Knock, Seek and Receive!

1 Timothy 1:13

Verse Concepts

even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief;

Hosea 4:6

Verse Concepts

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Acts 17:23-26 English Standard Version (ESV)

23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man,[a] 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. 26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,https://www.gotquestions.org/unknown-god.html

While in Athens, Paul was provoked by the many idols he saw. As was his custom, he went to the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles. He also preached to those in the marketplace. That is when he encountered the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers, who were always looking to discover something “new” to discuss. The Epicureans were followers of Epicurus (341—270 BC), who taught that happiness was the ultimate goal in life. The Stoic thinkers regarded Zeno (340—265 BC) as their founder. He was noted for promoting the rational over the emotional. Both Epicurus and Zeno believed in many gods.

Hearing Paul teach about Jesus, the philosophers had Paul come to the Areopagus and asked him to tell them about this “new,” strange teaching he was proclaiming. Standing in the midst of the Areopagus, Paul tells those gathered that he realized Athenians were very religious, having seen their many objects of worship. But one altar among the many caught his attention. On it were inscribed the words “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.” In their ignorance, the Greeks had erected an altar to whatever god they might have inadvertently left out of their pantheon. Paul masterfully uses this altar as an opportunity to share the one true God.

 Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9).

The impetus for the Jerusalem Council is given in Acts 15, verses 1 and 5, “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’ . . . It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the Law of Moses.” Some Jewish Christians were teaching that Gentiles had to observe the Mosaic Law and Jewish customs in order to be saved. Since this teaching clearly contradicted the fact that salvation was by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone (Acts 15:11), the apostles and church leaders held the first Christian council to settle the issue. In verses 7-11, the apostle Peter spoke of his ministry with the Gentiles, as recorded in Acts chapter 10. Peter focused on the fact that the Holy Spirit was given to uncircumcised Gentiles in precisely the same manner the Holy Spirit was given to the apostles and Jewish believers on the day of Pentecost. This led Peter to the conclusion that there should be no “placing a yoke on the neck of the [Gentile] disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear” (Acts 15:10).

Jesus’ half-brother James, who had become a leader of the church in Jerusalem, agreed with Peter and declared, “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God” (Acts 15:19). The Jerusalem Council then proceeded to give four “rules” that Gentile Christians should live by. These were not rules the Gentiles must follow in order to be saved. Rather, the rules were to build harmony between Jewish and Gentile Christians in the first century. The four rules the Jerusalem Council decided upon were that Gentile Christians should abstain from food polluted by idols, sexual immorality, the meat of strangled animals, and blood. The instructions were not intended to guarantee salvation but to promote peace within the early church.

Life births......death cannot create or birth or be alive....death equals death! When two or more are gathered....

Matthew 18:20 Amplified Bible (AMP)

20 For where two or three are gathered in My name [meeting together as My followers], I am there among them.”

mankind

noun

1. 1.

   human beings considered collectively; the human race.

   "research for the benefit of all mankind"

   synonyms:

   the human race, man, humanity, human beings, humans, Homo sapiens, humankind, the human species, people, men and women

2. 2.

   archaic

   men, as distinct from women.

All human rights are indivisible, whether they are civil and political rights, such as the right to life, equality before the law and freedom of expression; economic, social and cultural rights, such as the rights to work, social security and education , or collective rights, such as the rights to development and self- ...

Despite humanities growing lack of regard for human rights, clearly the Universe is devoted to the rights of the sovereign being. Jesus Christ is the judge, the jury and despite our ego and despite everything that we think we may know, what is crystal clear is Jesus Christ defends the rights of all of mankind. We are to deal with each other with integrity, respect and honor. We are to take care of each other and giving rather than taking is what defines us as children of the Living God, to say we are Christians, is to claim to be the family of Christ and to follow His teachings, but we tend to be selective about what we choose to follow, life with Christ is a ever learning, growing, becoming experience, there is no perfection, for we are born into sin, but sin is not what separates us from God, it's not what goes in that bothers God, it's what comes out from us that sickens and enrages the fury of the Heavens. 

What Defiles a Man
10Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “Listen and understand. 11A man is not defiled by whatenters his mouth, but” by what comes out of it.12Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Are You aware that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”…

Titus 3:1-2

Saved in Order to Do Good

1 Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 

2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.

Every day the challenge to meet the requirements of Heaven rise like waves of assault against us, we are tossed into storms of confusion as we are confronted with attacks on our thoughts, unnatural, illogical points of view and there are infiltrators among us that wait for trigger words to rise up and cause confusion, twist our words and ignite violence and hatred among us. We must examine our hearts and stand firm on the word of God. If God is for us, those that want everything for free cannot and will not succeed!