Worship call 0713 The loveless legalist

This is Friday August 19th 2022nd year of our Lord

This from George Whitten Worthy news .com

friends, keep your nose to the grindstone!

2 Timothy 2:20-22 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.  Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. A grindstone is a revolving disk made of stone which is used for grinding, polishing or sharpening. It can commonly be seen grinding down wheat or sharpening and polishing metal for various purposes. At first glance, this information may not seem all that interesting to you. However, a wise man once compared life to a grindstone. He said -- whether life grinds us down or polishes us up depends on what we’re made of! So… here’s a question. What are we made of? Is life grinding us down to pieces? Or is it polishing us up to make us better equipped to do the work of the Lord? I can tell you this -- we are not called to crumble apart like chaff under the grindstone! We are called be tools in our Master’s hand -- sharpened and polished beautifully for His use!! friends, let’s commit ourselves to the Lord once again this weekend. Let’s not whine about our difficulties, but allow God to use them to sharpen us for His glory! Have a delightful shabbat, enjoy your weekend, and keep looking up -- for our redemption draws near! Your family in the Lord with much agape love, George, Baht Rivka, & Obadiah (Elianna is attending Christian College in Dallas) Dallas, Texas

And this is another fine day in the Lord,

Let us greet our Lord in prayer

Worship Call 0713

Friday August 19, 2022

The loveless legalist

Jesus is saying that the heart counts.

Divorce exists within the culture because Sin exist.

IN a culture even in a church where Divorce is rampant it is not a picture that people are excising a moral right but expressing sinfulness.

Though you may have not overtly committed murderer, none the less you have already committed murder in your hearts when you hate your brother.

And though you may have not overtly committed adultery, if you even looked at a woman with lust in your heart you are guilty.

The Legalist is most concern with the letter of the law. The legalist looks for loop holes that allows that one to do what he desires with a clear conscience.

The Legalist is more concerned about the law than he is about the love of God. how often in the gospels do we find examples of the Pharisees and Scribes expressing any love for God?

The Pharisees worked hard in making sure that they themselves and others were within the boundaries of the Law and failed to meet their own ridged standards.

Jesus’ life is identified as having love for the Father and doing his will. Jesus kept the Law perfectly.

As he continues with the sermon on the mount the religious leader’s pattern of unrighteousness continues to be at least indirectly referenced.

Matthew 5:27-30 deals with lust of the heart

And then it transcends to the overt sin. The religious leaders while always careful to make a show of piety, they were extorting money from the poor. Took advantage of widows. Legally maneuvered the court system to kill their opponents, and among other things were adulterous.

They were in the practice of manipulating the Law in such a way that they could divorce their wives and legally have relations with another whom they were actively engaged in sin with because they are no longer bound with the other woman.

Take the incident of the woman that was brought before Jesus.

John 8:3–11 (NASB95) — 3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, 4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 “Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” 6 They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. 7 But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. 10 Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.”

Have you ever wondered where was the man who was caught in adultery with this woman? It takes two to tango.

Every last one of them walked away. Not just sin in general, but the one who was without this particular sin. Each one by dropping walking way admitted that they were themselves adulterers and probably with this very woman.

When it came to divorce, the Pharisees thought that they could operate in accordance with the Law and be right with God, but the Lord is raising the bar.

Matthew 5:31–32 (NASB95) — 31 “It was said, ‘Whoever sends his wife away, let him give her a certificate of divorce’; 32 but I say to you that everyone who divorces (ἀπολύω [apoluo /ap·ol·oo·o/] v sends away) his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a( ἀπολύω [apoluo /ap·ol·oo·o/) woman commits adultery.

The question is whether there is a certificate of divorce or just a separation? are we even talking about a certificate of divorce or simply sending away.

Deuteronomy 24:1 (NASB95) — 1 “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house,

Indecency Something that is construed as shameful. That which the husband considered bringing shame to the marriage would be up to the husband’s discretion. Not only adultery but not being able to produce children would be grounds.

This was the Loophole that the pharisees were seeking in order to dump their wives and marry another all with a clear conscience.

but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity

88.271 πορνεύω; ἐκπορνεύω; πορνεία, ας f: to engage in sexual immorality of any kind, often with the implication of prostitution—‘to engage in illicit sex, to commit fornication, sexual immorality, fornication, prostitution.’[1]

Jesus is saying that Divorce (sending away) does not set a man free being guiltless of adultery.

Many a hurt has been caused by the wrong application of this passage. Malachi 2:16

Malachi 2:15–16 (NASB95) — 15 “But not one has done so who has a remnant of the Spirit. And what did that one do while he was seeking a godly offspring? Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal treacherously against the wife of your youth. 16 “For I hate divorce,” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “and him who covers his garment with wrong,” says the Lord of hosts. “So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.”

A Certificate of marriage is not ball and chain that traps a woman and children in slavery to an abusive and perverted creature of a man.

God did not institute divorce. God did not establish a legal system as a back door to walk out when one is unhappy. But the fact is Sin exists and when the husband becomes so gone into the darkness that the lives of the wife and the children are being dragged down with him then is the wife and the children to be destroyed also.

Matthew 19:3–10 (NASB95) — 3 Some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?” 4 And He answered and said, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? 6 “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” 7 They said to Him, “Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?” 8 He said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. 9 “And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.” 10 The disciples said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.”

88.271 πορνεύω; ἐκπορνεύω; πορνεία, ας f: to engage in sexual immorality of any kind, often with the implication of prostitution—‘to engage in illicit sex, to commit fornication, sexual immorality, fornication, prostitution.’[2]

Remember that Jesus said that even if you look at another with lust in your heart one is already committed adultery within the heart.

So, you discern. Is a woman bound to a man who may have not laid hands on another woman but who is engaged in pornography or another perversion all the while he expects the wife’s loyalty.

1 Corinthians 7:15 (NASB95) — 15 Yet if the unbelieving one leaves, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace.

No divorce is not a ticket or permission to go out an seek another to make one happy. Neither is one subject to be abused both physically and mentally with no escape.

In Context Jesus is dressing down the Pharisees who were sending away their wives and marrying other women because they wanted to be construed as being legal.

The Legal system may declare one justified but there is an indictment of the heart.

The purpose that Jesus continues to highlight the sins that were in practice was not to specifically call out the religious leaders, but that those who observed such actions found in their religious leaders might know that that is not how they should live. That there is a higher calling a higher righteousness to seek.

Jesus is not done.

It is no wonder why the Pharisees hated him so much.

[1]Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 770). United Bible Societies. [2]Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 770). United Bible Societies.