In the garden of Eden, Adam was a three-part being — body, soul, and spirit. God made Adam in His own image which was spirit so He could walk and talk with Adam. When Adam sinned, the part of Adam that died was his spirit. He lost his connection with God.

God needed someone to pay for Adam’s sins because as it says in the book of Romans, “the wages of sin is death.” So rather than require Adam, God’s son, to die physically, God promised He would send a redeemer to pay for Adam’s sin and all the sins that resulted from his sin. That redeemer was Jesus Christ. Once all that was required for the redemption of mankind was paid in full, God shed forth the gift of holy spirit on the day of Pentecost. So, all that confess Jesus Christ as lord and believe that he was raised from the dead could be become whole again — body, soul, and spirit. All through the Old Testament times, most of Israel were just body and soul.

Romans 10 gives us the criteria for having God’s spirit born within any who want it.

Romans 10:9-10 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 

So, now it is available for all that desire to walk and talk with God.

But what about the people in Old Testament times? The new birth was not available to them. Jesus Christ had not yet come and paid in the cost of redemption, yet God still walked and talked with people.

First, we need to recognize that God can only speak to what He is – Spirit. If you have the spirit from God, then God can communicate to you.

God did speak at times to people by way of angels, a burning bush and even an ass. Some of the Old Testament believers had the spirit of God upon them — not born within but upon them. As we will read with King Saul, Saul lost the spirit of God because he stopped listening to God’s reproof. We on the other hand, who are born from above have the spirit born within. It is now part of us and cannot depart as it did with Saul.

We read the criteria for the new birth, for having God’s spirit being born within in Romans 10. There is an interesting verse in Proverbs.

First, remember that Proverbs was written for young people so that they could acquire some wisdom. This verse is in the first chapter of Proverbs and helps set the foundation for the entire book.

Proverbs 1:23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

To turn at the reproof of God would take someone with a humble heart. It would take someone that is not self-willed but is willing to learn, to listen and to align their life up with what God sets forth. Turning at His reproof may be another way of saying “walk with me, listen to my words, heed my instructions, keep my words first in your life.”

Then God promises to pour out His spirit unto them. So then was the spirit of God upon a person reserved for just special people? Prophets, kings, and priests? If you were not fortunate enough to be in one of those categories, were you just out of luck?

Romans 2:11 For there is no respect of persons with God. 

As we will see in a minute, God poured out His spirit upon many people including women. He is not a respecter of persons. At a certain point in each of their lives, they must have been very humble people that “turned at His reproof.” 

Then God also promised He would make His words known unto them.

So, God set forth the standard for spirit upon in the Old Testament just as He set forth the standard for receiving the gift of holy spirit after the day of Pentecost.

Let’s look as some of the people in the Old Testament that obviously had the spirit of God upon them.

Joseph and Pharoah

Genesis_41:14-16 Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

Genesis_41:25 And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.

Genesis 41:38 And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? 

Here God spoke to Pharaoh in a dream just He does at times today.

Acts 2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: 

Pharaoh was humble enough to listen to Joseph, speaking from the mouth of God, and carrying out what God showed Joseph.

Many of the people with the spirit of God upon them spoke for God. These people speaking from the mouth of God told the people what God wanted them to know.

2Peter 1:21 For the prophecy (the Word of God) came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. 

God gave the words for them to speak to the spirit that was upon them. And in some cases, God gave the words to women also as we will see.

Moses and the Seventy                 

Numbers 11:16-17 And the LORD said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee. And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone. 

Moses judged the people and spoke for God. These 70 men were to be judges also, so God put His spirit upon them to show them how to judge.

Bezaleel – the wise-hearted and the wise-hearted women

Exodus 28:3  And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.

Exodus 31:2-3 See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 

Exodus 31:6 And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee; 

Exodus 35:25-26 And all the women that were wise hearted did spin with their hands, and brought that which they had spun, both of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine linen. And all the women whose heart stirred them up in wisdom spun goats’ hair.

Exodus 35:34  And he hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. 

Exodus 36:2 And Moses called Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, even every one whose heart stirred him up to come unto the work to do it: 

We saw in Exodus 28:3 that the wise-hearted were filled with the spirit of wisdom (God)  So we can conclude that these wise-hearted women, that were spinning cloth were filled with the spirit of God also. It is interesting that these people were more like tradespeople, not prophets.  To really know HOW to do their work, they needed the spirit of God/wisdom.  Both the men and the women.  People that walked with God, were willing to learn.  People that had turned at His reproof.

A side note here: it is interesting that many times the emphasis of what the spirit of God is like is that it brings wisdom. So much wisdom that it is called “a spirit of wisdom” at times. Many times in life, we know what the problem is, and that spirit of God can tell us how to handle it. In the above verses, the spirit of wisdom or God’s spirit showed them how to make the things for the tabernacle, how to teach others and as with the judges, how to judge.

Joshua

Deuteronomy 34:9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses. 

It is interesting that God here calls the spirit of God a spirit of wisdom. Joshua had to know HOW to fight the armies of the nations occupying the promised land, and he had to know HOW to divide the land for an inheritance among the people so they would be blessed with their inheritance

Abigail

1Samuel 25:32-35 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me: And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. For in very deed, as the LORD God of Israel liveth, which hath kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall. So David received of her hand that which she had brought him, and said unto her, Go up in peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person. 

David the great king and prophet of God recognized that God had sent the woman with a message for him. God could only speak directly to those that had spirit upon them. She must have been a humble woman. One that walked with God herself.

