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* PENTECOST*

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THE WORLD'S GREATEST HOLINESS PREACHER!

A New Light Dawns!

FAITH VS WORKS

,

Wrote James the Brother of Jesus in that short little book they allowed him hiding amongst all those Letters of Paul --------

    James 2:14 "What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath FAITH, and have not WORKS?  Can FAITH save him?

    15 "If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food. 16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?"

     17 "Even so FAITH, if it hath WORKS, is dead, being alone."

      18 "Yea, a man may say. Thou hast FAITH, and I have WORKS: shew me thy FAITH without thy WORKS, and I will shew the my FAITH by my WORKS.

      19 "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well; the devils also believe, and tremble."

       20 "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that FAITH without WORKS is dead?

       21 "Was not Abraham our father justified by WORKS, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

      22 "Seest thou how FAITH wrought with his WORKS, and by WORKS was FAITH made perfect?

      23 "And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness; and he was called theFriend of God."

     24 "Ye see then how that by WORKS a man is justified, and not by FAITH only."

     25 "Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by WORKS, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?"

     26 "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so FAITH without WORKS is dead also."

 LET'S LOOK NOW WHAT THE JESUS OF THE GOSPELS HAS TO SAY ABOUT FAITH!

     Jesus' Discourse on "FAITH"

A Part of the "Sermon on the Mount"

    Matthew 6:25 "Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on.  Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?"

    26 "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?"

    27 "Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?"

    28 "And why take ye thought for raiment?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."

    30 "Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little FAITH?

   31 "Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?"

    32 "(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things."

     33 "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

     34 "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.  Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."

What He has to say about WORKS in the same Sermon!

  Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

     4 "Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted."

     5 "Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth."

     6 "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled."

    7 "Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy."

      8 "Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God."

      9 "Blessed are the peacemnakers; for they shall be called the children of God."

      10 "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

     11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

     12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven; for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."

      16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your GOOD WORKS, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

      19 "Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."

     20 "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteous-ness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."

    21 "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:  22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say unto his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire."  ETC.

   27 "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery; 28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath commited adultery with her already in his heart."

AND SO IT GOES THROUGHOUT THE REMAINDER OF THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT IN WHICH JESUS CHRIST

THE PROMOTER OF GOOD WORKS

SUGGESTS IT'S BETTER TO PLUCK OUT YOUR EYE THAN LET WHAT THAT EYE SEES BRING YOU TO HELL FIRE

CUT OFF YOUR RIGHT HAND IF YOU ARE TEMPTED TO USE THAT HAND TO DO SOMETHING THAT WILL PUT YOU IN HELL

STAY MARRIED TO A WIFE YOU DON'T REALLY GET ALONG WITH WELL SO LONG AS SHE'S NOT COMMITTING ADULTERY

DO NOT USE BAD LANGUAGE OR SWEAR

OR EVEN USE EXAGGERATED LANGUAGE

DO NOT EXPECT EQUAL TREATMENT IF INJURED, GIVE PEOPLE THAT DEMAND THINGS FROM YOU MORE THAN THEY ARE ASKING YOU FOR

LOVE YOUR ENEMIES, NOT JUST YOUR FRIENDS

USE THE PATIENCE OF "YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN" AS YOUR PATTERN, TRY TO BE AS GOOD AS YOU IMAGINE GOD TO BE

"BE YE THEREFORE PERFECT, EVEN AS YOUR FATHER WHICH IS IN HEAVEN IS PERFECT."

