"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross..." Hebrews 12:1-2
Prayer to our Nation
Teresa Croft
Testing the genuineness of our faith
"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ." 1 Peter1:6-7
Untested faith may be true faith, but it is sure to be small faith, and it is likely to remain little as long as it is without trials. Faith never prospers so well as when all things are against her: Tempests are her trainers, and bolts of lightning are her illuminators.
When a calm reigns on the sea, spread the sails as you will, the ship does not move to its harbor; for on a slumbering ocean the keel sleeps too. Let the winds rush and howl, and let the waters lift themselves, though the vessel may rock and her deck may be washed with waves and her mast may creak under the pressure of the full and swelling sail, it is then that she makes headway toward her desired haven. No flowers are as lovely a blue as those that grow at the foot of the frozen glacier; no stars gleam as brightly as those that glisten in the midnight sky; no water tastes as sweet as that which springs up in the desert sand; and no faith is so precious as that which lives and triumphs in adversity.
Tested faith brings experience. You could not have believed your own weakness if you had not been compelled to pass through the rivers; and you would never have known God’s strength if you had not been supported
in the flood. Faith increases in quality, assurance, and intensity the more it is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trial is precious too.
Do not let this, however, discourage those who are young in faith. You will have trials enough without seeking them: The full portion will be measured out to you in due course.
Meanwhile, if you cannot yet claim the result of long experience, thank God for what grace you have; praise Him for that degree of holy confidence you have now attained: Walk according to that rule, and you will still have more and more of the blessing of God, until your faith will remove mountains and conquer impossibilities.
"When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.
My foot has held fast to His steps;
I have kept His way and not turned aside. I have not departed from the commandment of His lips;
I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food."
Job 23:10-12
"And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier." 2 Timothy 2:2-4
"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain." Philippians 2:12-16
God's faithfulness to us -- which enables us to triumph in Christ
"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." 1 John 1:8-10
"Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, Who also will do it." 1 Thessalonians 5:23
2Thessalonians 5:16-18
Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
1Peter 5:8-9
"Be self controlled and alert, your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith!
Romans 1:16-17 NIV
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."
Isaiah 40:28-31
"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
How Great tho Art
Elvis Presley
Ignoring Prophecy
Hopefully, we are beginning to see that prophecy is important in a wise walk with God and that he expects us to study it in order to know what to do. Yet, Christians are not taught typically to study prophecy, and are even told it is a distraction from “more important” areas of study or ministry activities, for various reasons. One common reason for this is that they are taught they will be safe in heaven due to a pre-tribulation rapture before the bad stuff happens. Others teach that this understanding does not fit the natural, sequential timeline of Revelation. Indeed, there are good people on both sides of the argument. But since this could be a matter of life or death, would it not
be prudent to find out for sure now by studying all the prophecies we were given? Adding to the above misconceptions, there is the very real issue of so many well-known failed predictions based on
Bible prophecy causes people to shy away from the study of the prophecies. Most of us can state that we have never witnessed a prophetic prediction succeed. This gives the impression that it is futile and foolish to even try to use unfulfilled prophecy productively. In other words, it appears obvious to the casual observer that prophecy is useful only in hindsight after it is fulfilled, not for foresight.
Yet, does the failure of so many predictions alone prove that Bible prophecy is not to be used as a guide? Just because it seems that every expectation about the fulfillment of prophecy so far has failed, does this mean that they always will and that using prophecy productively is inherently wrong? Could there be other reasons for the failures indicating that the Fault does not lie in the predictive use of prophecy at all? As covered in the Introduction, the reason is that the prophecies were sealed until the end times when people would possess the right knowledge and wisdom to make sense of them at last.
The Wise Will Understand
Assuming that we are now in the end times when the prophecies can be understood by the wise; who then are “the wise” of Daniel 12? In Scripture, the wise are not just those with a lot of general learning and understanding behind them. When Scripture talks about wisdom, it means a specific kind of learning. If you read through the Torah or Psalms and Proverbs (also called the Wisdom Literature), you will find a clear portrait of the wise. Just a few examples will illustrate this:
Psalm 19:7-11 — 7 The Torah of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.
Deuteronomy 4:5-6 — 5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments ... 6 Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
Proverbs 13:14 — The Torah of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.
Ecclesiastes 2:26 (HCSB) — For to the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy...