The Sons of the Prophets

These were young men, the same people addressed in the book of Proverbs, who were called by God and had it in their hearts to walk with God and work for Him. All prophets had the spirit of God upon them in the Old Testament and these were young men learning from an older wise prophet Elijah, how to walk with God for themselves. They were then called  “the sons of the prophets.”

2Kings 2:7 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.

Saul

1Samuel 16:14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him. 

Here we see that Saul had the spirit of God upon him, but he had stopped turning at the reproof of God, and so God took the spirit away. This cannot happen to us because since Pentecost our spirits are born within. Thank God!

David        

Psalm 51:11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 

Here David recognized that he could lose the spirit for the murder of Uriah, but he humbled himself and became a man after God’s own heart.

Solomon

1Kings 4:29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore. 

God made His words known unto Solomon in much wisdom by way of the spirit of God that was upon Solomon. Wisdom – to know how to handle situations, to know what to do.

Judges

2Chronicles 19:5-6 And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city, And said to the judges, Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment. 

These judges were the same as in the time of Moses and the seventy we read about earlier. The only way you can judge righteously is to have the spirit of God. That is why as Jehoshaphat promised these men, that God would be with them in the judgement. You must be able to discern who is telling the truth and who is lying, like Solomon and the two women with one baby. You must know how to deal with what is presented, and they would be doing the judging in the place of or for the Lord.

Cyrus King of the Medes and Persians

Isaiah 44:28 That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. 

Isaiah 45:1 Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;

This man was not an Israelite, but he was anointed of God, had the spirit of God upon him and was credited with the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem after the captivity.

2Chronicles 36:22-23  Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth hath the LORD God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The LORD his God be with him, and let him go up

Once again God is not a respecter of persons, but He is a respecter of those that walk with Him and that turn at His reproof. He promised He would pour out His spirit upon such people and make His words known unto them.

In the gospels, we have people with the spirit of God upon them that were not prophets, kings, or priests, but I have included one special priest to show the grace and mercy of God.

Elizabeth and John the Baptist

Luke 1:41-42 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

This was Mary’s cousin and the mother of John the Baptist. Filled with the holy ghost means she spoke for God by prophecy, so she had to have the spirit of God upon her AND her yet to be born son, John the Baptist, who was filled with the spirit from his mother’s womb, leapt for joy. Interesting question: John being not yet born leapt for joy: what part of John was the spirit upon?

Mary

Luke 1:46-47 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. 

Now Mary prophecies, speaks for God so she, as a woman and the mother of the Messiah, the redeemer, had the spirit of God upon her also.

The Twelve

Matthew 10:5-8 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:  But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. 

These were men who when they heard Jesus Christ preach the Word, they turned back to God at the reproof they heard. The only way you can heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead and cast out devils is with the spirit of God being upon you.

The Seventy

Luke 10:17 And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. 

So here the seventy had been at least casting out devils which takes the spirit of God being upon a person.

Others Casting out Devils

Mark 9:38-39 And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us. But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me

 Here were others sent by God, who had turned at His reproof, who had the spirit of God upon them, who were not sent personally by Jesus, yet they too were doing the work of God.

The High Priest

John 11:49-51 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; 

The high priest this year had to have had the spirit of God upon him to prophesy. God gave him the prophesy even though God knew this high priest would be in favor of killing God’s only begotten son. That is a lot of grace and mercy.

God’s great desire has always been to be able to walk and talk with His children. Therefore, he created Adam in His own image, spirit. This is why God gave the gift of Spirit on the day of Pentecost to all that wanted to become His sons and daughters. As we have seen He made it available even in the Old Testament to have spirit upon those that would turn at His reproof, listen to Him, and walk and talk with Him. What a loving Father!

Proverbs 26:3-5 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool’s back. Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.

These verses have a lot of wisdom in them that one could apply in our culture and political climate. But it takes some work to understand what God is saying here and to learn how to apply it.

There are other verses where God instructs us how to deal with questions or statements that are unlearned or ignorant. For instance:

1Timothy 4:7 But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.

1Timothy 1:4 Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.

2Timothy 2:23-26  But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes. And the servant of the Lord must not strive; (strive here can mean to argue to win superiority over another) but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

There are many similar verses and examples in the Bible that teach about how to stay out of trouble with the mouth. So, it might be wise in our walks with God to learn how to deal with fools. In this short study, we are going to basically stay with the verses in Proverbs 26. But first let’s go to the book of James.

Learning how to conduct yourself around others, believers or not, is a worthwhile adventure.

James 3:1-8  My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation. For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horses’ mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body. Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

The only thing that can tame the tongue is the Word of God. As the Word of God settles in your heart, it will help to control your mouth. So, to study the words “mouth” and “tongue” and other related words might help in your understanding of how to deal with the questions or situations that you find yourself in.

Now for Proverbs. I found that reading these verses from several translations to be helpful. Here are a few.

NASB: Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him. Answer a fool as his folly deserves lest he be wise in his own eyes

Anchor:Do not answer a fool in his own foolish terms, lest you put yourself on his level. Answer a fool in his own foolish terms so he will not think himself wise.

The Amplified inserts the word “self-confident” in brackets before the word “fool.”

Lamsa: Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be also like him. But answer a fool according to your wisdom, lest he think in himself that he is wise.

Moffatt’s: Never answer a fool according to his folly, lest you become like him: Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he imagines he is wise.

 Knox’s: Leave the fool’s challenge unanswered, and prove thyself wise; or answer it, if thou wilt and prove him fool.

An example along the same line of thinking:

Proverbs 23:9 Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.

If they are not asking you for help, stop trying to convince people of your viewpoint or trying to impart your wisdom to them. They probably do not want any help. By doing so, you are trying to force a person to drink that is not thirsty.

