Matthew 26:24-25
26:24 "The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born."
26:25 Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, "Rabbi, is it I?" He said to him, "You have said it."
Jesus said that it would have been good forJudas Iscariot if he had not been born, although he was an apostle and a treasurer whom the Lord trusted.
Why?
It is because he did not experience new birth but kept on being flesh and blood humanwho did not inherit Heaven but being destroyed forever.
The sign is being a thief, traitor, and liar.
Thus, Judas was born only to perish vainly. All things we get in the world will be vain although they seem great physically and spiritually.
The matters we can learn from it are as follows:
1:18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
1:19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
All expensive things in the world such as intelligence, riches, good position, et cetera cannot be compared with Jesus' blood because all of them cannot redeem the sins of human, cannot make the worthless sinful human precious.
Only Jesus' blood is able to redeem human who are worthless because of sins to become precious before the Lord, not being destroyed as Judas.
Thus, the Gentiles should not rely on worldly gold and silver!
The Gentiles must MAKE EFFORT to experience the redemption of Jesus' blood.
All intelligence, riches, good position, and great worldly and spiritual things in the world are vain or meaningless before we have the redemption of Jesus' blood.
The result of the redemption of Jesus' blood is as follows:
Revelation 1:5-6
1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
26:24 "The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born."
26:25 Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, "Rabbi, is it I?" He said to him, "You have said it."
Jesus said that it would have been good forJudas Iscariot if he had not been born, although he was an apostle and a treasurer whom the Lord trusted.
Why?
It is because he did not experience new birth but kept on being flesh and blood humanwho did not inherit Heaven but being destroyed forever.
The sign is being a thief, traitor, and liar.
Thus, Judas was born only to perish vainly. All things we get in the world will be vain although they seem great physically and spiritually.
The matters we can learn from it are as follows:
- Let you who have not ministered God at present minister Him.
- Let us who have ministered God now be solemn so we do not become like Judas.
- Numbers 12:1-2, 10-12
12:1. Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
12:2 So they said, "Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?" And the LORD heard it.
12:10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper.
12:11 So Aaron said to Moses, "Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned.
12:12 "Please do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother's womb!"
Miriam, the image of God's servant who becomes leprous as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother's womb.
Why?
It is because there is leprosy or self-truth.
The fact found in it isalways blaming other people to cover his own fault/sin/weakness.
It is especially blaming the chief, and pastor, even God or the true teaching Word.
Be alert!
Parents or pastor tend to set a good value on the children/congregation although they still have weakness.
On the contrary, the children/congregation tend to "sell" the parents/pastor by saying bad things while the goodness are being forgotten. - Exodus 13:13a
13:13 "But every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb; and if you will not redeem it, then you shall break its neck.
A donkey which was born without the redemption of a lamb, was born only to perish because the neck had to be broken.
Judges15:16
15:16 Then Samson said: "With the jawbone of a donkey, Heaps upon heaps, With the jawbone of a donkey I have slain a thousand men!"
The Philistines were said as the nation of donkey.
The term "donkey" refers to the Gentiles.
The Gentiles who are not redeemed by Jesus' blood are living in vain because they were born only to perish.
1:18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
1:19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
All expensive things in the world such as intelligence, riches, good position, et cetera cannot be compared with Jesus' blood because all of them cannot redeem the sins of human, cannot make the worthless sinful human precious.
Only Jesus' blood is able to redeem human who are worthless because of sins to become precious before the Lord, not being destroyed as Judas.
Thus, the Gentiles should not rely on worldly gold and silver!
The Gentiles must MAKE EFFORT to experience the redemption of Jesus' blood.
All intelligence, riches, good position, and great worldly and spiritual things in the world are vain or meaningless before we have the redemption of Jesus' blood.
The result of the redemption of Jesus' blood is as follows:
Revelation 1:5-6
1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
- Jesus' blood sets the Gentiles (donkey) free from the paganism.
Ephesians 2:11-12
2:11. Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh--who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands--
2:12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.- Uncircumcision = without sanctification so the life is only as dog and swine repeating the sins.
It is dangerous if we have had no effort to be set free from sin even if we have enjoyed living in it.
As long as we can regret, God still can help us. - Without Christ = without the anointing of Holy Spirit but living only to follow the lust of flesh although it has been obvious that it is contrary to the Word of God.
- Without the promise of God (heavenly Canaan) = without future life and without the eternal one.
- Without hope = easily being proud, disappointed, and hopeless.
- Without God = without love.
We are only able to be delivered from all sins of paganism by Jesus' blood, which came out of the fifth wound on His side which was pierced up to the heart.
The five sins of paganism cause the Gentiles to live in vain only to perish.
If the Gentiles experience the redemption by Jesus' blood, they will be saved to live in righteousness.
The Gentiles who are saved and righteous are more precious than all precious things in the world.
Genesis 49:11
49:11 Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey's colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes.
Being redeemed and saved, the donkey must be in the right place.
The donkey (the Gentiles) MUST be bound to the true Vine, meaning being shepherded to the one true teaching Word.
Job 39:5, 8
39:5"Who set the wild donkey free? Who loosed the bonds of the onager,
39:8 The range of the mountains is his pasture, And he searches after every green thing.
