Matthew 26:69-75is aboutPeter denied Jesus.
Peter denied Jesus three times as follows:
Matthew 26:71-72
26:71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girlsaw him and said to those who werethere, “This fellowalso was with Jesus of Nazareth.”
26:72 But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”
Luke 1:26-27,31
1:26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
1:27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name wasMary.
1:31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.
Nazareth is the place where Jesus began to become flesh in the womb of Mary.
Luke 2:51-52
2:51 Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart.
2:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Nazareth is the place where Jesus grew physically.
In shorts, Nazareth is the place where Jesus began to become flesh up to the maturity.
John 1:1,14
1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus is Logos, that is the teaching Word.
Thus, Nazareth means the teaching Word that becomes flesh up to the full maturity or perfection.
Peter denied Jesus of Nazareth means denying the true teaching Word.
The true teaching Word is the Word that is written in the Holy Bible, and revealed by God. It is the Word whose secret is opened by God, that is one verse is explained by another verse.
Proverbs 30:5-6
30:5 Every word of God ispure; He isa shield to those who put their trust in Him.
30:6 Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.
The attitudes of denying the true teaching Word are adding or reducing the true teaching Word, changing the true teaching Word. These attitudes last from era to era, from generation to generation, as follows:
The requirements of shepherding life are as follows:
Sitting on the grass sounds easy, but it must be accompanied with fasting.
Mark 9:28-29
9:28 And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”
9:29 So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”
Matthew 17:21
17:21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”
Fasting is such that we can firm in shepherding, such that the flesh is torn. Fasting is also to muffle the strange voice.
Ezekiel 20:37
20:37 “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant;
If we want to be shepherded, our life will be counted by God. Jesus as the Good Shepherd is willing to sacrifice His spirit for His sheep, and willing to not be counted.
Being counted means being cared, being understood by God, being struggled and owned by God.
Matthew 10:29-30
10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.
10:30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Acts 27:34
27:34 Therefore I urge you to take nourishment, for this is for your survival, since not a hair will fall from the head of any of you.”
A hair denotes life that has no value and no one cares. A hair is counted by God means as follows:
Peter denied Jesus three times as follows:
- Verse 69-70: Peter denied Jesus of Galilee.
- Verse 71-72: Peter denied Jesus of Nazareth.
- Verse 73-75: Peter denied Jesus even cursed and swore.
Matthew 26:71-72
26:71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girlsaw him and said to those who werethere, “This fellowalso was with Jesus of Nazareth.”
26:72 But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”
Luke 1:26-27,31
1:26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
1:27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name wasMary.
1:31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.
Nazareth is the place where Jesus began to become flesh in the womb of Mary.
Luke 2:51-52
2:51 Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart.
2:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Nazareth is the place where Jesus grew physically.
In shorts, Nazareth is the place where Jesus began to become flesh up to the maturity.
John 1:1,14
1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus is Logos, that is the teaching Word.
Thus, Nazareth means the teaching Word that becomes flesh up to the full maturity or perfection.
Peter denied Jesus of Nazareth means denying the true teaching Word.
The true teaching Word is the Word that is written in the Holy Bible, and revealed by God. It is the Word whose secret is opened by God, that is one verse is explained by another verse.
Proverbs 30:5-6
30:5 Every word of God ispure; He isa shield to those who put their trust in Him.
30:6 Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.
The attitudes of denying the true teaching Word are adding or reducing the true teaching Word, changing the true teaching Word. These attitudes last from era to era, from generation to generation, as follows:
- The first era or the era of God the Father (from Adam to Abraham, approximately 2000 years) was represented by Eve.
Genesis 2:16
2:16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
Genesis 3:2
3:2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden;
Eve reduced the word ‘freely’. It equals to being deaf spiritually.
Being free is Holy Spirit. Where there is freedom, there is Holy Spirit.
Reducing the word ‘freely’ means preaching of the Word without the freedom of Holy Spirit, such that it is limited by time. The content of the Word is also limited such that it does not talk about sins, etc. The consequence is the congregation is still bound by sins.
Genesis 2:17
2:17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Genesis 3:3
3:3 but of the fruit of the tree which isin the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”
Eve added the word ‘touch’. It equals to being dumb spiritually.
The Word is added by flesh feeling, jokes, knowledge, illustrations whose truth cannot be accounted. The consequence is the Word cannot become the faith which can save. It is only emotion which is touched by the Word. The heart is never touched by the Word, such that the congregation’s life is never renewed.
The consequences of adding and reducing the Word are as follows:- Being naked and humiliated, especially marriage and children are naked.