Isaiah 36:21 But they held their peace, and answered him not a word: for the king’s commandment was, saying, Answer him not.

Matthew 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

I have found that if you only give a small taste of what you have and then be silent for a time, you may see if they really want to know or if they are only trying to entice you into spilling your guts and having more ammunition with which to attack and accuse you.

EW Bullinger’s notes from the Companion Bible: The point of Vs 3 (Proverbs 26:3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool’s back. (KJV) is that you cannot reason with a fool. Vs 4 gives the reason. If you answer not according to his folly, he will think he is wise like yourself. If you do answer him according to his folly, he will think you are a fool like he is: i.e., according to Vs 3 you cannot reason with him. These are finely stated facts, not commands.

Dake’s notes: Answer a fool wisely to confute his folly and expose his senselessness lest he be wise in his own eyes

The point in Vs 4-5 is that you cannot reason with a fool, because you would have to reason with him on his own level and this would make it manifest that you are a fool yourself. If you answer not according to his folly, he thinks he is as wise as you are. If you do answer according to his own folly, he thinks you are a fool as he is, so your reasoning is defeated. The only hope in such a case is the rod of Vs 3.

Here in Matthew, Jesus, never at a loss for words from his Father, deals with fools.

Matthew 16:1-4 The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven. He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times? A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

Sometimes the questions people bring up or the statements they make, I just do not know what to say. Sometimes they throw out words to entice you into an argument. Innocently, of course. It is best then to say nothing. You could just shake your head and walk away or just turn your attention to a different person in the room. This is an example of properly answering a fool according to his folly. (Answering without words is an answer). This method shows both the fool and the people listening that you will not stoop to argue or respond on the level of the fool. This action shows that their question or statement is so foolish it is not worthy of a response.

Matthew 21:23-27 And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority? And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet. And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

Here when they asked Jesus a question to trap him and to set him up, he simply asked them a question back. This technique of answering a question with a question can get you out of a lot of sticky situations. Just don’t do that to me!

Note from NIV Bible: Verses 4-5 illustrate Ecclesiastes 3:7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; The apparent contradiction between these verses is best resolved by remembering two things: 1. There is nothing to be gained in answering a fool in his own manner. 2. There may be occasions when to permit a fool to go unrefuted would confirm him in his conceit.

The problem in answering a fool is that by answering, it gives the impression to the fool and to those listening that his question or statement was valid. You validate that what he said is worth a response. By not answering, you are in effect saying that what they said is so foolish it is not worthy of a response.

But if you are going to respond, you need to do so in such a way that it shows to the fool and those listening that the person was a fool.

Mark Twain said that if you answer a fool when you should remain silent, you are now arguing on the fool’s level and those listening may not be able to tell which of you is the fool!

Lamsa had some enlightening notes on these verses too: Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be also like him. But answer a fool according to your wisdom, lest he think in himself that he is wise. At the first, you can show the foolishness of the question by not giving it the dignity of a response. Not even worth answering. But it may require an answer if the one asking begins to become conceited because he thinks he has asked such a good question. If that is the case, give an answer that shows what a foolish question it was in the first place, by that it becomes evident that the questioner is a fool.

Hopefully, looking at these translations and notes has been helpful for you. It may take time for these truths to settle down in your heart and to learn to live this way, but it will keep you out of much trouble.

Here is a more modern quote that is similar.

Thomas Paine: To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.

Apparently from God’s perspective, even wise people need some instruction on how to deal with fools. We as God’s wise children need to know and be aware of when to be silent and then when to answer in such a way as to refute those that hash the Word to pieces and  answer in such a way to show that they are ignorant. This type of learning can then be applied to discussions of gender, politics, and vaccinations, etc.

God does not want us to be dragged down to their level but to rise above the crowd of foolish and unlearned questioners . God wants us to give our wisdom to those who want to know. This is part of learning how to walk with God. It is part of taming the tongue and learning to listen to His still small voice. You are never alone. God is always at work within you.

When Naaman the Syrian was healed of leprosy in the record of 2 Kings chapter 5, he requested of the prophet to be given two mules’ burden of earth.  What an odd request. So why did Naaman request the two mules?  Perplexing question.  Let’s read that part of the record.

2 Kings 5:17 And Naaman said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules’ burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD.

Naaman was the captain of the hosts of Syria, and he was a leper.  (2 Kings 5) The king of Syria sent Naaman down to Israel to be healed of leprosy.  Once the leprosy was healed, he wanted to offer burnt offerings and sacrifices to no other gods but unto the Lord, Jehovah.  So how was he to do this back in Syria?

To understand his request for two mules’ burden of earth, we need to look at the religious settings of his times.

Israel was, by design, a monotheistic culture because of its religion. (Note: many cultural traditions are governed by the local religion).  Monotheistic means they were to only worship ONE God! Jehovah/Elohim which is God over all the earth!

Exodus 20:1-4 And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:

Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

Jehovah was one God, not three in one, and they were to have no other gods.  Israel was to be monotheistic.

But most if not all the lands around Israel were polytheistic; they had many gods. These gods were thought to be gods over certain lands or territories as is indicated by the following verse. In some cases, they would revere one god over the other gods.  In Egypt, for instance, Ra or Re was considered the top-dog god.  Then there were other and perhaps subordinate gods to him.

1 Kings 20:28 And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

Here we see that the Syrians, where Naaman was from, believed gods were gods only over certain lands or territories.  Here they thought Jehovah was god in the mountains but not god in the valleys because Israel had defeated them in the mountains.  The Syrians assumed this was because Israel’s God was a god of the mountain area. Syria was a polytheistic nation.