James 1:5 (HCSB) — Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him. Here, in typical Hebrew parallelism, Psalm 19 equates Torah with the testimonies, statutes, commandments, and judgments of God contained in the first five books of the Bible, just as the Torah says it contains. Then it plainly says that this, along with fear of God
(Ps 111:10, Pr 1:7), makes the simple wise. A major message of the Wisdom Literature is that
the wise are those who fear (revere, respect) God (Pr 9:10; 15:33), and meditate on his Torah. Notice also how David even says that we are “warned” and “rewarded” by keeping them. Thus, Daniel 12, as interpreted by the Bible, is saying that if you want to have proper understanding of the Prophets,
then you should fear God (not men) and study all the Bible not just the Wisdom Literature or NT as Christians gravitate towards. I can testify to the accuracy of this interpretation. I am convinced that our understanding of the mysteries of Scripture depends on studying and applying the wisdom of God (which differs from how we receive eternal life, through trusting)
God—Gen 15:6). When my wife and I became convicted to rest on Sabbath and the scriptural holy days (from the Bible, not because we were influenced by Seventh Day Adventists), the Bible started to make sense in a way that it never did before. We could understand things that always puzzled us. Our understanding was blessed. Best of all, we developed an enjoyment of reading, studying and discussing the Bible that we never had when going to institutional churches, no doubt because for once reading the Bible was not frustrating. Later we realized that the Torah is not required today on believers (for different reasons than Christians think such as “Christ did away with the law”) (More on this later). But at the time that misunderstanding helped because you always study instructions more seriously when you expect to have to below them. The Wise Will Understand
We Are Expected to Study The Prophets
Between the coverage in the Introduction and this chapter, you should now understand the prerequisites to understanding prophecy. Yet knowing them will do no good if there still is no desire to apply them. As mentioned earlier, many have no desire to study prophecy due to a belief that it is a bad distraction from where we are supposed to be spending our time in the Bible. But, if we look again at Jesus' admonition about escaping end times events, we will begin to see how mistaken
this is.
Luke 21:34-36 (HCSB) — 34 “Be on your guard, so that your minds are not dulled from carousing, drunkenness, and worries of life, or that day will come on you unexpectedly 35 like a trap. For it will come on all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 But be alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man.” Jesus taught his inner circle what was coming in the end times and emphasized the need to pray specifically about escaping all of it. Since we are living in the time of these things, we need to know what we are praying about escaping. Peter reinforces this basic of Bible literacy:
2 Peter 3:1-2, 17 (HCSB) — 1...I awaken your pure understanding with a reminder, 2 so that you can remember the words previously spoken by the holy prophets, and the commandment of our Lord and Savior [given] through your apostles. 17 Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of the immoral and fall from your own stability. Peter assumed his audience was familiar with the Prophets too, as the command to “remember” implies. With prophecy about the end of the world in mind, it would be easier for us to keep ourselves from immoral behavior. Jesus also warned about believers forgetting what prophecy says and becoming apathetic in his Parable of the Watchful Servants:
Luke 12:36-37,45-47 — 36 And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. 37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching ... 45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; 46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. 47 And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
Unwatchful, Wicked Believers in the Last Days
We just read how both Jesus and Peter warned that believers would forget prophecy and live more like the world, instead of remembering what the Prophets said and staying pure. Peter said this would happen in the “last days” and Jesus taught through the parable that he would actually return at the time when this lack of watchfulness among believers was going on—bringing punishment for those that were not watching, not prepared, and not living according to his will. But, who could this group be? Frankly, there is only one group that fits. These unwatchful attitudes that Jesus and Peter spoke of mirror the general Christian indifference towards unfulfilled prophecy we covered above. Yet, they also clearly said that these believers would be acting wickedly and following their evil desires, too. Does this fit Christianity today? You have to admit, yes, if you are honest. Consider the scandals among church leaders, divorce rate among Christians oftentimes higher than the world around them, the materialism, and the disappointing behavior of its followers. Such embarrassing behavior is familiar to all of us who have learned the hard way to be extra careful in our dealings with
those strangers we meet who are quick to tell us “I'm a Christian” This may seem like an unfair use of isolated examples—until you remember the followers of Jesus were not supposed
to be anything like this, and were not so in the beginning. It is one thing for the world to have this example who have subjective moral standards if they have any at all. But, those who claim to follow the Messiah were to be a “light” among darkness—not just more darkness. If we go back to the first assembly in Jerusalem, we see how it is supposed to be. Instead of the commonly hypocritical reputation that Christians carry today, the original Hebraic followers back then “had favor with all the people” (Acts 2:47).
