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"A guidebook to
accessing the life of God
Without
being sidetracked by religious tradition."
By
Charles Pinkney
AUTHOR'S
VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE
Author's
Brief Testimony
It
takes a time and study to understand
the Scriptures, we call The Holy Bible. Is it history or fable? Is it the
word of God and relevant to life
in the 21st Century? Is it inviolate
truth or not? It is only after
we have studied the Bible carefully
with the intent to understand
that we begin to glimpse its
consistency and simplicity.
It has been called many things,
such as the "Makers users manual,"
"A love letter from God," "A
book that prophetically foretells
things to come." Theologians
dig into the study of Scripture
from a variety of motives and
at times leave with a lot of
knowledge but little understanding.
The apostle Paul who was highly
educated and religiously situated
proclaimed that scholarship,
philosophy and theology are a
pathway that does not lead to
knowing God. Human knowlege is
not Spiritual knowledge. Truth
and wisdom is a Spiritually derived
gift. Spiritual life is outside
of religion. For it is only God
himself who through the revelation
of the Holy Spirit to impart
to human beings the necessary
understanding and revelation
of the Mysteries
of God.
(Read
1Corinthians Ch.1&2)
WHAT
ARE SOME RELIGIOUS ATTRIBUTES
WHICH HINDER FULFILLMENT IN A
LIFE OF GOD?
**Schisms and division in the body of Christ
from denominational boundaries
**Schism and division
result from the designation of
clergy and the subordinate laity
** Some form of priesthood
remains as the controlling voice
in fellowship
**Human headship a heirarchy
of authority controls and imposes
obligations
**Formalistic rituals
or orders of service prohibit
God's interacting
**Religious services become
a form of performance or entertainment
**Congregations (the laity) undervalued and serve mostly to support
the institution
**The members of congregations
are identified as "sheep"
to be exploited
**the institution church
is focused primarily on maintenance; continuance
and growth
**Religious traditions
borrow worldly values and methodology
**The doctrines of institutional
Christianity may be at variance
with scripture
**All individual believers are not expected to grow,
mature and assume leadership
**Traditional religious
practices lack a demonstration
of the power of the Holy Spirit.
**Although Christianity is the outgrowth and
fulfillment of
Judaic roots there is little acknowledgment
of these foundations
Attributes
of Religion
"The Leaven
of Pharisees "
" - - the rulers of
the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority
over them. It shall not be so among you, but whosoever would become
great among you shall be your minister; and whosoever would be first
among you shall be your servant: 28) even as the song of man came not to
be ministered to but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Matthew 20:25-28
By Charles Pinkney
Pharisees
judge things which are from God to be evil and devilish.
Pharisees
judge things which are from God to be evil and devilish.
"But
the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the
devils." (Matthew 9:34) "But when the Pharisees heard it, they
said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince
of the devils." (Matthew 12:24)
There
is a class of religious people who know only the ritual, the letter
and the doctrine of their institution. These individuals are quick to
react to the person who comes with a doctrine or revelation that does
not coincide with their own. They do not recognize the revelation of
the Spirit of God and in fact do not even know God or his attributes.
In the case of Jesus, they ascribed his anointed works to that of Lucifer.
Pharisees
follow codes of legalism
"But
when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples
do that which is not lawful to do upon the Sabbath day." (Matthew
12:2) "And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean
the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full
of ravening and wickedness."
(Luke
11:39) "But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and
all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these
ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone." (Luke
11:42)
Conformity
to religious rules or "legalism" marks the religious behavior of the
Pharisees. Doctrines are judged right and correct because they follow
"the way of the fathers." It is the tradition. Tradition is sacrosanct
and can not be violated. Jesus saw past the tradition into the moral
and spiritual foundations of God.
Pharisees
violently oppose those who they perceive to be contrary to their doctrine.
Pharisees set themselves to destroy those
who differ with them. "And the
Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians
against him, how they might destroy him." (Mark 3:6)
"Then
the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might
destroy him." (Matthew 12:14)
Tolerance
for another viewpoint not evident in the doctrine of Pharisees. We see
the immediate response to opposition which threatened their power-base
is that of reprisals, sanctions, or worse. It is dangerous to confront
a religiously grounded person especially one who has a vested interest
in the status quo. No congregation wishes to be threatened in way which
impacts the base of power or the economic interests of their congregation.
The
Pharisee's behavior is contagious
"Then
Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees
and of the Sadducees." (Matthew 16:6)
When
their is no spiritual center to religious life everything that is done
is based upon going along with the status quo or replicating traditional
behavior. Once so conditioned it is very hard to break free. Such bound
religious people are called "children of hell" by Jesus. (Matthew
23:15)
Pharisees
hinder or prevent the acquisition of true faith
Mat
23:13 "But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut
up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves,
neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in."
Mat
23:15 "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass
sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him
twofold more the child of hell than yourselves."
Pharisees
present themselves with pomp, pretense and self exaltation.
Mat
23:14 "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour
widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall
receive the greater damnation."