The truth about gods being gods of certain lands or territories is mentioned by several researchers.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and colleges: “Two mules’ burden of earth — Naaman still has no notion of Jehovah but as a territorial deity. He thinks therefore that by carrying with him a quantity of the soil of Israel, he may provide a place for acceptable sacrifice to Him (Jehovah) in his country of Syria.”

Israel at times worshiped the gods of the nations around them.

Judges 10:6 And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him.

During this time, Israel would have been a polytheistic nation.  They were worshiping the gods of the land of Moab, the gods of the land of the sons of Ammon, the gods of the land of the Philistines and the gods of the land of Syria.   These people had their own gods that were gods over their lands or territories.

Israel, at times, thought the gods of the nations around them were wonderful and brought those gods to their land and worshipped them there.  They made these gods groves and temples, so they could do sacrifice and give burnt offerings unto these gods in the land of Israel.

2 Kings 17:15-18 They rejected His statutes and His covenant which He made with their fathers and His warnings with which He warned them. And they followed vanity and became vain, and went after the nations which surrounded them, concerning which the Lord had commanded them not to do like them. They forsook all the commandments of the Lord their God and made for themselves molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah and worshiped all the host of heaven and served Baal. Then they made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and practiced divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him.

Bringing home the gods of other nations to worship was common and is even found in the book of Acts.

Acts 17:16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols.

Another book that speaks about polytheistic religions is: *Royal Administrations and National Religion in Ancient Palestine by G.W. Ahlstrom. This work talks about the gods of the countries that surrounded Israel.

Here are some quotes from that work:

“… A not uncommon epithet of ancient Near Eastern kings was “the good shepherd”, a title which is often found in Assyrian building inscriptions. In addition, the king was frequently called … ASSur, Assur’s vicar,’ a phrase expressing the basic ideology of the king’s position; he ruled over the country of the god.”

“… The nation as God’s territory: … descriptive epithets for the king were aklu(m), “overseer” and the priest title Sangu, “administrator”. The king administered the god’s territory and his people.”

“… As mentioned above, the capital was the ruling center of the nation (the territory of the god). More specifically, the acropolis was this center and, as such, provided the basis for the king’s functions and policies.”

“… The above makes quite understandable the fact that religion and religious policy were part of the king’s duties. Indeed, it is evident that the king, as the administrator of his god’s territory, was not only the organizer and the builder of the country but was, in principle, the organizer of the cult as well. A few examples should be cited. A Hittite text states that the storm god made the king, the /abarna, the governor of the land of Hatti. In Egypt the “supreme god, Ré, entrusted the land to his son, the king.””

Syria, where Naaman came from, was a polytheistic culture and believed that gods were gods over only certain territories or lands as we read previously: “Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys.”

God had defeated them in the hills, so they decided to attack Israel in the valleys.  This was their understanding in their polytheistic culture/religion, that gods were not gods overall but only gods of certain territories or lands.

Therefore, Naaman requested two mules’ burden of earth.  Then he states why, “for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD.”  He needed some of the land or territory of Jehovah, so he could build an altar back in Syria and offer burnt offerings and sacrifices in the land of Syria but only to Jehovah the God that had healed him. This was his understanding of how gods worked.  No matter his cultural upbringing what a great believer.  Thus, Two Mules for Brother Naaman! What a wonderful believer he was. Someday we will get to meet him.

*Royal Administrations and National Religion in Ancient Palestine

08/13/1999
By Joseph Sobran

AS THE Civil War ended in May 1865, Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy, was captured by Union troops. He was put in painful shackles and held in prison for two years, in solitary confinement, on charges of treason and conspiring to kill Abraham Lincoln.

Davis was never brought to trial. The absurd charge of plotting Lincoln’s death was soon thrown out. Eventually the charge of treason was dropped, too, because Davis’ enemies knew that his defense would probably deal a powerful blow to Union propaganda. So he was denied the day in court he passionately craved.

What would Davis have said in court? Two Southern partisans of the Confederacy, James Ronald Kennedy and his brother Walter Donald Kennedy, answer the question in their recent book, Was Jefferson Davis Right? (Pelican, $16.95). It will come as a revelation to anyone, Northerner or
Southerner, who has been raised on the Union version of events.

In Davis’ time, even many Northerners agreed that a sovereign state had the right to withdraw from the Union. A large body of people in the North were willing to accept a peaceful separation from the South. Lincoln had thousands arrested without trial for expressing such views, including several Maryland legislators who, while remaining in the Union, opposed using force to keep other states from seceding.

Davis himself advised against secession on grounds of prudence, but when his home state of Mississippi pulled out of the Union, he sadly resigned from the U.S. Senate and reluctantly accepted the Confederate presidency. Like Robert E. Lee, he believed that his primary loyalty was to his state, not to the Union, and that the defense of his state couldn’t be treason.

Davis explained his position in 1881 in his two-volume memoir, The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government (republished by William Mayes Coats in Nashville). The Declaration of Independence had proclaimed that “these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states”
— that is, 13 separate sovereignties, not, as Lincoln said, a single, monolithic “new nation.” When these sovereign states ratified the Constitution, Davis argued, they did not surrender their sovereignty;
several of them, in their acts of ratification, reserved the right to secede, and the other states, by accepting these acts as valid, recognized that right.

Lincoln was forced to take the ahistorical position that “the Union is much older than the Constitution” and that no state could ever withdraw from it. As the historian Pauline Maier puts it, Lincoln’s understanding of the Declaration of Independence was based on “wishful suppositions.” He was
guided by Daniel Webster’s famous nationalist slogan, “Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable” — an illogical credo that leads to dangerous nonsense. If liberty was “inseparable” from Union, why did the framers adopt constitutional safeguards to prevent the possibility of federal tyranny?