Laodicean Church Today
In fact, the churches of America are a clear fulfillment of another prophecy of the last days. The prophetic message to the seventh and final era of believers to exist before the Messiah's Second Coming describes exactly the same spiritual condition (Rev 3:14-19). These Laodiceans say that they are rich, have many things, and lack nothing. Prosperity distinguishes American Christians from the rest of the world where believers are poorer and often persecuted. Yet the Messiah makes his judgment: in reality, they are lukewarm, wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. Of these labels, the terms “blind” and “naked” are of special interest. You are considered blind if you do not have
spiritual understanding from God's Word (Jn 9:40; 2Co 4:4), which we learned comes when we fear God and keep his commandments. You are considered naked if you do not have righteous works (Rev 19:8). Righteous works towards God and man are not up for us to decide in our own eyes, but have been defined for us by God in his Word (Mt 22:35-40).
Wickedness Prevents Understanding of Prophecy
If you are a Christian (and still reading!) then let me reassure you that my goal in covering all the above is not to put you down. On the contrary, up until 1999 when I moved out of America and studied on my own instead of going to church, I was a nominal Christian myself. Therefore, I know exactly what Christians typically have to learn (and unlearn) before they can see the study of unfulfilled prophecy in a proper light. And without having covered these things, most of my
Audience would have little chance of understanding the end times plan. It will do you little good to be told something that you are unable to understand or believe because you did not realize you did not have the foundation for understanding it. Let me restate that Daniel was specifically told that his writings were sealed until the end times when “none of the wicked shall understand but the wise shall understand.” Clearly, we had better be sure we are neither wicked nor unwise if we want to understand these important prophecies. We already saw in the Wisdom Literature that the wise are those who revere God and follow his commandments. If the wicked are the opposite of the wise, one would expect the wicked to be those who do not both revere God and follow his commandments. This is exactly what the Wisdom Literature declares about the wicked:
Psalm 36:1 — The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes.
Psalm 119:53 — Indignation grips me because of the wicked, who have forsaken your Torah.
Clearly, God will not unveil his prophecies to those who do not follow his ways. But, the disobedient would not believe the true message of the Prophets if it were to be explained to them, anyway. As with the Laodiceans, a blindness from sin prevents understanding. This is why Jesus counseled the “blind” Laodiceans “to repent” (Rev 3:19). The Book of Revelation also indicates that those wanting to understand its message need to surpass typical Christian righteousness. Notice that the resurrected and glorified Jesus said that his revelation was only for God's “bond-servants” (Rev 1:1, HCSB). A bond-servant does the will of the one he serves. Now recall how we earlier read in Revelation 7 that God's 144,000 Firstfruit bond-servants are to be sealed on their foreheads. But, we never covered who these bond-servants are. In Revelation 12 and 14 we find additional details about them and the Woman:
Revelation 12:17 (HCSB) — So the dragon was furious with the woman and left to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony about Jesus.
Revelation 14:12 — here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
This may sound odd to Christians who believe that the commandments were done away except for the single great commandment to love your neighbor as yourself. Meanwhile there are the Messianic or Hebrew Roots Christians who believe that the entire Torah is to be followed today and that these verses are referring to these saints keeping Torah. So, who is right and which “commandments of God” is Revelation referring to that the end times bond-servants of God are keeping?
Which Commandments of God To Keep Today?
As is often the case, the answer to this question lies somewhere in the middle of what the opposite sides of the debate believe. First, it is easy to show that as Christians rightly understand, the Torah does not apply to anyone today (however, not for the reasons they think).
No Torah Today, But Later,Yes
Christians believe that the “impossible-to-keep” Torah was fulfilled by Jesus and done away forever at Calvary. However, Jesus contradicted this when he said he did not come to destroy the Torah which would remain until everything in it was fulfilled, at which point the heavens and earth would also have passed (Mt 5:17-19). Further, Christians will be shocked to find out that the prophets say the whole world will be keeping the entire “obsolete” Torah during Christ's millennial reign. This includes the Sabbath (Isa 66:23), the feasts (Zech 14:16-19) and the sacrifices in a millennial temple (Eze 40-48). This occurs all under the New Covenant (NC) not made already (with Gentiles), but to be made with a
regathered Israel and Judah (Jer 31:31ff) during the Millennium. Regarding the Gentiles, Acts 15 plainly says that they were not required to follow the Torah at all, for any reason, including
salvation (as some Jewish believers then tried to argue)22. Paul as a Jew continued to keep (and to praise) Torah while at the same time making the same distinction that Gentiles were not required (Acts 21:24,25). (However, all Jews and Gentiles are also unable to keep Torah today anyway).
