust in Him to save our soul from hell. Lord, You have given us the greatest example of a servant in the person of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Others in this world may earn titles and win prizes for earthly pursuits, but the greatest treasure that I will ever obtain is my entrance into heaven where I will see you face to face. And amazingly it is not because I earned it, but solely because I put my faith and trust in Your Son to get me there. I just want to thank You, Lord, and ask that You continue to lead me by Your example and let me be fruitful in my efforts. I ask this in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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