Not being shepherded, the saved donkey (the people who have been righteous) will become wild donkey deceived by false teachings.
The false teaching is strange voice not in line with the Shepherding Word we have received.
In addition, the unshepherded Gentiles will become the onager, meaning falling and rising in sins even the peak, namely sins concerning eating-drinking and marrying-being given in marriage.
The results of being shepherded are as follows:- The shepherding in the teaching Word firms our righteousness and salvation.
The sheep must be saved as long as being shepherded with the Shepherd always.
The sign of the person who is shepherded firmly is knowing assuredly the true matter and the false one. - There is further sanctification from the self-truth.
We will never be able to receive the true teaching Word as long as we keep self-truth.
We are sanctified continually in the shepherding until we are perfected.
The unshepherded people are not firm in the shepherding. Such people were born in vain because of being wild donkey and onager which will perish forever. - Uncircumcision = without sanctification so the life is only as dog and swine repeating the sins.
- Jesus' blood lifts up the Gentiles to become priests and kings.
Revelation 1:6
1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
The meaning of priests and kings are as follows:- People who have priest's offices.
- People who serve and minister God.
The duty of priests and kings is as follows:
I Peter 2:5
2:5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Being active in the ministry of building spiritual house or Christ's body (the revival of Holy Spirit at the last rain).
Seeing our body, non-active ministers will spiritually die.
The Gentiles must be active solemnly in the revival of building Christ's body, beginning in the household, shepherding, inter-shepherding(take heed to the fellowship service!), up to the last revival when we allare fled to the wilderness while antichrist is reigning over the world.
Being non-active now, one has big chance to be left when the others are fled from antichrist.
Matthew 21:7
21:7 They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.
The Gentiles have to be active in the revival of building Christ's body as a donkey on which Jesus sat to go to New Jerusalem. All things become meaningful, not vain anymore!
If the Gentiles do not want to be ridden by Jesus, they will be ridden by Balaam, referring to false prophet, to enter the revival of building the body of Babylon which will be destroyed forever. It is a futility.
The revival going to Babylon is without sanctification and life renewal but sins of paganism although there is abundance in worldly riches.
The steps of a donkey on which Jesus sits are the steps of life renewal, namely the renewal to have the characteristics of Jesus as the King as follows:- LOWLINESS.
= ability to receive God's Word, how hard it is, to hear it until we can obey it and it becomes our flesh and blood.
Matthew 21:5
21:5 "Tell the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and sitting on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.'"
James 1:19
1:19. So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;
The signs are as follows:
Meek tongue = righteous words according to the Word of God.
Jesus has practiced the meek tongue on the cross, namely forgiving the sins of men and forgetting them.
The hardest tongue means the hardest heart, namely judging the sins of other people.
Being already ridden or employed by Jesus but keeping the sins or having hard heart, it would have been good for us if we had not been born. - HUMILITY.
= Ability to confess sins and leave them, not repeating the sins.
Jesus confessed and bore all our sins upon the cross.
On the contrary, we often do not want to confess our own sins but we blame other people. It means we become the most arrogant people! - PATIENCE.
= Ability to suffer without grumbling but giving thanks to God.
= Ability to wait the time of God.
Do not take your own way outside the Word of God when you are in problem!
The way outside the Word of God is dead-end and perdition!
If He has not helped us yet or His time has not come yet, it will be an opportunity as follows:- For God, to be busy in repairing our lives who have many weaknesses.
Let us ask God to sanctify and renew us the more.
All matters will be meaningless if we are not renewed, although the problems are settled or we have much money. Even it would have been good for us, as Judas, if we had not been born. - For us, to learn to totally surrender to God.
For example, Abraham received the promise of God to have descendants. His faith became stronger although his body became weaker and his wife had had her menopause. - For God, to be busy in repairing our lives who have many weaknesses.
The lowliness, humility, and patience give us peace/ rest.Afterward, we can pray, lift up our hands, and totally surrender to God.
I Peter 4:7
4:7. But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.
The Lord lets our problems become heavier even impossible to make us totally hope in Him.
Afterward, it is the time of God to stretch His two hands for us.
The results are as follows:- Mark 4:39
4:39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!" And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
The powerful hand of God is able to make all wind and wave calm.
= The hand of God's power finishes all our problems even the impossible one.
= The hand of God's power heals or lifts us up from all failures, confusion, and destruction of our life to become success. - Matthew 11:29-30
11:29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
11:30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
The powerful hand of God is able to make all things easy and light, and beautiful in its time.
Little by little, all heavy burden and weariness become easy and light as we taste sweet wine. - I Thessalonians 5:23-24
5:23. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
5:24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.
The hand of God's power is able to preserve us physically in the midst of difficulties in the world as well as to sanctify our body, soul, and spirit until we become perfect and blameless as Jesus is.
He who calls us is faithful will also do it.
The proof is real in the cross that He has drunk the sour wine to bear and finish all matters.
John 19:29-30
19:29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth.
19:30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Revelation 21:6
21:6 And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.
We enter the New Jerusalem and we will never go out of it.
- People who have priest's offices.