All of the Old Testament dietary laws were shadows (or pictures) of spiritual truths which would become realities in the New Covenant. The Pharisees (as well as many Christians) missed all of the spiritual significance of these laws and saw only the physical act.

The real spiritual meaning that these Old Testament dietary laws symbolized was that we were supposed to be holy (separated) unto God in everything - even what we eat. 

Under the Old Testament law, it was forbidden to eat or to touch certain animals, not because there was anything wrong with the animals, but to illustrate the point of being separated unto God and to serve as a constant reminder of this separation. 

Under the New Testament, we see that no animal is, or ever was, unclean of itself. The Old Testament designation of certain animals as unclean was purely symbolic, and this is why Jesus could make this statement in Mark 7:15.

Jesus' statements here refer to more than just the clean and unclean beasts of the Old Testament. He said nothing which enters into a man through his mouth can defile him. This statement cannot be interpreted, however, as condoning any type of abuse we would like to give our body such as gluttony, drug abuse, alcohol, etc. 

Jesus is simply explaining that the condition of the heart of man should be given more importance over the physical body. The heart of man controls the body of man, not the other way around. 

Sin doesn't make our heart corrupt, but a corrupt heart makes us sin. 

God looks on our hearts, and our cleanliness or defilement in His sight is dependent solely on whether or not we have been made clean in our spirits by the blood of the Lamb. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all unrighteousness.

Deuteronomy 4:2 says,  "Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it . . . ."   And this same thought is repeated in the New Testament in Revelation 22:18-19 with penalties. 

Religion is very swift to observe the part about not diminishing any of God's commandments, but there seems to be an unwritten law that adding to them is okay.  Every denomination has its own set of "do's and don'ts" which aren't found in bible, and like those of the hypocritical Pharisees, their unwritten laws usually have to do with outward appearance.

We need to remember that adding to God's commandments is just as bad as taking away from them.  We need to speak when the Bible speaks, and be silent when the Bible is silent.

The commandments of God and the traditions of men are not the same thing and must always be clearly distinguished.  Any attempt to place them on the same level will always result in making the Word of God of none effect.  

We either "lay aside" the commandment of God to keep the traditions of men or we  "lay aside" the traditions of men to keep the commandments of God (Exodus 20:3). 

Church liturgy is tradition, as well as many of the "do's and don'ts" taught by churches.  We can neutralize the positive power of God's Word toward us, and nothing will do that quicker than elevating man's traditions above God's Word.  God's Word is still true (Romans 3:3-4) and will not return to Him void (Isaiah 55:11).

The Word will not profit anyone who doesn't believe it, but God's Word itself doesn't lose any power.  If some do not believe God's Word, does that make God's Word of no effect?  Only to them. 

 God's Word still has its power to save, and it will profit us when it is mixed with faith.

The biblical definition of a hypocrite is, "someone whose words and heart (actions) don't agree." A hypocrite may act the part of a Christian or he may talk like Christ, but he won't do both.  When both confession and action from the heart are consistent with God's Word, there is salvation (Romans 10:9-10).

The word "hypocrite" comes from the Greek meaning "the playing of a part on the stage; an actor."  It was a custom for Greek and Roman actors to use large masks, when acting, to disguise their true identity.  Hypocrisy became "the feigning of beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; insecurity" (American Heritage Dictionary).

The dictionary defines "dissimulate" as "to disguise under a feigned appearance."  The Greek word means "without hypocrisy, unfeigned."  It has become customary in our society to conceal our real feelings behind a hypocritical mask.  Although we should be tactful and not purposely say things to offend people, there is a time and a place for speaking the truth, even if it isn't popular.

In Leviticus 19:17, the Lord said, "Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him."  This verse is saying that if we fail to rebuke our brother when we see sin approaching, then we hate him.  Many people have concealed their true feelings about evil under the pretense of, "I just love them too much to hurt their feelings."  The truth is, we just love themselves too much to run the risk of being rejected.  That's hypocrisy.  Motives,  not actions,  are usually what makes a person a hypocrite.  Let God's love be our motivation.

Man looks on the outward appearance (this is what the scribes and Pharisees were concerned with), but the Lord looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).  Jesus looked on men's hearts.  The Old Testament laws concerning washing served a purpose of hygiene, but as in Colossians 2:16-17 and Hebrews 9:1,9-10, their real purpose was to show us spiritual truth.