- The ambience of the Garden of Eden becomes the ambience of thorn, exhaustion, and in heavy burden.
3:20 And Adam called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Spiritually, mother denotes pastor. This is the life who usually adds and reduces the Word, changes the Word, with the aim to please the congregation. The consequence is the congregation becomes deaf and dumb spiritually.
Therefore, we must be careful in deciding where we are shepherded. We must be careful such that we do not add and reduce the Word. - Being naked and humiliated, especially marriage and children are naked.
- The middle era or the era of the Son of God (from Abraham to Jesus’ first coming).
Mark 9:25
9:25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it: “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!”
Adding and reducing the Word equals to suffering epileptic spiritually.
It means as follows:- Moral decay, such that he lives in sins, preserves sins up to the peak of sins, that is eating-drinking sins (smoking, getting drunk, consuming drugs) and marrying and being given in marriage sins (mixed marriage, marrying and divorcing, free sex).
- Unsolvable problems.
9:21 So He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood.
This spiritual epilepsy hits all level of society (rich or poor, smart or stupid, high or low position), and also hits all age (children, youths, until adults and old people). - Moral decay, such that he lives in sins, preserves sins up to the peak of sins, that is eating-drinking sins (smoking, getting drunk, consuming drugs) and marrying and being given in marriage sins (mixed marriage, marrying and divorcing, free sex).
- The last era or the era of Holy Spirit (from Jesus’ first coming to Jesus’ second coming).
Revelation 22:18-19
22:18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book;
22:19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and fromthe things which are written in this book.
We must be really careful in the last era, such that we do not add or take away the Word.
2 Corinthians 11:2-4
11:2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you asa chaste virgin to Christ.
11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
11:4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or ifyou receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
The Word preached with knowledge will become logic and it is easy to be deceived. But the Word preached with revelation will become faith and it is not easy to be deceived.
The betrothal period is one more step to enter the marriage supper of the Lamb. Paul the apostle feared that the congregation lost the simplicity that is in Christ, that was losing the faithfulness to the true teaching Word, such that adding and taking away the Word. The congregation usually ‘well put up with it’, it means that being not firm to reject the serpent’s voice/ strange voice, such that:- Receiving another teaching that is different from the teaching we have received. It means being the same as false prophet.
- If we receive another teaching, it means we receive another spirit, that is the spirit of antichrist.
- Thus we will receive another Jesus, that is Jesus without the cross. It means we do not want to suffer with Jesus and become equal to Satan.
- Receiving another teaching that is different from the teaching we have received. It means being the same as false prophet.
- The voice of gospel Word calls = Golden Candlestick = perseverance in General Service.
Mark 9:19
9:19 He answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.” - Jesus rebuked. It denotes the teaching Word = Table of Showbread = perseverance in Bible Study Service with Holy Communion.
Mark 9:25
9:25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it: “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!” - Crying, worshiping God = Golden Altar of Incense = perseverance in Prayer Service.
Mark 9:24
9:24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”
The requirements of shepherding life are as follows:
- Perseverance in shepherding pen, perseverance in three main services.
- Being obedient to the voice of the Shepherd, do not want to listen strange voice.
- Believing and fully surrendering to God, not putting hope on anyone else.
Sitting on the grass sounds easy, but it must be accompanied with fasting.
Mark 9:28-29
9:28 And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”
9:29 So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”
Matthew 17:21
17:21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”
Fasting is such that we can firm in shepherding, such that the flesh is torn. Fasting is also to muffle the strange voice.
Ezekiel 20:37
20:37 “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant;
If we want to be shepherded, our life will be counted by God. Jesus as the Good Shepherd is willing to sacrifice His spirit for His sheep, and willing to not be counted.
Being counted means being cared, being understood by God, being struggled and owned by God.
Matthew 10:29-30
10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.
10:30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Acts 27:34
27:34 Therefore I urge you to take nourishment, for this is for your survival, since not a hair will fall from the head of any of you.”
A hair denotes life that has no value and no one cares. A hair is counted by God means as follows:
- God cares and protects us in the middle of crisis in this world, up to the day of antichrist.
- God pays attention to our future, gives beautiful and joyful future, until we are on the throne of God.
Daniel 7:9
7:9 “I watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment waswhite as snow, And the hair of His head waslike pure wool. His throne wasa fiery flame, Its wheels a burning fire;
Proverbs 20:29
20:29 The glory of young men istheir strength, And the splendor of old men istheir gray head.
We must firm in shepherding. We must persevere, be obedient, and believe. - Being intact, perfect as God. We are purified and renewed until we are not wrong again in words, and worthy to welcome Jesus’ second coming on the glorious clouds.