Pharisees
miss the spiritual meaning of the word and the law.
"Woe
unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint
and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law,
judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to
leave the other undone." (Matthew 23:23) "And the Lord said unto
him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter;
but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness." (Luke
11:39)
Those
who are of the world and those who are connected with the vine of religion
fail to hear Jesus' words and they fail to believe. Jesus told these
religious persons that if they belonged to God they would hear and recognize
that Jesus spoke for God. Jesus concluded that they did not belong to
God but to their father the devil.
Pharisees
teaching and practice do not equate; hypocrisy.
"
- he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the
leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy." (Luke 12:1)
"Woe
unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside
of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion
and excess." (Matthew 23:25) "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear
beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all
uncleanness."
(Matthew
23:27) "All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe
and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not."
(Matthew 23:3)
Pharisees
separate themselves from common people and sinners.
"And
when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners,
they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh
with publicans and sinners?" (Mark 2:16)
"But
their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying,
Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?" (Luke 5:30)
"And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth
sinners, and eateth with them." (Luke 15:2)
Pharisees
turn what should be a spiritual life into burdensome tasks.
"For
they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's
shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their
fingers." (Matthew 23:4)
There
are still religions today who bind their people with obligations and
burdensome tasks. To fail at the task is to risk spiritual repercussion
of God's wrath.
Pharisees
see God formally and far off from man; have no knowledge nor experience
of the intimacy of "son ship."
"And
the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which
speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?" (Luke
5:21)
To
Pharisees the "status" of their ecclesiastical position is a source
of pride.
"Woe
unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues,
and greetings in the markets." (Luke 11:43)
"And
the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they
derided him." (Luke 16:14)
"But
all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their
phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments," (Matthew
23:5)
"Pharisees
judge the externals, see only the outward forms and appearance of things,
therefore they do not judge with righteous judgment (Isaiah Chapter
11)
"And
when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should
come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with
observation:" (Luke 17:20)
Righteous
judgment is described in Isaiah Chapter 11. It states that Lord, the
righteous Judge will not judge by the external evidence of the things
which are seen by things revealed in the Spirit.
Pharisees
do not recognize the anointing, they contend and compete with the anointing,
using any available argument to stop it.
"The
Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy
record is not true." (John 8:13)
"Now
both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that,
if any man knew where he were, he should show it, that they might take
him." (John 11:57)
Any
person who is spiritual in the midst of religious non spiritual people
is at once suspect and accused of many kinds of evil. Whether by reason
of jealousy or of fear that they might be exposed as spiritually deficient
charlatans. In such situations, the true man or woman of God is singled
out for persecution and eventually suffers legalistic reprisals from
the priestly leadership.
Pharisees
flaunt the status of their religious titles, which are used to
"lord it over" the simple.
"And
greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi."
(read Matthew 23:7-10)
From
these scriptures it can be interpreted that any names which exalt clergy
or human leadership is unscriptural. Whether "Rabbi," "Master," "Father,"
"Excellence," "Eminence," "Your Grace," "Reverend" or "Pastor, " or
any other.
The
apostles forbid such obsequious fawning and we should not become so
phony and egoistic as to require it. These kinds of men may be our brothers
if they are believers but they are no more than a brother who shares
the same testimony that ,"We have nothing that was not given to us".
Pharisees
expect privilege, power, status, and gain through their titles and leadership.
"And
love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,"
"But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and
all ye are brethren." "And call no man your father upon the earth: for
one is your Father, which is in heaven."
"And
whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble
himself shall be exalted." (Matthew 23:6,8,9,12)
Clergy
as a privileged class is assumed widely within contemporary tradition.
Leadership, some presume, has the privilege of living in a kind of exalted
manner, with lavish attention to their every need. Of course there are
some poor churches who barely support their pastors and might well do
more, many of the clergy class "lord it over" the parishioners essentially
expecting a high standard of comfortable living to be supplied by the
gratuities of others.
There
is something about the picture of a fat, self indulgent preacher that
the world does not trust. The Broadway musical production "Cabaret"
typifies this view as it features one song which was called "Money."
In it there is just such a reference to a fat money-grabbing preacher.
While fat and affluent business men seem perfectly Okay by worldly standards
the world does not really want to see Christians among the materialistic
and self indulgent. While I do not normally see the world as having
much spiritual enlightenment, this is an interesting insight.
Pharisees
forget the true nature of ministry: mercy, sharing and helping others.
"And
whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble
himself shall be exalted." "But he that is greatest among you shall
be your servant." (Matthew 23:11,12)
The
Kingdom of God is not about ourselves. The Kingdom of God is not about
wealth or comfort though it would be good if want and suffering were
banished. The Kingdom of God is about realizing a life where God is
a reality and his presence is a continual comfort and strength to any
of us in this world, regardless of our status or situation. God is a
reality and his blessings are real and new each day. Those who know
God are aware of this reality, those who know only religion are still
waiting to connect to the real thing.
"Knowledge
makes arrogant, love edifies."
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