Defiled food may hurt our bodies, but it cannot reach our spirits (John 3:6).

The scribes and Pharisees missed the principle of spiritual purity taught by the Old Testament ordinances and became obsessed with strict adherence to their rituals.  While they enforced the laws dealing with the physical realm, they had become completely corrupt in the spiritual realm.

"The law is not of faith."  When put together with Romans 14:23, "...whatsoever is not of faith is sin," this statement must have been near blasphemy to the legalistic Jews, just as it is to legalistic Christians.  It is sin for the New Testament believer to try to relate to God by trying to keep the Old Testament law.  The law itself is not sin (Romans 7:7).  But it is sin to try to use the law for justification with God.  This was never the purpose of the law.

Under the law a person got what he deserved.  Under faith, the New Testament believer receives grace because of what Jesus did for him.  Anything other than faith, especially going back to the Old Testament law, wipes out the work of Christ (Galatians 2:21) and is the worst sin of all.  Only faith in Jesus Christ gets rid of guilt and condemnation.  With a great price Jesus has purchased our freedom. We must walk in it and enjoy His Life.

Jesus is said that our spirit, not our flesh, is where our life comes from.  The people were so dominated by their physical lives that they were missing all the spiritual significance of His words. 

Even though God's Word does benefit our physical bodies, the Word is spiritual and must be understood through the spirit.  God's Word is spirit and it takes our spirit to bring the light of its truths to our minds.

The Word of God is not paper and ink.  Jesus is the Word, and He existed in spiritual form long before any words were inspired to be written down by the Holy Ghost.  The Bible is simply a physical statement of Jesus and spiritual truth.  It is inspired of God and is totally accurate and reliable, but, until we receive the Spirit expressed in these words, the Bible will not profit us.  This is why many people have read the Word, maybe even memorized it, and aren't reaping any benefits from it.

Just as our physical man receives life from the food we eats, so our spiritual man receives life as we partake of Jesus, the "bread of life. Jesus plainly stated that the words He spoke were spiritual, not physical.

If we want to know what spiritual truth is, we must believe the Bible, because it is spirit and life.  If we want to be led by the Spirit, then we must follow God's Word.  If we want to hear from the Spirit of God, then we must listen to what God says in His Word. The Spirit (Holy Spirit) and the Word (Jesus - John 1:1) are one.

John 6:61 and Matthew 15:12, reveals that people will be offended by the Gospel.  We should make sure that it's not ourselves that are offensive.  But we cannot expect that everyone will receive the Gospel, even if the truth is presented properly.  We know that Jesus represented His Father perfectly and yet most people rejected His message.

When Jesus realized He had offended the listeners, He didn't apologize and try to make 'things right' to gain their acceptance. Instead, He got harder.  This hard message of commitment is  beneficial to those who receive it, and it serves a purpose in  exposing the "tares among the wheat."

It is important to be aware that the children of the wicked are placed among the true believers.  We should be very careful about putting just anyone who professes Christianity into any position of authority (1 Timothy 3:10).  

Our best is to preach the Word of God without watering it down.  False believers will not endure sound doctrine (2 Timothy 4:3). They leave when the Word, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, begins to expose the thoughts and intents of the heart.  There will still be those who are deceived and unaware that they are not born again, remaining among the Church until the end of this world.

As long as Jesus was in the world in His physical body, He was lighting the way to the Father.  He now shines through our lives.  It is our responsibility to be a witness.  The purpose of a light is to dispel the darkness.  So lets let our lights shine before men.... (Matthew 5:16).

Many thought that Jesus was speaking of cannibalism, but He was speaking of the spiritual man.  Just as the physical man receives life from the food he eats,  the spiritual man receives life as he partakes of Jesus, the life of men (John 1:4; 10:10; 14:6) or the "Bread of Life."  Just as the life of a root is found in the soil, or a branch in the vine, or a fish in the sea,  the believer's true life is found to be in joined with Christ.

The Bible presents salvation as a life transforming experience.  Change is one of the characteristics of a true believer.   Failure to understand that this change takes place in the spirit first, and is then reflected in the outward thoughts and actions, depending on the way we renew our minds.  This causes much confusion.  This change has to take place in our bornagain spirit.   Our body doesn't instantly change.  Our soulish or mental realm doesn't instantly change. 