WHEN YOU ARE DOING ALL THESE "ALMS" (GOOD WORKS) WHICH YOU SHOULD BE DOING, IF POSSIBLE DO THEM ANNONYMOUSLY (IN SECRET) SO AS NOT TO GET CREDIT FOR DOING THEM FROM YOUR FRIENDS OR CHURCH

PRAY QUIETLY AND IN SECRET, NOT LOUDLY IN PUBLIC

THE LORD'S PRAYER GIVEN AS AN EXAMPLE

FORGIVE OTHERS THE REAL OR IMAGINED HURTFUL THINGS THEY HAVE DONE TO YOU (OR GOD WILL NOT FORGIVE YOU

DO NOT FEIGN RELIGIOUS PENANCE (FASTING) BY APPEARING TO BE SORROWFUL, EVEN IF YOU ARE

DO NOT BE GREEDY, NOR PILE UP RICHES -- GIVE MORE OF IT TO GOD, AND OTHER GOOD CAUSES

"FOR WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS, THERE WILL YOUR HEART BE ALSO"

LOOK FOR THE GOOD IN EVERYTHING AND EVERYBODY

NO MAN CAN SERVE TWO MASTERS -- CHOOSE GOD!

HAVE FAITH (THE DISCOURSE ON "FAITH)

JUDGE NOT (DON'T GOSSIP)

BE CAREFUL WHO YOU GIVE ADVICE TO, EVEN GOOD ADVICE ("CAST NOT YOUR PEARLS BEFORE SWINE")

"THEREFORE ALL THINGS WHATSOEVER YE WOULD THAT MEN SHOULD DO TO YOU, DO YE EVEN SO TO THEM."

 

yFOLLOWING THE "GOLDEN RULE" (of WORKS not FAITH)

THERE ARE FIVE (OR SEVEN) PARABLES

PARABLE # 1) THE TWO GATES, -- THE STRAIT GATE THAT LEADS TO LIFE (CELIBACY AND GOOD WORKS AT THE QUMRAN MONASTERY UNDER VERY STRICT RULES -- and

THE WIDE GATE THAT LEADS TO DESTRUCTION (MARRIAGE AND RELAXED RULES) ADAPTED BY PAUL FOR GENTILES

PARABLE #2) FALSE PROPHETS AS WOLVES IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING

PARABLE #3) KNOW THEM BY THEIR FRUITS (THESE FRUITS BEING "WORKS" NOT "FAITH" -- GRAPES FROM THORNS? GOOD TREE BEARS GOOD FRUIT, CORRUPT TREE BEARS EVIL FRUIT --"WHEREFORE BY THEIR FRUITS SHALL YE KNOW THEM"

PARABLE #4) PARABLE OF THE JUDGMENT (OF "WORKS" not "FAITH") SAYING 'LORD, LORD" WILL NOT GET YOU APPOVAL BUT HE THAT DOETH THE WILL OF MY FATHER --THOSE REJECTED THAT WORK INIQUITY.

PARABLE #5) PARABLE OF THE TWO HOUSES -- THE WISE MAN BUILT HIS HOUSE UPON THE ROCK (TEN COMMANDMENTS - GOOD WORKS) - THE FOOLISH MAN BUILT HIS HOUSE UPON THE SAND (FAITH IN FALSE GOSPEL) THIS LISTING CAN BE EXPANDED TO 7 PARABLES BY MAKING THE WIDE AND NARROW PATH 2, AND THE FRUITS 2)

   AFTER COMPLETING THIS ANALYSIS AND DISCOVERING THAT ALL OF THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT EXCEPT FOR THE "DISCOURSE ON FAITH" OF CH. 6 VERSES 25 -34 PROMOTES GOOD WORKS AND ONLY GOOD WORKS, I REALIZED THAT THIS "FAITH" OF THE DISCOURSE WORKS ONLY IN THE SPECIAL SITUATION FOUND AT QUMRAN, OR PERHAPS IN SOME OTHER MONASTERY, BUT NOT OUT IN THE WORLD IN GENERAL--MORE ABOUT THIS LATER!

6 Commonly Proposed Pictures or Personalities of Jesus Christ

Jesus #1, if he existed at all was a simple man, of little historical consequence. Jesus  #2, is as the Church councils have pictured him, a God who posed as a man Jesus #3, was an Essene, a man who lived a "Perfect" life, that we cannot match.

