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Luke 12:1-5 ESV
What is “leaven”?
I read this definition of “leaven” – “Something that modifies or lightens.” (source: M-W Dictionary). And then I read this one – “the spreading influence of what is typically concealed;” “a symbol of the spreading nature of evil” (source: biblehub.com interlinear). And the two definitions actually fit together. For the lies modify and lighten the truth to make the truth less offensive and more acceptable to human flesh. And the lies are also this spreading influence of evil, the truth of which is very much concealed.
And who are the Pharisees? In our day and time they represent all those who profess faith in Jesus Christ and who act religiously in front of other people and who go through particular religious exercises, but who are sinning in secret, behind closed doors where no one can see the evil they are involved in. And they represent people in positions of religious authority over the people who profess faith in Jesus Christ within the gatherings of the church, or within the gatherings of what is falsely called “church.”
So, this would then be about hypocritical rulers and guides and ministers within the gatherings of the church or the ICs (institutional churches) who are putting on a performance of righteousness in front of people, but who are deliberately and habitually sinning against God in secret. They have that outward appearance of being Christian but by their lifestyles they deny the very Lord they profess to worship. And their teaching is not of God, even if it has the appearance that it is, for there is much deception in the mix.
Warning Against Deception
And in today’s world, the warning really and truly is against deception, for so many of the false teachings today are not necessarily all that obvious to the unsuspecting, to the naïve, and to those who don’t really know the Scriptures. And the liars count on that, too. For misimpressions are being used a lot, for they are hard to prove, because they are indirect lies and thus they can easily claim you are just misinterpreting what they are saying. So, in these cases you really have to check your impressions against the truths of the Scriptures to make certain that what you are believing is biblical.
But even there, you must test what you are hearing and/or reading against the Scriptures in their context. For may deceivers use Scriptures to tell their lies, but they use them out of context, and they twist them to say what the Scriptures do not teach in context. And so please be in the practice of reading passages of Scripture in their context, including in the context of the whole of the New Testament teachings. And this engages the use of comparing Scripture with Scripture so that you get the truth of it all.
But there is so much evil and deception and trickery going on these days in the name of Christianity. And if you are one who is teaching the truth, and who is exposing the lies, Satan is going to be after you, and others might even trump up lies against you in order to silence you, like they did to Jesus and to the NT apostles, and to the prophets before them. For Satan and his servants fight dirty when they feel as though their lies are being threatened, and that their lies are in danger of being exposed.
But God is still sovereign! Amen? He is still in control over all things. And one day all these things that are now being hidden are going to come into the light. And yes, even the slightest of errors we may have made over the years may also come out in the process, for we are not perfect people. But we should not be people who are living in sin and who are ignoring the Lord’s commands and who are going our own way instead of God’s way. So, we should have nothing to hide if our walks of faith are of God.
And none of us should be afraid of what other humans might do to us or say about us or to us. We should fear God and not other humans, and we must do what is right, even if others then tell lies about us to cover up their sins and their lies they are telling the people. Yet, we should be more concerned about getting out the truth for the salvation of human lives than with what other humans might do in response to our truthfulness. And then we need to trust the Lord to work it all out according to his plans and purposes.
For we are to walk in the fear of the Lord, believing what his word teaches us regarding what it means to be saved from our sins and to have eternal life with God. For his word teaches us that we must die with Christ to sin and live to his righteousness, and that we must no longer walk in sin, but now in obedience to our Lord. And if we do not do what our Lord says we must do, then we have to know that we do not have eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips profess. So, please take this to heart!
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
“In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, ‘Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.
“’I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!’”
What is “leaven”?
I read this definition of “leaven” – “Something that modifies or lightens.” (source: M-W Dictionary). And then I read this one – “the spreading influence of what is typically concealed;” “a symbol of the spreading nature of evil” (source: biblehub.com interlinear). And the two definitions actually fit together. For the lies modify and lighten the truth to make the truth less offensive and more acceptable to human flesh. And the lies are also this spreading influence of evil, the truth of which is very much concealed.
And who are the Pharisees? In our day and time they represent all those who profess faith in Jesus Christ and who act religiously in front of other people and who go through particular religious exercises, but who are sinning in secret, behind closed doors where no one can see the evil they are involved in. And they represent people in positions of religious authority over the people who profess faith in Jesus Christ within the gatherings of the church, or within the gatherings of what is falsely called “church.”
So, this would then be about hypocritical rulers and guides and ministers within the gatherings of the church or the ICs (institutional churches) who are putting on a performance of righteousness in front of people, but who are deliberately and habitually sinning against God in secret. They have that outward appearance of being Christian but by their lifestyles they deny the very Lord they profess to worship. And their teaching is not of God, even if it has the appearance that it is, for there is much deception in the mix.
Warning Against Deception
And in today’s world, the warning really and truly is against deception, for so many of the false teachings today are not necessarily all that obvious to the unsuspecting, to the naïve, and to those who don’t really know the Scriptures. And the liars count on that, too. For misimpressions are being used a lot, for they are hard to prove, because they are indirect lies and thus they can easily claim you are just misinterpreting what they are saying. So, in these cases you really have to check your impressions against the truths of the Scriptures to make certain that what you are believing is biblical.
But even there, you must test what you are hearing and/or reading against the Scriptures in their context. For may deceivers use Scriptures to tell their lies, but they use them out of context, and they twist them to say what the Scriptures do not teach in context. And so please be in the practice of reading passages of Scripture in their context, including in the context of the whole of the New Testament teachings. And this engages the use of comparing Scripture with Scripture so that you get the truth of it all.
But there is so much evil and deception and trickery going on these days in the name of Christianity. And if you are one who is teaching the truth, and who is exposing the lies, Satan is going to be after you, and others might even trump up lies against you in order to silence you, like they did to Jesus and to the NT apostles, and to the prophets before them. For Satan and his servants fight dirty when they feel as though their lies are being threatened, and that their lies are in danger of being exposed.
But God is still sovereign! Amen? He is still in control over all things. And one day all these things that are now being hidden are going to come into the light. And yes, even the slightest of errors we may have made over the years may also come out in the process, for we are not perfect people. But we should not be people who are living in sin and who are ignoring the Lord’s commands and who are going our own way instead of God’s way. So, we should have nothing to hide if our walks of faith are of God.
And none of us should be afraid of what other humans might do to us or say about us or to us. We should fear God and not other humans, and we must do what is right, even if others then tell lies about us to cover up their sins and their lies they are telling the people. Yet, we should be more concerned about getting out the truth for the salvation of human lives than with what other humans might do in response to our truthfulness. And then we need to trust the Lord to work it all out according to his plans and purposes.
For we are to walk in the fear of the Lord, believing what his word teaches us regarding what it means to be saved from our sins and to have eternal life with God. For his word teaches us that we must die with Christ to sin and live to his righteousness, and that we must no longer walk in sin, but now in obedience to our Lord. And if we do not do what our Lord says we must do, then we have to know that we do not have eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips profess. So, please take this to heart!
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