How we think about things before we got saved will be how we think after we get saved, until we start renewing you mind.  The only part of us that is left is our spirit.  It is our spirit that is instantly changed at salvation.  It is perfect (Hebrews 12:23).  It cannot sin (1 John 3:9).  Everything that is true of Jesus is true of our bornagain spirit.  Our spiritual salvation is complete. 

 At salvation, we receive the same spirit that we will have throughout all eternity.  It will not have to be changed again or cleansed again.  It has been sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13) and is therefore sanctified and perfected forever (Hebrews 10:10, 14; 12:23).  Jesus lives in the spirit of believers.  All that He is will be available to us if we will depend on Him instead of your own abilities.

The Old Testament prophets prophesied of a new covenant where we would all be taught of God.  Under the Old Covenant, God dealt with the Jews through the outer man.  He did this because an Old Covenant man (who was not born again) could not perceive the spiritual truths revealed in the New Covenant by the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:14).  This difference between the old and new covenants is the reason why there had to be two covenants.

The Old Testament man was compared to a child in his ability to grasp spiritual truth.  It is impossible to explain spiritual truth to a young child, and yet, a child must be controlled from submitting to evil.  So, the Word of God teaches us to use the "rod of correction" (Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15).  The child may not understand resisting the devil, and yet, when the devil tries to get him to sin, he will say "No!" because he fears he will get the rod if he does.  Old Testament saints were controlled from sin by a fear of the wrath and punishment of God.  This controlled sin, but it also hindered them from receiving the goodness and love of God (1 John 4:18).

Under the New Testament, the punishment for our sins was laid on Jesus.  We don't serve God out of fear of punishment, but we serve Him out of love; because He has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, making us His sons.  We serve Him because our nature has been changed through the new birth.  We must be taught of God through the indwelling presence of Christ.

It could possibly be that the Jews in John 6:34 were expecting Jesus to rain down manna on them the way God did before in the wilderness. After all, anyone who could feed five thousand men with one small lunch should be able to produce manna. They were still thinking of physical food.

The word "manna"  literally means  "what is it?"  The children of Israel said,  "It is manna: for they wist (or knew) not what it was." (Exodus 16:15)  Manna was a nutritious food which appeared on the ground every morning shortly after the children of Israel left Egypt and began their 40-year wandering in the wilderness. Moses called it "bread which the Lord hath given you to eat."

The Lord, speaking to Moses, called it "bread from heaven."  It was small and round, like coriander seed, and was white or yellowish in color.  The people, after gathering it, ground it in mills or beat it, and baked it in pans and made cakes of it.  It tasted like wafers made with honey or fresh oil.  It was gathered every morning and had to be used up that day or it would stink and have worms.  An exception was on the sixth day.  It could be gathered for the Sabbath and wouldn't spoil (Exodus 16:22-26).

Although they were looking for pieces of bread to materialize, which would have been a great miracle, it would have been meaningless compared to the miracle of God being manifested in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16).  

They were talking to the greatest miracle that God had ever performed, but they were blind to it. Many times, we get so intent on seeking God in one area that we forget the greatest miracle of all, which is the love and redemption given to us from God through His Son.

Man has been looking for ways to do the works of God.  Everyone has a knowledge of the reality of God (Romans 1:18-20), and a desire to be right with Him.  

These Jews in John 6:28 were willing to do something to get salvation, but they were not willing to commit themselves to Jesus and accept His gift.

This is one of the major differences between Christianity and the religions of the world.  Religion is willing to make sacrifices to obtain right standing with God, but Christianity recognizes our complete inability to ever do enough to save ourselves and it calls for total faith and reliance on what Jesus did for us.

No one deserves salvation.  It cannot be earned by what the Bible calls "dead works" (Hebrews 6:1; 9:14).  Dead works include all religious activities, good deeds, or charity that one may do as a means of being justified before God.

Faith in God and what He has done through Christ Jesus is the only way of receiving His free gift of salvation.  He only asks us to believe.

Jesus knew the hearts of all men.  He didn't commit Himself to the crowd in John 6:26.  Just the day before, these same people tried to take Him by force and make Him their king, but He withdrew and spent the night in prayer.

This crowd looked like they were seeking Jesus, but they were actually trying to use Jesus to seek their own end.  It is true that there are many personal benefits to be reaped through serving the Lord, but the benefits are never to become our reason.  Christ must be first in everything (Colossians 1:18).