After Lincoln’s death, a vindictive Republican Congress required the Confederate states to adopt two constitutional amendments as a condition of “readmission” to the Union — which Lincoln had insisted they had never left! This coerced ratification remains a disgrace to the Constitution.

In his memoir, Davis addressed these and other issues with iron logic. It’s a pity Lincoln did not live to face a more profound debater than Stephen Douglas.

Davis had many warm friends in the North, including President Franklin Pierce, under whom he had served as secretary of state, and Lincoln’s own secretary of state, William Seward. While in prison he received messages of sympathy from thousands, including Pope Pius IX. Even some abolitionists
protested the cruel treatment he received. Such wealthy Northerners as Horace Greeley and Cornelius Vanderbilt put up $100,000 for his bail. Even his former slaves honored him at his death in 1889.

But like so many great controversies, the debate between North and South was settled not by reason but by force. And in the history books, as usual, the victors’ rhetoric prevailed over the losers’ logic. Today few Americans, even in the South, understand the case for the Confederacy. Any talk of “sovereign” states — the vital question of 1861 — sounds archaic.

In the end, both sides lost the war. A country out of touch with its own ancestors is truly impoverished — and uneducated.

Source:  Daily Oklahoman
http://www.oklahoman.com/cgi-bin/shart?ID=359425&TP=getarticle

Joseph Sobran
The Case for the Confederacy
Universal Press Syndicate

All content copyrighted, 1999 The Oklahoma Publishing Co

There is an interesting record in the gospel of Matthew in the sixteenth chapter.  To read the verse we are interested in, I would like to start in Verse 13 to read it in its context.

Matthew 16:13-20 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.

A quick search of the scriptures for the words “key” or “keys” shows that neither word is not used again in relationship with Peter anywhere.

But there are two records in the life of Peter that are remarkably interesting considering what Jesus Christ said.

First, we must remember that a key is usually used in a lock as in a locked door.  If the door is locked, a key is required to gain access to the area behind the door. Without the proper key, you are prohibited from entering.

The first record occurs on the day of Pentecost when the gift of holy spirit was given. This was the first time being born from above, having the gift of God aka the new birth was available.

Act 2:1-4 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

While Jesus Christ was still here on the earth, he had instructed his Apostles on what to look for and instructed them how to receive the gift.  They followed his instructions exactly and then they spoke in tongues – the proof of the indwelling of the gift of holy spirit, the new birth, and it witnessed that they were born from above.

Now the people that were present had no idea what was going on.  This was Pentecost, a great feast of the Jews.  By the Old Testament law, they were required to attend, so they came to Jerusalem from all over the known world.  They wanted to know what was going on here in the temple.
Peter stood up and began to explain what they had just seen or witnessed.

Act 2:14-21  But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Peter proceeds to explain to them who Jesus Christ was.  He told them that they, the people of Israel, had taken Jesus Christ and had him put to death. But on the 3rd day, God had raised him from the dead.  And Peter explained that these men that had spoken in tongues were witnesses of his resurrection.

Then Peter told those attending and asking, that Jesus had received the gift of holy spirit from his Father, and that Jesus had given out that gift to the men they had heard.

Act 2:37-39 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

These people needed a key to unlock the kingdom of heaven, and Peter just happened to have a couple!

The key was to know and believe that God raised Jesus from the dead and to make Jesus lord in your life as it says in Romans.

Romans 10:9, 10 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

This is what they were to do. This is the key.  Without the key, the door stays locked.  With the key, you can enter and have eternal life!

One key down and one to go.

The second time Peter used his keys to the kingdom of heaven occurs in the 10th chapter of Acts.

Up until this time, the only people that had been able, or that knew how to enter the kingdom were Jews.  Remember, on the day of Pentecost, Peter had said, “as many as the lord our God shall call?”  Well, now, God was calling the gentiles.

Act 10:1-7 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway. He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius. And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God. And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter: He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do. And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;

Now the next day Peter was up on the housetop praying (They had flat roofs, or he might have fallen off!) while lunch was being prepared.  He had a vison of which he later understood meant he was not to call the gentiles unclean.  About that time, the men from Caesarea showed up and asked for Peter.

Act 10:19,20 While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee. Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.

Somewhere in the process of traveling and speaking, Peter realized that God was no respecter of persons.  He began to teach these gentiles the information they needed in order to receive the gift of holy spirit like the people of Jerusalem had done on the day of Pentecost.

Act 10:44-46a While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God….

Peter had just used his second key and had unlocked the door to the new birth, the kingdom of heaven, for the gentiles.  I am thankful for that as I am a gentile!

So, of the keys that Jesus gave him, one was used to unlock the kingdom of heaven for the Jews and the other key was used to unlock the kingdom of heaven for the gentiles.  Wonderful!  What a faithful man!

God did not give all His keys to Peter.  He reserved some to be used at later dates.

Revelation 1:18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

Revelation 3:7 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

Revelation 9:1 And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.

It will be interesting to watch these keys being used, and we should have box seats for the event as we are seated in Christ at God’s own right hand.

Until then, “Come quickly, lord Jesus!”

When I was in my first year of college, a young man attempted to witness to me about the Bible by saying that Romans 13:1, 2 and following said that God put all government leaders in power, and we were to obey them. I will tell you what I said to him at the end of this blog.

I did not know the truth about Romans 13 and obedience to the government for many years, but I never forgot what he said.  His comments stayed on a hook in my mind until I found a good answer/response to his statements.