Why No Torah Today – Purpose of Torah
Why are there different Torah requirements between now and the Millennium and between Jew and Gentile during the First Century? This hard question took me years to figure out. To answer it you have to properly understand the purpose of the Torah and what it entails. The Torah was not given until Abraham's offspring became a nation for a good reason. It is almost a national constitution
that shows how to apply God's ways on a national level and thereby shines the light of God to the other nations who do not know him yet (Isa 49:6). The nations were to see Israel's great wisdom and understanding and know that God was with them (Dt 4:6-7; 1Ki 10:6-9). The Torah was never given as a route to personal salvation in some alleged “Dispensation of Law” until some “Dispensation of Grace” arrived. On the contrary, the sacrifices never took away sins (Heb 10:4) and grace has always been available since Adam (Rev 13:8). The purpose of the sacrifices is (not was) to remind us of
sin (Heb 10:3), which is why they will return during the Millennium. The Kingdom's subjects then will be flesh as today and still benefit from these reminders (the Kingdom's “kings and priests” will be resurrected/raptured glorified men like Jesus is). Christ did not come to end reminders, but to fulfill some (but not all) of the prophecies (Mt 5:17-19). The Torah is an all-or-nothing national proposition, not a personal one. James knew this when he decided that not only was the Torah not needed for salvation, but that it was also not a requirement for Gentiles to follow for any reason (Acts 15:19). For Gentiles to keep it would be “troublesome”, because they required a government under a prophet with priests and a temple, etc. Without them, nobody “keeps Torah” including Israel today. James took the time to clarify it because none of this is immediately obvious when someone reads the OT or hears “Moses preached” (Acts 15:21). His decision was to give only four requirements to the Gentiles, all of which dealt with coming out of the cultic religious practices of that culture (not “four Torah commandments needed to join fellowship before keeping the rest”!). Therefore, Paul and other zealous Jews followed Torah in the First Century as long as the temple and priesthood made it possible. Once these disappeared in 70 AD with the Roman sacking of Jerusalem, nobody could keep Torah. The
Torah-breaking Jews and the temple services only lasted as long as they did in the land so that when Jesus came he could fulfill everything. The Old Covenant (OC) had long ago been broken by Israel. And after their exile God no longer sent prophets warning Israel to keep the Torah, as he did before. The disappearance of the OC is why a NC is promised (Jer31:31ff). The return of Torah-breaking Jews to Israel since 1948, and the planning of a Third Temple and Levitical priesthood, has nothing to do with the OC or NC, but has everything to do with the fulfillment of more prophecy. If they were
being led back to keep the Torah, there would be a prophet sent to show them how to and to warn them if they broke it, as in every previous occasion.
But More Than Just Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself
If we do not have the Torah to keep, is it enough to only intend to love our neighbor as ourselves? It is true that the Bible says loving each other fulfills the whole intent of the law (Mt 7:12; 22:40; Rom 13; Gal 5). Nevertheless, it does not mean that there are no other commands to obey. James says to break one of these commands makes you guilty of them all, and he lists a few of them as does Jesus:
James 2:8-12 (ESV) — 8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. 11 For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty.
Matthew 19:17-19 (ESV) — 17...If you would enter life, keep the commandments." 18 He said to him, "Which ones?" And Jesus said, "You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, 19 Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself." This is where it is easy to get confused again. James and Jesus mention commandments that we recognize from the
Ten Commandments of the Torah. This would seem to support the Hebrew Roots idea that we are all to keep the Torah today. But, notice that only mentioned are commands that people understand already without the Torah. Either they are against the law already in all governments (murder, theft) or they are taboos in most cultures already (adultery, partiality) or values of societies (respecting parents and the elderly).
Judgment Criteria
We can confirm this by looking at the reasons that God has given for judging certain nations. Consider how God destroyed Sodom, although God had never given them the Torah nor sent them a prophet. The coming destruction of Mystery Babylon is compared to the destruction of Sodom (Jer 50:40; Isa 13:19) and for similar cause. In both cases, it has nothing to do with Torah commandments. They are judged for behaviors that every society recognizes as wrong and prohibits. They murder, steal, commit adultery, bear false witness, take bribes, pervert justice, ignore the cause of the innocent, poor, fatherless and widow and are prideful (Eze 16:47-50; Rev 18:3-5, 24). I believe this is why Jesus left out “thou shalt not take God's name in vain” (the Third Commandment) in his list above. It is not a moral standard that anyone would know without Torah. You also will not find it in this list of commandment-breakers kept out of the New Jerusalem, even though they will all know and use God's name then:
Revelation 21:8 (ESV) — But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur,...the second death."