Jesus exposed the true intent of the people's hearts by preaching a strong message of commitment.  Those who were self-centered were offended and left while those who were willing to lay down their lives to experience God's abundant life remained. 

Commitment to God Himself (not what He can give) is what always separates the true worshippers of God from the false.

As Jesus began to explain in these verses that He was the only way to the Father (John 14:6) and that they would have to come through Him, the people got angry.  It always angers the flesh to think that all our righteous acts can't save us, but Jesus made it clear that our only part in salvation is to believe.  Believe what?  Believe on Jesus and His sacrifice, not our works.  Salvation is a gift and cannot be purchased (Romans 10:2-3).

Many times, we get so intent on seeking God in one area that we forget the greatest miracle of all, which is the love and redemption given to us from God through His Son.  God loves us so much!

Jesus defines eternal life as knowing God the Father and Himself.  Eternal life is having a close, personal relationship with God the Father and Jesus the Son. This closeness with God is what salvation is all about. Forgiveness of our sins is not the point of salvation. Closeness with the Father is.  Jesus did die to purchase forgiveness for our sins because unforgiven sins block us from being close with God.  Sin was an obstacle that stood between God and us.  It had to be dealt, with and it was.  But anyone who views salvation as only forgiveness of sins and stops there is missing out on eternal life.

Salvation was intended to be presented as the way to come back into harmony with God.  Instead, it has often been presented as the way to escape the problems of this life and  the judgment of hell.  It is possible to get born again with that kind of thinking, but more often than not, people who get saved through that type of ministry view the Lord as someone to help them through times of crisis and not someone to know in an close and personal way. Jesus died for us out of love (John 3:16)  a love that longed to have close communion with man.

Most non-believers are so occupied with their "hell on earth" that they don't really think or care about their eternal future.  They are fed up with religion.  They are looking for something that will fill the emptiness inside. Only a close, personal relationship (is eternal life) with our Father can do that. 

The reason Peter began to sink was because of his fear.  In Matthew 14 verse 31 Jesus used the word "doubt"  to refer to  Peter's fear. 

Fear is simply negative faith.  Where did this fear come from? Second Timothy 1:7 says, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love, and of a sound mind."  It didn't come from God.  This fear was able to come upon Peter because he took his attention off of Jesus and put it on his situation.

Fear or doubt cannot "just overcome" us.  We have to let it in.  If Peter had kept his attention on Jesus, the author and finisher of his faith (Hebrews 12:2), he wouldn't have feared.  In the same way that faith comes by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17), fear comes by hearing or seeing something contrary to God's Word.  

The wind and waves didn't really have anything to do with Peter walking on the water.  He couldn't have walked on the water without Jesus even if it had been calm. The circumstances simply took Peter's attention off of his Master. Satan tries to distract us with thinking about our problems.

Peter's faith didn't fail him all at once, as can be seen by the fact that he only "began" to sink.  If there had been no faith present, he would have sunk all at once and not gradually.  This shows us that the entrance of fear and the exit of faith do not happen instantly. 

There are always signs that this is happening.  If we will turn our attention back to Jesus, as Peter did, He will save us.   No problem is too big for God.  We should cast our care about the problem over on God and just keep our eyes on Jesus, the Word.

Jesus "was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).  The temptation for Jesus to submit to the crowd and exalt Himself must have been there but He didn't respond to it.  He came to do the Father's will and not His own (John 6:38).  He immediately left everyone and spent all night in prayer with His Father.  Prolonged prayer is a remedy for the temptation of pride and will work a God-type of humility in our life.

In Galatians 2:20, Paul is preaching a death to self.   Paul said he was dead through what Jesus did.  He experienced this death by simply counting on what had already happened through Jesus to be so (Romans 6:11).

There are people who have taken the "dying to self" doctrine to an extreme and, instead of being free of self, they are totally self-centered.  They constantly think of self.  It may be in all negative terms, but it is still self-centered.  A truly humble person is one who is Christ-centered.  Dying to self is not a hatred for self but rather a love of Jesus Christ more than self.

There are false religions that preach a denial of self.  We need to be not just dead to self, but alive to God.  A focus on the denial of self without taking on the power of Jesus Christ creates legalism.  True humility is not a changing of self, or a hatred of self, or our accomplishments.  It is simply an awareness that all we have and are is a gift of God.  Only a person who acknowledges God can operate in true humility.

Peter was overwhelmed when he saw Jesus walking on the water, and he wanted to do it too.  While there is really nothing wrong with his desire, what he asked Jesus was totally wrong.  He didn't ask Jesus if He wanted him to walk on the water, or if his faith was strong enough.  Instead he said, "If it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water."  What was Jesus going to say, "It isn't me. Don't come."?

There are no other examples of someone walking on water in the Word of God.  Jesus had a definite reason for walking on the water; but, Peter just wanted to see if he could do it.  God will permit us to do things that are not His perfect will for us.

Many times we hinder our own prayers by the way we ask things of God.  We say, "Do you want me to do (a) or (b)?"  The Lord may not want us to do either one. 

We should offer Him a third choice (c) His will for us.  We should trust God's wisdom and even allow Him to select the options.

Jesus didn't turn some of the stones into bread (as Satan had tempted Him to do in Luke 4:3).  We only one instance in scripture did God created a supply to meet a need (Numbers 11:21-23).  

Usually, the Lord simply blesses what we set our hand to do.  The resources were totally inadequate to meet the need in this instance, but when the Lord blessed it, there was more than enough.

Jesus didn't just teach the disciples, but He trained them also.  He was constantly trying to involve them in these miracles.  Just a matter of days later, He again asked His disciples what they could do to feed the multitude of four thousand men.  It was like He was saying "You missed this question when I asked you how we could feed the five thousand men.  Now, here are less people and more food.  What would you suggest this time?"

Instead of remembering the previous miracle, they acted like they had never seen Jesus feed the multitude and they looked at their own resources again (Matthew 15:32; Mk. 8:1).  We all often try everything we can do first and forget God's supernatural power until all we can do is pray.  Many people have missed their miracle because they never took that first step of faith and used what they had. 

This young lad was certainly credited with part of this miracle for offering what he had.  When in need, we should seek God's direction for something to set our hand to, and then trust Him to bless it and multiply the results of our work.

The disciples were using natural reasoning and recognized that they didn't have the ability to minister to the multitude's need for food. Jesus did have the ability and the willingness to minister to their needs, so the multitude did not need to depart.  All of their needs could be met through Jesus.

The same is true today.  Some disciples today are sending the multitudes to the world to meet their physical needs (finances, health, counseling, etc.) and proclaiming that God only meets spiritual needs.  But, "they need not depart."  The Lord is willing and able to heal our bodies, prosper us financially, or counsel us from His Word in any area of our life where we have needs.

Before we can be a blessing, we have to be blessed (Genesis 12:2). One of the purposes of God's prosperity in our lives is so that we can be a blessing to others.  The Bible teaches us to walk in God's love towards all men, believers and non-believers both.  Jesus told us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44).  In Galatians 6:10 Paul places a priority on helping fellow Christians. This does not lessen our responsibility to show God's love to non-believers.  Paul is simply saying "charity must start at home."  It would be hypocritical to step over hurting brothers and sisters in the Lord to find unbelievers to minister to.

God didn't just give us something that He had; He gave Himself. And what was God's motive for giving?  It wasn't because of His need, but ours.  He was motivated out of love for us (John 3:16).  In the same way, we should be encouraged to give unselfishly of ourselves. Pray for Divine appointments, to be used of God to touch someone's.

Jesus often went off alone so that He could spend time with the Father.  In Mark 6:31, we see Jesus calling His disciples apart for rest.  Many Christians have neglected the needs of their physical bodies and have cut their ministries short through death or severe illness.   Many have failed to take the time to be still and know God (Psalm 46:10). This will also cut your ministry short through non-effectiveness. 

One of Satan's deadliest weapons against those involved in ministry is busy-ness.  We must balance our time ministering to others with our time of being ministered to by our Father.  If the devil can't stop us from "getting on fire" for God, then he'll try to stop us by getting us "burned out."

Remember, the reason Jesus and His disciples were going to this remote place was to get away from the multitude for awhile and rest. This rest was not optional, it was, a necessary.   However, the multitude followed them and their rest ended even before it began.  Surely, Jesus and His disciples were disappointed. But instead of anger or bitterness, Jesus was moved with compassion.

Later on in the evening, Jesus went up into a mountain and prayed until the fourth watch (3 to 6 a.m.). The Lord intends for us to take care of our physical bodies as can be seen by Jesus' actions in taking His disciples aside for rest.  But when this purpose was frustrated by the demands of the ministry, Jesus gave priority to the spirit man and stayed up all night praying and getting the spiritual rest He was needing. We should follow His example and always put the needs of the spirit ahead of the needs of the flesh.

Others may have thought Jesus was John the Baptist risen from the dead, but as can be seen by looking at Matthew's Gospel and especially Mark's, Herod was convinced of this personally. This shows Herod's own conviction of the sin John had rebuked, his guilt and torment over his even greater sin of beheading John, and his fear of John and the God he represented.  As seen in Mark 6:20, Herod once listened to John gladly.  It is certain that John was preaching his favorite message of, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." For Herod to hear him gladly, he must have been under deep conviction from God.

Herod feared his wife and the opinion of others more than he feared God.  Herod was not as Festus, who told Paul he was mad for speaking of the resurrection from the dead.  Herod knew the truth personally, was exceedingly sorry, and yet chose death, both John the Baptist's and his own spiritual death.  Apparently Herod lacked peace after his fatal choice.

According to the world's mentality, peace is the absence of problems.  God's peace is not dependent on circumstances.  It is dependent only on God Himself who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).  A Christian can have great peace even in the midst of terrible problems because his faith is in God. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee" (Isaiah 26:3).

Matthew 10:42 shows that even our smallest acts of kindness will be rewarded.  As seen in 1 Corinthians 3:13, every man's work shall be tried to determine "what sort it is," not what size it is.  Many people who have never done anything to gain the attention of the masses will shine bright in the day when the Lord passes out His rewards.

Some of the Lord's rewards for our actions come in this life, such as children, financial blessings, health, and many others.  Some of our rewards will not be realized until we stand before God.  This is the case with the reward for enduring persecution.

Many of the rewards for ministering the Gospel will not come until we appear before the Lord.  Rewards can be shared by those who aid others in their righteous tasks.

The ungodly who are not in the Kingdom of God will receive no rewards even though some of their actions might have been good.  Rewards are only for those who have been cleansed from their evil deeds by the blood of the Lamb.

Whatever these rewards shall be, there will not be any exalting of self over others.  "For what gives you the right to make such a judgment?  What do you have that God hasn’t given you?  And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift? (1 Corinthians 4:7). 

The twenty-four elders in Revelation 4:10 are shown casting their crowns (which were rewards) down before the Lord and giving all their praise and worship to Him. It's all because of Him. Thanks be to Him for His goodness.

This statement of peace in Matthew 10:34 seems like a contradiction to some prophecies concerning Jesus and some of Jesus' own statements concerning peace, as well as what was written of Him in the New Testament Epistles.  The peace that Jesus purchased was peace between God and man.  We have peace with God (Romans 5:1).  We are urged to take this peace and pass it to all men, but it is also made very clear that not all men will receive it.

Peace can only come when we relate to God on the basis of faith in what He did for us, instead of what we do for Him.  A person who is thinking that he must perform up to some standard to be accepted by God will have no peace.  That puts the burden of salvation on our shoulders, and we can't bear that load.  We were not able to live holy enough to please God before we were saved, and we are not able to live holy enough to please God now that we are saved (Hebrews 11:6).  We were saved by faith, and we have to continue to walk with God by faith (Colossians 2:6).  Not understanding this has made many Christians, who love God, unable to enjoy the peace that was provided for them through faith in Jesus.

The Gospel will always produce opposition from those who don't receive it.  This "sword of division," even among family members, is not God's will, nor is it God that causes it.  But, it will inevitably come, and Jesus was simply preparing His disciples for that time.  As much as we would like everyone to receive the good news, we must not think it is strange when even our loved ones don't receive it.  Jesus was rejected by His own, and we will be also. We must remain faithful to continue preaching the Gospel, for there are others who will receive.

The word "deny" can mean a variety of things from as little as "to assert the contrary of" to "to disavow; disown."  For example, we can see that it must have been the lesser type of denial which was committed by Peter because God certainly forgave Peter's sin and continued using him.  In Hebrews 6:4-6, the Lord states that there is no repentance from total denial of the Lord (Hebrews 10:29).  Even though Peter denied (asserted he did not know) the Lord, he did not disown or disavow the Lord.