OUR HIGH PRIEST

      TRULY HUMAN

   BUT WITH TALENT!
Jesus #4, lived a celibate  life, like other Essenes, and Catholic priests and popes. Jesus #5, was our "High Priest" but we cannot possibly live like he lived Jesus #6, was not a high priest, but an occasionally sinful person such as we are.

from virtualreligion.net

 

76. Essenes are Rural Poor
75 Then too, Syrian Palestine is not unproductive in moral excellence. There the major portion of the Jewish people are distributed. It is said that among them there are more than 4000 persons with the name of Essenes. In my judgment---(though) it is not exact in the Greek dialect---they are , indeed, they have become servants (therapeutae) of God, not by sacrificing animals, but by praying to render their thoughts fit for the holy.
76 Now in the first place, they dwell in villages, keeping away from the cities because of lawlessness practiced by city-dwellers. They know that the pestilence bred from this company, as from polluted air, would render their souls incurable. There are some who till the soil, while others pursue crafts which work for peace. And so they benefit themselves and their neighbors.
77 They do not treasure silver and gold or acquire great sections of land because of a desire for the proceeds. Instead, they provide the necessities for the basic requirements of life. For they are unique among all the race of men, having become penniless and landless by choice rather than lack of good luck. But they count themselves very wealthy, judging ready satisfaction and contentment with little (to be) abundance, as it is.
  --- Philo, Every Good Man is Free 12.75-77

77. Dead Sea Settlement of Essenes
73 On the west bank (of the Dead Sea) the Essenes take refuge, to the point where they are harmful. This is a solitary people and remarkable in comparison with others in the whole world. They live as partners of the palms, without any women---having renounced all desire---and without money. From day to day this throng of refugees is renewed by crowds weary with life, whom fortune drives in waves from afar to adopt their customs. Thus, through thousands of ages---incredible to say---a people in which no one is born is eternal, so fruitful for them is others' repenting of life!.
  -- Pliny, Natural History 5.15.73

78. Some Essenes Marry
160 There is also another order of Essenes which, though agreeing with the others in life-style, customs and rules, is distinct in its doctrine regarding marriage. That is they think that those who do not marry cut off the greatest goal of life---the line of succession. Moreover, (they claim), if all were of this mind the race would very shortly die out.
  --- Josephus, Jewish War 2.160

79. Essene Monastic Rules
120 Although (the Essenes) are Jews by birth, they love one another even more than the others. They avoid pleasures as a vice and hold that virtue is to overcome one's passions and not be subject to them. Marriage is disdained by them. But they adopt the children of others while still young, leading them like kin through their studies and impressing them with their customs.
121 (The Essenes) frown on wealth. And their common life is wonderful! No one can be found superior to others in property. For their law is for those entering the party to make their substance public for the order.
122 So nowhere is either extreme poverty or exceptional wealth evident. Rather, each man's possessions are mixed into one property which is for all the brothers.
123 Oil they regard as pollution. And if anyone in the assembly is anointed he scrubs his body. For they count dryness as good and wear white everywhere. Those who administer the community are elected and their appropriate duties determined by vote of the whole.
124 They have no city, but many settle in each town. And all that they own lies open to those who have come from elsewhere, just as if they belonged with them. And they entertain those whom they have never seen before as their closest associates.
125 And so they make their journeys carrying nothing at all except weapons on account of the bandits. In each town an attendant is chosen by the order to serve strangers, and he provides clothing and whatever they need.
126 Like children, they are trained to be scrupulous about dress and bodily appearance. And they change neither garments nor sandals until they are tattered or worn out by time.
135 They master an even temper and control their anger. They advocate trust and assist peace. And all that is spoken by them has more force than an oath. But they avoid swearing, regarding it worse than perjury. For they say that he who cannot be believed unless God is against him is already condemned...
143 Now they expel from the order those who wander into substantial sins. And he who has been condemned often winds up with a miserable fate. For he who is bound by their vows and customs cannot partake of a meal with others...
144 Therefore, they take back many who are at their last breath out of pity, deeming the near fatal torture as satisfaction for their sins...
146 Now they obey their elders and hold that the majority is right. For example, when ten sit together, no one speaks if nine are unwilling. They also avoid spitting in their midst or to the right side.
147 And they are the most distinct of all Jews in abstaining from work on the Sabbath. For not only do they prepare their meals one day ahead so as not to light a fire on that day, they do not dare to move a dish or even relieve themselves...
  --- Josephus, Jewish War 2.120-126, 135-147

80. Communal Property at Qumran
11 ...And all who volunteer for his Truth shall bring all their knowledge and powers
12 and possessions into the Unity of God:
--to purify their knowledge by the truth of God's precepts, and
--to measure their powers
13 according to the perfection of his ways and all their possessions according to his righteous counsel.
  --- Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule (1QS) 1.11-13

81. Deviants from Torah Excommunicated
21 All who enter in the council of Holiness are those who walk in perfection of way, as he commanded. Every man from this (group)
22 who with a lax or high hand bypasses a word from the Torah of Moses shall be driven out of the council of the Unity
23 and shall return no more. And no one from the men of Holiness shall mix his property with his for any reason.
  --- Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule (1QS) 8.21-23

82. Directions for the Instructor
12 These are the precepts for the instructor to walk in with all who live according to the rule for each occasion and the value of every man:
13 --to go along with the will of God, according to all that has been revealed for each occasion; and to measure with all the understanding he has attained according to the times
14 along with the precept for each occasion;
--to separate and weigh the sons of Zadok according to their spirits and to uphold those chosen at the time
15 by his favorable decision;
--to judge each as to his spirit and to bring near each as his hands are clean and to advance him according to his understanding.
16 --Thus his love is like his hatred. He is not to argue or dispute with the men of corruption but to conceal the counsel of the Torah among the men of error.
  --- Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule (1QS) 9.12-16

83. Essene Worship & Communal Meal
128 Moreover, their way of worshipping God is their own. For they utter nothing mundane before sunrise, but with some of their fathers' prayers they beg him to arise.
129 After this they are dismissed by those in charge, each to his own craft. And they work strenuously until the fifth hour [= 11 a.m.], when they again gather together in one spot. Girding themselves with linen cloths, they wash their bodies with cold water. And after this purification, they assemble in a private room, where no one with other beliefs is allowed to come. Having purified themselves, they enter the dining hall as if it were some shrine.
130 When they are seated in silence, the baker passes out the loaves according to rank and the cook passes each one a portion from a single dish.
131 The priest prays before the meal; and one is not allowed to eat before this prayer. When they have breakfasted, he gives thanks again. So, they begin and finish (eating) by honoring God as the author of life...
132 ...No shouting or confusion ever pollutes the house, but they speak in turn to one another.
133 Now, to those outside, the silence of those within seems like some awesome mystery. But it is really because they are allotted just enough food and drink and, so, are always sober.
  --- Josephus, Jewish War 2.128-133

84. Communal Order at Qumran
2 They shall walk in these ways in all dealings with each other, wherever they dwell:
--regarding work and wealth [mammon]: the lesser shall heed the greater.
--but united they shall eat
3 and united they shall pray; and united they shall take counsel.
--and in every locale where there are ten men from the common council,
4 --a priest shall not be lacking among them.
and they shall sit before him each according to his rank;
and thus they shall be asked for their counsel in every case.
--and when they prepare the table for eating or the new wine
5 for drinking, the priest shall be the first to stretch out his hand for the blessing on the first portion of bread or new wine.
  --- Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule (1QS) 6.2-5

85. Council of Twelve
1 In the council of the community there shall be twelve men and three priests
perfected in all that has been revealed from the whole
2 Torah:
--for practicing truth and righteousness, justice and loving kindness and walking humbly with each other;
3 --for keeping faithfulness in the land with firm intention and contrite spirit;
--for overcoming iniquity by deeds of justice and endurance of fiery trials;
4 --and for walking in all things by the standard of truth and the regulation for the occasion.
  --- Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule (1QS) 8.1-4

 It's obvious to anyone who has seriously and critically compared the "Sermon on the Mount" by Jesus to the Essene rules and regulations that Jesus was just restating some of these rules for Gentile use!

     And that they are all about "Good Works" not "Faith"!

 

 

 

 

 

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