Romans 1-11 sets out the reason mankind needed a redeemer. “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” “there are none righteous, no not one.”  It also sets the criteria for salvation for both the Judean and the Gentile — believing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It also shows that the accomplishments of Jesus Christ made available spirit life, which Adam lost, to all those that believe the Gospel concerning Jesus Christ.

It speaks about our walk in newness of life for those that have been justified by believing the accomplishments of Jesus Christ. 

It speaks about walking according to the new nature and not the old nature of sin.

It speaks about the believer no longer being under condemnation/judgment and being inseparable from God any longer.

It speaks about the realities of the accomplishments of Jesus Christ being made available to both the Judean and the Gentile by believing.

Then in Romans 12 especially Vs. 9 and following, it speaks about the believers’ walk in love toward those that have been born again or born from above.  In *A Journey through the Acts and Epistles on page 245, one of the footnotes reads: “Here in Romans 12 it is considered in its practical aspects with regard to the renewing of the mind and the relationships with others in the body of Christ.” (emphasis added)

One of the relationships we have in the body of Christ is our relationship with the higher powers God has placed in the church.

Romans 13:1-2 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. KJV

The Living Bible translates Romans 13:1-7 this way!

Romans 13:1-7 Obey the government, for God is the one who has put it there. There is no government anywhere that God has not placed in power. So those who refuse to obey the laws of the land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow. For the policeman does not frighten people who are doing right; but those doing evil will always fear him. So, if you don’t want to be afraid, keep the laws and you will get along well. The policeman is sent by God to help you. But if you are doing something wrong, of course you should be afraid, for he will have you punished. He is sent by God for that very purpose. Obey the laws, then, for two reasons: first, to keep from being punished, and second, just because you know you should. Pay your taxes too, for these same two reasons. For government workers need to be paid so that they can keep on doing God’s work, serving you.  Pay everyone whatever he ought to have: pay your taxes and import duties gladly, obey those over you, and give honor and respect to all those to whom it is due.

Although many have said and translated the “higher powers” here to be the government, the context does not support that understanding. It is obvious from reading history that God did not put at least some of the more modern leaders into power for us to obey. God did not put Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, or Pol Pot in their positions where they set out and killed many of God’s people. Even with a small amount of logic, that should be evident.

God uses the illustration in Romans 13 of the respect, honor, and monies paid to the government to teach us we are to give that same honor and respect to the higher powers in the church, the body of Christ. So much so, we owe no man anything.

The section of scripture that does deal with obedience to the government is in 1 Peter.

Although these records in 1 Peter are not addressed to the whole church, they are addressed to all Israel that are born again and were part of the diaspora, the scattered of Israel.  They were to be a royal priesthood to serve those not born from above, the Gentiles.  It talks about their conduct as they lived and served as strangers and foreigners here on the earth. (This world is not our home!)

From *A Journey through the Acts and Epistles:

 1 Peter 2:11-15 Beloved, I exhort you as visiting foreigners and sojourners to abstain from fleshly cravings, anything that wars against the soul, keeping your good manner of life among the Gentiles, so that by it those who speak against you as evildoers may glorify God in the day of visitation as they behold your good works.  Be subject to every created human being for the Lord’s sake: whether to a king as the one in authority or to governors as those sent by him [the king] for punishment of evildoers and for praise of those who do good. So is the will of God that by doing good you may muzzle the ignorance of foolish people.

God by way of Peter speaks here also of the born-again Israelites’ relationship with wives and Gentile husbands, and men that have Gentile masters or employers. 

Even though this is not written to the body of Christ at large, there is much to be learned from what God instructs the diaspora, the displaced and born-again Israelites, on conduct while we in the church sojourn here until Christ returns.

In 1 Peter 2, it also says if you are going to sin (get in trouble with those in authority over you), it is no glory to you or your Father even if you patiently endure the consequences.  But if you get in trouble for righteousness sake, that is grace before God.

1 Peter 2:21 – 23 Moreover, for this purpose you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving an example to you so that you might follow his tracks, “who did not sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth.” When he was insulted, he did not retaliate with an insult.  When he suffered, he did not threaten in return, but he delivered himself to Him Who judges justly. WTJ

Having looked at all of this, it is important to remember that our lives are not our own.  Having God’s spirit within, we are to walk with Him as to right conduct in different situations.

We have the written Word here to guide us, and we have His gift of holy spirit. It takes both a knowledge of His Word and the spirit of God to walk in the love of God.

Some have talked about our “rights” lately — our rights under the Constitution or our rights according to the founding fathers of our country.

Romans 14 talks some about “rights.” — the right to eat meat offered to idols, to not celebrate one day above another, etc.  Yet, it teaches that I may cause others to sin if I exercise those rights. Our walk with God is one of love, not one of claiming all of what we perceive to be our rights.

Some have spoken recently about “civil disobedience” and then have found what they said were great believers in the Bible exercising civil disobedience.  In most if not all of these records, these people were doing what God instructed them to do in that specific situation. 

In the book of Acts, Peter was in prison and the angel of the Lord came and set them free. The angel then told them to, “Go, stand and speak in the temple all the words of this life.” This is what God told them to do even though they had been commanded by the ruling authorities to not speak in the name of Jesus anymore.  Peter’s response, when questioned about his disobedience, was, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” This is what God told Peter and the others to do.  This was not civil disobedience; it was obedience to God.

When the midwives saved the male children alive as opposed to killing them in the time of Moses, as was the King’s commandment, they were obeying what God told them to do.  This is not civil disobedience.

We do not live this life for ourselves but as sons and daughters of God and as those that serve him.  We are to honor the higher powers in the church and obey those in authority over us whether they be kings or employers.

But we also have the spirit of God born in us. We are to walk in love and obey our Father whether it is what is in the written Word or what He tells us by way of His spirit so that we may bring glory to Him. 

Oh yes, the young man that witnessed to me about Romans 13…  I asked him,

“Are you saying God put Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin in power, and that as Christians we are to obey them?”

He said, “Yes that is what the Bible says.”

I said, “I don’t know what the truth is, but you are an idiot.”

Then I walked away. I thank God that He put me in a place where I could eventually learn truth.

*Footnote: A Journey Through the Acts and Epistles A Working Translation By Walter J. Cummins
    Available at www.ContinuingintheScriptures.com

The Parable of the Dishonest Manager

Luke 16:1-7 And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods. And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.

In this culture, the steward had a perfect right to do this.  But was he prospering his master?  Was he taking care of his master’s business OR providing a place for himself at his master’s expense?  At the end of the year was his master ahead in his accounts OR at a loss?

We will see in a minute that the Pharisees that loved money were listening to this parable, too, and they got upset most likely because they knew Jesus was really talking about them.  They had the charge of the temple money and were making themselves rich rather than taking care of God’s business.  They did have the right to do so, but we will see in a bit what God had to say about that.

Luke 16:8 And the lord commended the unjust steward (note here that God, the author of the scriptures called the steward UNJUST), because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.

The lord here is the steward’s master not the Lord Jesus Christ. In their culture, this was considered just and wise.

Luke 16:9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness (money); that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

EW Bullinger in his Companion Bible says this should read as a question.  Jesus: “Is this what I taught you to do, make friends with the things of this world?”

Luke 16:10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

This steward here had not been faithful or just to his master in managing his master’s accounts for a profit.  He had actually cost him money to the sole benefit of the steward himself.

Luke 16:11-15 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

God’s assessment of the situation with the unjust steward and the Pharisees was that they were not faithful nor just. That even though men thought this was great, even though it was part of and acceptable in the culture, God said what they had done was an abomination.

This is a great example of not being faithful. The steward had cost his master a loss.  It was easy to see; they just sat down and looked at the numbers.

Faithful is in part the Greek word “pistis” translated into English many times as “believe.”  So, in part faithful means to believe the instructions that are given BUT also to DO what you have been told.  If you believe and do as instructed, that is the essence of the word trustworthy, another definition of faithful.

An example would be Moses.

Numbers 12:7 My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.

Now in order to see how Moses was faithful and learn from that, we would have to read a lot about Moses.  For a short blog that is not practical. So, let’s go the Luke.

In this next record, you can see how the nobleman came to “trust’ two faithful men.

Luke 19:11 And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear.

Note:  In looking at these parables, we are not trying to ascertain the meaning of the parable.  We are just looking at the use of the word “faithful” within them.

Luke 19:12-17 He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy (carry on business) till I come. But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.

In this parable, Jesus uses money to teach about being faithful.  Money is a very quick way of teaching what faithful is compared to using prayer or forgiveness, etc.  With money you can just count and see the answer/results with little explanation.

With this faithful man, he increased his master’s money by 1000 %.  Quite the opposite of the first parable where he cost him money.

Luke 19:18-19 And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.

Remember what we read in the previous parable: “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much.”

It is easy to see the faithfulness of these two men because we can count — 1000% and 500%.  It takes quite a few attributes to be a faithful person in this situation. Things like:

Integrity — they gave the money back;
Diligence — they got the job done;
Trading — they had to know their business;
Saving — they did not spend all they made;
Appearance — they had to know how to dress and present themselves in their field of business;
Knowledge — what they did not know about their business, they had to go learn;
Accounts — they had to have kept strict accounts;
Confidence — they had to have confidence in their ability;
Focus — they had to focus on the task at hand and not get distracted.

There may be other attributes, but this is enough for the point.

The master knew that as they had applied the principles necessary to gain the profit they did, that these men would also apply the same principles if given a much larger responsibility. Faithful in little, faithful in much.

It reminds one of what the Apostle Paul wrote — God counted him faithful putting him into the ministry.  Paul was out capturing Christians, throwing them into prison and having some killed.  God knew that Paul would apply the same diligence, commitment and other attributes in service to God as he had in the past when he was on the wrong side of the fence.  God counted him a faithful man.

Next, we have a small example of not faithful:

Luke 19:20-26  And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow: Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, (table, money changers) that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury (interest)? And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.) For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.

This last verse is fascinating.  To those that have, more shall be given.  And from him that hath not, even that which we hath shall be taken away.  This is written here in the context of money.  It is a principle of life.  In our vernacular, we might say, “Use it or lose it.”

We could also see that as Christians begin to apply these principles, they acquire more and more.  But those that do not apply them continue to have lack.

This expression also occurs in:

Mark 4:25 For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not,

Here the principle is used of knowledge and understanding.  If you have gained some knowledge and understanding — think about it, incorporate it into your life, God will give you even more.  If the knowledge and understanding go in one ear and out the other, you will lose what you do have.

As you apply those things in the area of money, you are much more likely to apply them in other fields as well. So Remember:

Luke 16:10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

So, as a Principle of Prosperity, Faithful may include:

Giving,
Saving,
Staying out of debt,
Diligence in business and personal finances,
Trusting God,
And other things.

Everything really belongs to God anyway and as in the parables, we are stewards of that which God has entrusted to us.  As we learn to incorporate these principles of faithful stewardship into our lives, we will show ourselves to be faithful/just stewards.. Then He will be able to trust us with even more.

May God bless you, and thanks for reading.