No believer desires to deny our Lord, but failing to provide for spiritual health is the first step in that direction.  Remembering this will help motivate us to seek the Lord as we know we should.  It takes more than desire; it takes preparation.  We have all been taught how to rely on ourselves, but we have to learn how to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10).   In the physical realm, muscles have to be exercised to become strong, so we have to exercise ourselves unto Godliness (1 Timothy 4:7).

Many people have been tormented by fear in thinking that they have denied the Lord because of some type of sin in their life.  God looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7) and, regardless of how offensive our actions or words might be, if there is still a place in our hearts where we honor Him, He will not deny us (2 Timothy 2:12-13).

Persecution is an part of the Christian life. Persecution is from Satan and is designed to take God's Word out of our lives by taking our eyes off Jesus. We should not think it is strange to be persecuted. "All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution" (2 Timothy 3:12). We can actually rejoice because we are being persecuted, for Jesus' sake, knowing that the Lord will be with us in the midst of the persecution and that there will be a reward when we stand before Him (Hebrews 11:26).

Persecution is an indication that the ones doing the persecuting are under conviction. They realize that they are not living what our words or actions are advocating, so, in defense of ones self, they attack the ones whom they perceive to be the source of their conviction. If this is understood, it makes persecution much easier to take. They aren't just mad at us; they are convicted. When the Gospel is presented in the power of the Holy Spirit, there will always be either a revival or a riot, but not indifference.

There are many forms of persecution. Having your life threatened because of your faith in Jesus is one way we can be persecuted, but it is not the most damaging. History shows that the Church has always flourished under persecution with increased numbers and zeal. During intense, life-threatening persecution, people's priorities get straightened out and the Lord assumes His rightful place. This always works for our good, regardless of what our outward circumstances might be. Remember it is not us that they are persecuting, but rather Christ in you.

"Repent" comes from the Greek and literally means to have another mind.  Repentance is a necessary part of salvation.  Repentance may include Godly sorrow, but sorrow does not always include repentance.

Repentance is simply a change of mind along with corresponding actions.  There is a Godly type of sorrow and an ungodly type of sorrow.  Godly sorrow leads to repentance.  Ungodly sorrow, or the sorrow of this world, just kills.

Our culture has rejected all "negative" emotions.  But God gave us the capacity for these negative emotions, and there is a proper use of them. Ecclesiastes 7:3 says, "Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better."  People should feel bad about sin.  There should be sorrow over our failures.  This sorrow should lead to repentance.  Then, when forgiveness is received, our sorrow should be cast upon the Lord (Isaiah 53:4).

The Lord's statements to His disciples, the night before His crucifixion, caused them sorrow (Matthew 26:21-22; John 16:6).  If they would have let that sorrow lead them to repentance, then they wouldn't have denied the Lord.  Peter's sorrow after his denial of Jesus changed him.

The sorrow experienced by those who do not turn to God produces only death.  They grieve over their situation because they don't turn to God (that's repentance).  Christians should only have sorrow until they repent.  Godly sorrow that produces repentance leaves us with no regrets.  The positive change that our sorrows led us to, changes our attitude towards the things that caused us sorrow. 

John 10:10

John 14:6

People are born again through the power of the Word of God, not through prayer. Prayer is very important, but it is not a substitute for the Gospel.

Many people petition God for someone to be saved and can't understand why it hasn't happened yet. We don't have to ask the Lord to save anyone. He isn't willing that anyone should perish. He has already made provision for everyone's salvation.

So what do we pray concerning someone coming to the Lord? Jesus said to pray that the Lord send laborers across their path. They need to hear the Word.   We should bind the influence of the god of this world (Satan) who tries to blind them to spiritual truth (II Corinthians 4:4).

God is more motivated to save our loved ones than we are. We don't need to plead with Him, but rather we need to become a channel for Him to flow through to reach that person. We do that by sharing the good news (Gospel) with them and/or praying that others will come across their path who will do the same.

The Gospel is the power of God that releases the effects of salvation in our lives (Romans 1:16). If a person needs healing, it's in the Gospel.  If deliverance is needed, it's in the Gospel.  Prosperity, answered prayer, joy, peace, love; they are all found through understanding and believing the Gospel.

The Gospel is the good news that although we are sinners and worthy of God's wrath, God, in love, sent His Son to be our substitute, bearing our punishment, so that we could be made completely righteous in His sight. It's based only on our faith in this completed work of Christ and not our own performance. Now that's GOOD NEWS!