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3.12.23 PM Worship – Mark Day – Fishers of Men

March 12, 2023 by admin Leave a Comment

3.12.23 PM Worship – Mark Day – Fishers of Men

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3.12.23 AM Worship – Mark Day – What Does Jesus Say?

March 12, 2023 by admin Leave a Comment

3.12.23 AM Worship – Mark Day – What Does Jesus Say?

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The Idolatry of Selective Obedience

March 10, 2023 by admin Leave a Comment

Selective obedience is actually disobedience. Good parents do not allow their children to pick and choose when they will obey. Likewise, God has given commands to men expecting all of them to be followed. He is the one lawgiver who stands behind all of the commands. If we fear God, we cannot treat His words as a buffet, picking only those precepts which we like to keep, “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10). When it comes to civil offenses, people speak of “breaking the law” in general not “breaking a law” because one does not have to commit every crime to be a criminal. The law has a unity to it which is indivisible.

The above reference in James is in the midst of a discussion about showing partiality.  Evidently a problem existed of honoring the rich and snubbing the poor (James 2:1-4). To act this way was to disregard God’s law. “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors” (James 2:8-9). God’s law demands love for all. One may well refrain from breaking one stipulation of God’s law, but to show partiality runs against the whole tenor of the law in loving your neighbor as yourself, referred to here in James as the “royal law” (cf. Lev. 19:18).

By way of illustration, James 2:11 gives an example from the Old Testament law given on Sinai, “For He who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.” Prohibitions against adultery and murder are found in the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:13, 14; Deut. 5:17, 18). Both do harm to one’s neighbor (Rom. 13:8-10). The point James is making would be true with any two of the commandments of God. The murderer may be faithful to his wife, but that does not absolve him of taking innocent life.

Selective obedience really is a form of idolatry. The attraction of the idol is to be able to create our own good and evil. Sin occurs when we set ourselves up in the place of God (Gen. 3:5). Thus, the beginning of the Ten Commandments is foundational to what follows. If one is willing to have another god besides the one, true God, then disobedience to God’s commands in other places will follow (Ex. 20:3). If one wishes to fashion a god in the image of the creature rather than following the authoritative Creator, then God’s rightful place has already been supplanted (Ex. 20:4-6; Rom. 1:25). Selective obedience takes God off the throne and puts self on the throne.

Let us not treasure our own opinions or the trends of the world around us above the commands of God by following only those commands that agree with us. Instead, let us reverence God by esteeming all His commandments highly. “Therefore I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold. Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way” (Psa. 119:127, 128).                                                -Mark Day

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3.8.23 Wed. Class – Jeremiah Smith – Honor Your Father and Mother

March 8, 2023 by admin Leave a Comment

3.8.23 Wed. Class – Jeremiah Smith – Honor Your Father and Mother

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Consuming Leaven

March 6, 2023 by admin Leave a Comment

In the midst of a chapter discussing the contrasts between Jesus’ true identity and the expectations many had of the Messiah, we read, “Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees” (Mt. 16:6).

Leaven is yeast, a single-celled fungus that is a key ingredient in many baking recipes. The process of leavening bread with yeast begins with the activation of the yeast. This is done by combining the yeast with warm water and a small amount of sugar. The sugar provides the yeast with the energy it needs to begin the process of fermentation. As the yeast consumes the sugar, it produces carbon dioxide gas, which is trapped in the dough and causes it to expand. Once the dough has risen, it is ready to be baked. The heat of the oven causes the carbon dioxide gas to expand further, creating a light and airy texture in the finished product. Leaven is used in the Bible as a metaphor for an unseen pervasive influence, usually evil.

Photo by Vicky Ng on Unsplash

The disciples had their minds on physical bread, worrying that they had not brought any with them on their journey (Mt. 16:5). Perhaps they had forgotten to because of their anxiety regarding the confrontation with the religious leaders prior to their departure. Jesus admonished them for their lack of faith, reminding them of the occasions where He had miraculously multiplied bread (Mt. 16:8-10). Jesus restated His warning (Mt. 16:11), then the disciples understood that the point was not bread, but rather the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees (Mt. 16:12).

The Pharisees were an important Jewish sect in the time of Jesus. They were insistent on an exact observance of the oral traditions which spelled out how to keep the law, but were not very involved in the politics of the day. The Sadducees, on the other hand,  were a major force in the politics of Judea during the time of Jesus; Mark’s parallel account which has “leaven of Herod” instead of “Sadducees” may speak to this (Mk. 8:15). The Sadducees were the ruling class in control of the Temple and the Sanhedrin. The Sadducees were known for their literal interpretation of the Torah and their rejection of the oral law and the teachings of the Pharisees. While the Pharisees and Sadducees were often at odds, they were united in opposition to Jesus. Together they tested Jesus at the beginning of this chapter (Mt. 16:1).

Jesus went on to speak of establishing His kingdom where what was bound and loosed in heaven would be bound and loosed upon earth (Mt. 16:19). While the Pharisees and Sadducees had many differences—they bound and loosed different rules—their uniting together to resist God’s Messiah showed their biases prevented them from seeing what God was clearly communicating right in front of them. Religious traditions and political loyalties are some of the most pervasive and difficult forces to overcome in people being honest with the Word of God and truly following Him. We would not for a minute tolerate poison being laced into our daily food that sustains us physically; however, with our spiritual nourishment—that should sustain our eternal souls to live eternally—far too many consume false religious teaching and political lies to their own ruin. If we are going to enter the narrow gate that leads to life, we must beware of false teachers (Mt. 7:13-15).

-Mark Day

Filed Under: Articles, Featured

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Flatwoods Church of Christ
PO Box 871
2100 Argillite Rd.
Flatwoods, KY
41139

606.836.4207

Service Times

Sunday Bible Study - 9:45 am
Sunday Morning Worship - 10:45 am
Sunday Evening Worship - 6:00 pm
Wednesday Evening Worship - 7:00 pm

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