Roger B.

The Gospel of John recounts the record of Jesus and The Woman at the Well.

John 4:5-20 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

People have speculated much about what the references of husbands in this record are referring to. Some have said she was a prostitute (whore), some have said the Samaritan culture allowed dating as opposed to the Jewish culture, and some have said she had been married several times.

Interestingly, none of those subjects are dealt with, but the woman immediately brings up the subject of where is the proper place to worship your chosen God!

Sometimes the best place to look to understand the scriptures is to look AT the scriptures.

Isaiah 54:5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

People generally worship their gods. That is why she so quickly turned the conversation to where to worship. She must have been very familiar with the expression that whatever god you worship is your husband. That you are married to the god you worship. So, the question then is where to worship!

If you need more on this subject here are some other places where God says He is the husband to Israel or the Jews.

Jeremiah 3:14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: ….

Jeremiah 31:32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:

Hosea 2:19-20 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD

Whenever a person who is married has sexual relations with another, it is called adultery. In this instance, the adultery would be to worship any god other than the one you are married to.

Jeremiah 3:8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.

John 4:19-20 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

This mountain is where her fathers had gone to worship their idols, their gods, their husbands so to speak.

John 4:21-22 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.

Jesus said her forefathers did not even know what they were doing or what they were worshiping. For there is only one God.

John 4:23-24 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Jesus is explaining to her what was to come to pass shortly on the Day of Pentecost. Believers would be worshiping by way of the new birth spirit – speaking in tongues.

John 4:25-29 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her? The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?

This was not a woman of ill repute as some have suggested. Her husbands were the gods she had been worshiping.

Jesus did not need to convince the woman to believe what he had said, nor did he have to argue with her. When she heard the words of God spoken by Jesus Christ – she believed.

Many times, rather than guessing what the scriptures are saying it is best to search the scriptures for yourself and expect God to give you understanding in all things.

This is an audio file about The Fool, The Wicked and The Wise or The Puppets and their Puppet Masters

Well worth the time to understand.  Let me know what you think!

Sharon and I went shopping for food on Thursday, and it was interesting. Everywhere we went people were wearing masks. We live in a time now where some people won’t leave their homes and where police arrested a father and daughter playing catch in a park. The world seems to be filled with fear and oppression everywhere you look.

In light of current goings on, God’s Word has some interesting things to say. Our adversary, the devil, has a temporary lease on the earth and is currently the god of this world. The devil has his people in many positions of power all over the earth.

We as God’s children live in this world, but we are no longer of this world. God is our Father and our citizenship is in the kingdom of God. As our Father, God has given us great understanding through His Word and has made many promises available to us.

One of the most revealing sections of scripture about current events is in Ephesians 6:10 and following:

Ephesians 6:10-13 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

We are in a spiritual battle of which the ultimate goal is to stop the movement of God’s Word and to afflict God’s children. The way we fight in this battle is to pray for each other and for the leadership of the church.

Ephesians 6:18-20 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; And for me (Paul), that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

Many ministers are being told not to hold services in their churches on Sunday under penalty of arrest. WOW! So, we pray. Even when Judah was carried away into captivity into Babylon, God told them to pray for the city, even though it was ruled by pagans.

Jeremiah 29:7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

Good advice for us today. Pray for our cities, our country and our leadership.

1 Timothy 2:1-2 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

Could you pray for people not born again that run your cities and states? God says to. Note that there are many different types of prayers in the Bible.
But as we live here and are at times put under much pressure, God has much to say about His protection that He offers His children. The following is like an expansion of the 23rd Psalm where it says, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for thou art with me.”

Isaiah 41:10-13 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

In the context we are talking of here;

They that are incensed against you shall be as nothing.
They that strive with you shall perish.
They that contend with you shall be as nothing.

These are they that are of this world.

We live in this world, but we are not of this world.

John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.

John 17:15-16 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Our Father, knowing the pressure and persecutions we are subjected to while we are in the world, tells us where to put our thoughts, our trust and our hope.
Therefore, I have asked my fellowship to read the 91st Psalm every day through these times as it offers some great reminders of our Father’s love for us, how He fights for us and the protections He offers us.

Psalm 91:1-16 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

Dake’s Annotated Bible makes some interesting observations about parts of this Psalm.

For the person that dwells in the secret place of the most High, God shows His great ability to protect.

He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler (traps set for the righteous by the wicked).
He shall deliver you from the noisome pestilence (a rushing calamity that sweeps everything before it).
Cover you with his feathers (used here figuratively to indicate God’s protection and care).
There is protection under His wings.
His truth will be your shield and buckler.

God also gives us illustrations of what we do not need to fear:

Not afraid of night terrors (treasons, robbery, murders, disease)
Not afraid of day arrows (figuratively, dangers that come by day)
Not afraid of pestilence that come in the dark (plague)
Not afraid of noonday destructions

Then God says that a thousand shall fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not come near you. This reminds one of the night the destroyer flew over the land of the Egyptians known as Passover, none of Israel’s firstborn died.

God also says you will see the reward of the wicked. I don’t know when that will be, but for sure we will be there when the books are opened at the Great White Throne. After the Great White Throne, you will seek for them and will not find them. Perished forever.

God promises to be with us in trouble, to answer us when we call upon Him for help and to deliver us.

God’s Word is filled with records of His great ability to deliver even in the worst of times. What He asks us to do is to pray — pray for each other, pray for our leadership in the church, pray for all men and pray for our city, state and country leaders. God asks us to put our trust in Him and set our love upon Him.

Stand with your loins girt about with truth. Put on the whole armor of God. Then having done all STAND.