Christian Conduct
All Christians know in their heart that they should diligently maintain God's moral standards. Yet, as we discussed earlier in this chapter, Christians do not uphold these minimal standards of conduct much better than the world around them. However, Jesus raised an even higher standard for us when he said that even hating someone or lusting after women made you guilty of breaking God's commands. (Thought precedes action so if you had the thought habitually, then, eventually, the opportunity will present itself for you to act on it.) Either way, even the basic morality found in the Ten Commandments is not being kept by the many who come in Jesus' name today (Mt 24:5). Another group must be indicated. The righteous Woman and the 144,000 will be that very different group. They will be overcoming those sins and striving to walk with the real integrity that won the First Century Jerusalem Congregation acclaim from all the people (Acts 2:47).
Minimum Needed for Salvation vs. Seeking Wisdom
Just because we are not required to and cannot keep Torah does not mean we should not study it and cannot benefit from putting its wisdom into practice. As we were discussing earlier, Scripture says we need wisdom to understand Daniel and Revelation (and by implication all the other Prophets). It explicitly says that the wicked, those who turn from God's ways, will not understand. The Torah is associated with wisdom in both the OT and NT. For this reason alone, we therefore
ought to want to study the Torah (not to mention the many, many other blessings promised for its practice). I had warned earlier that repentance would be a theme throughout this book. Christianity does not teach biblical repentance for the obvious reason that it requires a lot more from its membership than is comfortable for most. Repentance is not primarily about what you merely believe or think. It is mainly about what you do (because of faith). In fact, the word which repentance is translated from in the Hebrew means “return.” What we are supposed to return to is following
God's ways. Many people have the right belief in the God of the Bible. But, how many are willing to require right actions of themselves even when it hurts? These are the fruits of true repentance that John the Baptist required:
Luke 3:7-14 (NIV) — 7 John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 9 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." 10 "What should we do then?" the crowd asked. 11 John answered, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same." 12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?" 13 "Don't collect any more than you are required to," he told them. 14 Then some soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He replied, "Don't extort money and don't accuse
people falsely--be content with your pay." It is important to note that John's definition of right actions of repentance were not his invention as part of some new religion he was creating (i.e. he was not the first Baptist). Rather, his teaching summarized aspects of God's commands we covered above, also called tzedakah (often translated “righteousness”or “justice”). These are the same right actions
that Nehemiah before him had to remind the “returning” Jews about (Neh 5). Jesus after him focused on them, as well (Mt 5-7) The lack of these high standards of conduct among its members is an indictment against all Bible-based religions today. Jesus said that those who followed God's way, as he taught them, would be recognized by their love, a quality that sets one apart in this selfish world
(Jn 13:34-35).
“I Already Do All This”
If you are already diligent about adhering to the Bible's commands of right action and thought, then you are way ahead of most. But there's always something more to overcome or master. Jesus set a higher goal than mere compliance to God's relatively few commandments:
Mark 10:17-31 (HCSB) — 17 ...a man ran up, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ...19 You know the commandments: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; do not defraud; honor your father and mother.” 20 He said to Him, “Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth.” 21 Then, looking at him, Jesus loved him and said to him, “You lack one thing: Go, sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.” 22But he was stunned at this demand, and he went away grieving, because he had many possessions. 23 Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 But the disciples were astonished at His words. Again Jesus said to them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye
of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 So they were even more astonished, saying to one another, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Looking at them, Jesus said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God, because all things are possible with God.” 28 Peter began to tell Him, “Look, we have left everything and followed You.” 29 “I assure you,” Jesus said, “there is no one who has left house, brothers or sisters, mother or father, children, or fields because of Me and the gospel, 30 who will not receive 100 times more, now at this time—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and eternal life in the age to come. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” This man was very moral and obedient to God, but he had a secret sin to overcome. Money or possessions were more important to him than learning God's ways, making them idols that would eventually separate him from God if he did not deal with it. We also have our own personal addictions, obsessions, anxieties and other secret sins that amount to idols if we are not willing to give them up when required. Looking out for these issues and overcoming them habitually is what repentance means. Jesus said it would be rewarded in both this life and the next. One of the rewards is assuredly the chance to understand God's mysteries contained in Bible prophecy. Once you do, what Jesus said will apply to you:
Luke 10:23-24 (ESV) — 23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear