Help for fallen
Humankind
The
scriptural confirmations above, of our own dark origins, and our subsequent understanding
that the devil's access to every one of us comes with our earthly conception and birth,
gives a whole new meaning to Jesus of Nazareths teaching that we need to
be born again ... we ALL need to receive that new birth that only HE can
provide! But before that can happen, each one of us needs to be awakened to what we
really are, and recognize the limitations of our own abilities, our own
efforts, our own doing.
The
limitations of Humankind are directly associated with the choices that we or our ancestors
made in life, as you will see in an examination of what the Holy Bible specifically
reveals to us about those choices and their consequences.
So that brings us back to those Laws, Rules or Commandments, that we mentioned
earlier. Early in the Old Testament, the messages from God were conveyed and
recorded, to give his chosen subset of humankind, an opportunity, a do-it-yourself way, to
try to return to a state of right-standing before their heavenly Father Deuteronomy
7:24-25, by their own choices and their own doing. All they had
to do was keep God's Laws or Commandments.
This
Law was first delivered from God through Moses, a man that was providentially prepared by
God since his birth. Moses was called late in his life by God, to reveal his Law to
a particular subset of humankind, who were all that was left of a particular line of the
descendents of Noah, the only man on the corrupted earth before the worldwide flood, who
had found favor with God. This line of Noah's descendents went from Noah, to one of
Noah's sons, Shem, to one his sons, Aphaxad, to one of his sons, Salah, to one of his
sons...and so forth down through the generations detailed in the eleventh chapter of
Genesis all the way down to Abram, who found favor with God, who then gave Abram a new
name, Abraham. The line continued on to one of Abraham's sons, Isaac, to one of
Isaac's sons, Jacob.
Jacob
found favor with God, who then gave Jacob a new name, Israel. When a famine
lasted for many years in Canaan, Jacob and his whole family were threatened with
destruction, but a way out of harm came to Jacob, through the providence of God.
Jacob (Israel) with his entire family sixty six males plus wives and children Genesis
46:26, were all relocated to the pastoral land of lower
Egypt, called Goshen. They were, at first, welcomed in Egypt, but as the generations
advanced over time, and the family of Jacob or Israel prospered and multiplied, they were
perceived as competition, then as resources, and finally they became the slaves of the
Egyptians. During all those generations, these Goshen descendents of Jacob, which we
will refer to as the Goshen Jews, were exposed to the Egyptian culture, their other gods,
their beliefs, their observances, their manner of display and dress, their luxuries,
foods, delicacies and their many other customs. Each of the descendents of Jacob
was open to corruption during their time in Egypt, but they remembered the God of Abraham
through all this, and ultimately looked to Him for deliverance from their slavery to the
Egyptians.
The Goshen Jews had been in Egypt for 430 years when God sent 80 year-old Moses, to
deliver them from bondage. During those 430 years, their families had multiplied
greatly, and when Moses led them out of Egypt, the Goshen Jews numbered about
six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children. And a mixed multitude went up
also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle Exodus
12:37-38. An individual of these people, may have been referred
to as a Hebrew, an Israelite or a Jew, and their collective name as Israel, or
Jewry. It is this Goshen Jewry that Moses led into the wilderness that God might
prove them. This stay in the wilderness lasted 40 years, as the Jews failed to
follow the commandments of God, delivered to them by Moses. Over and over again they
failed to do so. After the death of Moses, they finally were led into their
promised land by Joshua. God had kept his covenant with them in full; but the
Jews still had to stay within God's Law to retain their inheritance.
The Old Testament goes on to follow the idolatrous performance of most of Jewry when they
encountered the further coming to them of various prophets who were sent with messages
from God, and it provides a record of the Jews' actions onward through time as the
restatements of God's laws become more detailed, expanded, and clarified.
The New
Testament tells us that Jesus of Nazareth was raised and trained in all the Jewish
traditions, and Jesus revealed that he was the Son of God sent from his Heavenly
Father. Jesus of Nazareth knew God's purpose and the meaning of the Law from its
Holy Source. His mission and messages were to the Jews; over and over again Jesus
referred to the Law using parables, examples and explanations aimed at awakening his
corrupted Jewish brethren to their fallen idolatrous state. Very few of the Jews believed
and followed Jesus.
As the
authors of this report encountered these many scriptural messages containing
the Laws, it was quickened to us that they often outlined the do's and don'ts, or a
set of Ground Rules, many of which were conditional commands
regarding the life choices that we should make during our time in
this world
1 when we engage ourselves with the Most High God;
2 when we engage ourselves with the rest of the
spiritual realm; AND
3 when we engage ourselves with other individual humans.
This subset of topical material from the Holy Bible makes up the component parts of what
amounts to an Instruction Manual that was left for us throughout the Holy
Bible, which sets down, when taken as a whole, the importance, the consequences
and the ramifications of these Rules of Engagement.
They were recorded by God in the scriptures, in order to give, first to the
Jews in the time of the Old Testament, then later to the Gentiles in the New Testament, an
opportunity to try to achieve a state of right-standing or righteousness with God by their
own doing.
When anyone tries, and fails to do so, over and over again, and when they seek
the reason why, they should ultimately come to the realization that it is impossible for
them to do so on their own, because they were conceived in the sin of their evil
parentage, the serpentine sperm of their earthly birth. Psalm
51:5.
Pieces
of this Instruction Manual were recorded at different times, and explained
in different ways, but they amount to preprogrammed, earthly Ground Rules of
Engagement for each of us, to guide us in making our choices, as we take our turns
through the earthly life.
And these Rules
are everywhere in the scripture!
In general, they disclose to us that the results of
keeping (obeying) the Rules bring specific consequences, sometimes called
blessings, which are mostly positive in nature. The results of not keeping (disobeying)
the Rules opens us to a whole different set of consequences, sometimes called
curses, which are mostly negative.
We
intend to include in this report some samples of these Ground Rules of
Engagement found in the Holy Scriptures, so that you get the idea of what they look
like; and once you perceive the marvel that Humankind has been given notice by God, in
advance, of how these rules function in our life's walk, the Holy Spirit can bring to your
awareness and remembrance exactly where you (or your ancestor's) life choices have been in
error, and which of your life's circumstances are the result. This certainly was our
process as we experienced the light it brought to why things had been going on in our own
lives, and we trust it will be yours, as well.
A word
in advance...Some of these examples of the Ground Rules may seem long, and
very detailed, but that is what we would expect from a loving Father, whose desire is that
his lost and errant children might understand thoroughly what is being conveyed to them
and what is required of them so that they may try to find their own way, one that He has
provided, in writing, in advance, to bring them back to a state of blessing. May the
Lord grant you the time required to digest the samples below.
About our
convention with the included scriptures ... We have presented
these samples exactly as they are worded in the KJV; the red-lettering denotes the words
spoken by Jesus. The addition of italics has been applied to any phrases that reveal
the consequences, the ramifications, the blessings, or the curses that are being conveyed
by God to us in the scripture. Occasional underlined, or bolded text is used for
emphasis as we were prompted.
So here are some general
and specific
Ground Rules of Engagement for fallen Humankind
Ground
Rules of Engagement
Samples from the Old Testament
Genesis
3: 8-19 And they heard the voice of the LORD
God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves
from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the
garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto
him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid,
because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou
wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou
shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest me to be with me,
she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the LORD God
said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The
serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou
has done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field;
upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And
I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall
bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy
conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy
husband, and he shall rule over thee.
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy
wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of
it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the
days of thy life; Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the
herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto
the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou
return.
Genesis
4: 9-12 And the LORD said unto
Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? and he said, I know not: Am I my brother's
keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me
from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her
mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it
shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be
in the earth.
Genesis
9: 6 Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his
blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.
Exodus 15:
26 And he said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD
thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his
commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee,
which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD
that healeth thee.
Exodus
20: All verses 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. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD
thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the
third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them
that love me, and keep my commandments.
Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in
vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh
his name in vain.
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou
labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD
thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy
manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy
gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the
sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD
blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land
which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Thou shalt not kill.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy
neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor
anything that is thy neighbour's.
And all the people saw the
thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking:
and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto
Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
And Moses said unto the people, Fear
not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that
ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the
thick darkness where God was. And the LORD said
unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have
talked with you from heaven.
Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods
of gold. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice
thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all
places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. And if
thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if
thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not
discovered thereon. {Note:This may define what is meant by uncovering
nakedness which is soon to be mentioned}
Leviticus 18
All verses And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak
unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the Lord your God. After the
doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do: and after the
doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall ye not do: neither shall ye
walk in their ordinances.
Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to
walk therein: I am the LORD your God. Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my
judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.
None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover
their nakedness: I am the LORD. The nakedness of thy father, or the nakedness of thy mother,
shalt thou not uncover: she is thy mother; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father's
nakedness. The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or
daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness
thou shalt not uncover. The nakedness of thy son's daughter, or of thy daughter's
daughter, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover: for theirs is thine own nakedness.
The nakedness of thy father's wife's daughter, begotten of thy father, she is
thy sister, thou shalt not uncover her nakedness. Thou shalt not uncover the
nakedness of thy father's sister: she is thy father's near kinswoman. Thou shalt not
uncover the nakedness of thy mother's sister: for she is thy mother's near kinswoman.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's brother, thou shalt not
approach to his wife: she is thine aunt. Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy
daughter in law: she is thy son's wife; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness. Thou shalt
not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife: it is thy brother's nakedness. Thou shalt
not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, neither shalt thou take her son's
daughter, or her daughter's daughter, to uncover her nakedness; for they are her near
kinswomen: it is wickedness. Neither shalt thou take a wife to her sister, to vex
her, to uncover her nakedness, beside the other in her life time.
Also thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as
long as she is put apart for her uncleanness.
Moreover thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbour's wife, to defile
thyself with her.
And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech,
neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.
Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.
Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman
stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion.
Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these
the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: And the land is defiled:
therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her
inhabitants.
Ye shall therefore keep my
statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither
any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you: (For all these
abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is
defiled;) That the land spue not you out also, when ye defile it, as it spued out the
nations that were before you.
For whosoever shall commit
any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among
their people. Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye
commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that
ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.
Leviticus 19: 1-4
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto all the
congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the
LORD your God am holy. Ye shall fear every man his
mother, and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the LORD your
God. Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD
your God.
9-18 And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners
of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest. And thou shalt
not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt
leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.
Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.
And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God:
I am the LORD.
Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that
is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning. Thou shalt not curse
the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.
Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shallot not respect the
person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shallot thou
judge thy neighbor. Thou shallot not go up and down as a talebearer among thy
people: neither shallot thou stand against the blood of thy neighbor; I am the LORD.
Thou shallot not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shallot in any wise
rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him. Thou shallot not avenge, nor
bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shallot love thy neighbor
as thyself: I am the LORD.
26-31 Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: neither shall
ye use enchantment, nor observe times. Ye shall not round the corners of your heads,
neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. Ye shall not make any cuttings in
your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.
Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land
fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness. Ye shall keep my
sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.
Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be
defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.
Leviticus
20: 6-22 And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar
spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face
against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people. Sanctify
yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your
God.
And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I am LORD
which sanctify you. For every one that curseth his father or his mother shall be
surely put to death: he hath cursed his father or his mother; his blood shall be
upon him.
And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that
committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall
surely be put to death. And the man that lieth with his father's wife hath
uncovered his father's nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their
blood shall be upon them. And if a man lie with his daughter in law, both of them
shall surely be put to death: they have wrought confusion; their blood shall be
upon them.
If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them
have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be
upon them. And if a man take a wife and her mother, it is wickedness: they
shall be burnt with fire, both he and they; that there be no wickedness among you.
And if a man lie with a beast, he shall surely be put to death: and
ye shall slay the beast. And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down
thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death;
their blood shall be upon them.
And if a man shall take his sister, his father's daughter, or his mother's
daughter, and see her nakedness, and she see his nakedness; it is a wicked thing; and
they shall be cut off in the sight of their people: he hath uncovered his sister's
nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity.
And if a man shall lie with a woman having her sickness, and shall uncover her
nakedness; he hath discovered her fountain, and she hath uncovered the fountain of her
blood: and both of them shall be cut off from among their people.
And thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother's sister, nor of thy
father's sister: for he uncovereth his near kin: they shall bear their iniquity.
And if a man shall lie with his uncle's wife, he hath uncovered his uncle's
nakedness: they shall bear their sin; they shall die childless. And if a
man shall take his brother's wife, it is an unclean thing: he hath uncovered his brother's
nakedness; they shall be childless.
Ye shall therefore keep all my statutes, and all my judgments, and do them:
that the land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, spue you not out.
Leviticus
24: 15-22 And thou shalt speak unto the children of
Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin. And he that
blasphemeth the name of the Lord, he shall surely be put to death, and all the
congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in
the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be
put to death.
And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death. And
he that killeth a beast shall make it good; beast for beast. And if a man
cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him;
Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man,
so shall it be done to him again. And he that killeth a beast, he shall
restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death.
Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger, as for one of your
own country: for I am the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy
11: 16-21 Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be
not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And
then the LORD's wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the
heavens, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish
quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you.
Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul,
and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.
And ye shall teach your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine
house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: That
your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD
sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth.
Deuteronomy
11: 26-28 Behold, I set before you this day a
blessing and a curse;
A blessing, if ye obey the commandments
of the LORD your God, this day;
and a curse, if ye will not obey the
commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way
which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.
Deuteronomy
13: 6-10 If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or
thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own
soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not
known, thou, nor thy fathers; Namely, of the gods of the people which are round
about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto
the other end of the earth; Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him,
neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou
conceal him: But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put
him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him
with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD
thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.
Deuteronomy
16: 19-20 Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt
not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise,
and pervert the words of the righteous. That which is altogether just shalt
thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the LORD
thy God giveth thee.
Deuteronomy
17: 1-7 Thou shalt not sacrifice unto the LORD
thy God any bullock, or sheep, wherein is blemish, or any evilfavouredness: for
that is an abomination unto the LORD thy God.
If there be found among you, within any of thy gates which the LORD
thy God giveth thee, man or woman, that hath wrought wickedness in the sight of the LORD
thy God, in transgressing his covenant, And hath gone and served other gods, and
worshipped the, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not
commanded: and it be told thee, and thou has heard of it, and enquired diligently, and
behold it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel: Then
shalt thou bring that man or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, unto thy
gates, even that man or that woman, and shalt stone them with stones, till they die.
At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is
worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness, he shall not be put to
death. The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and
afterward the hands of all the people. So thou shalt put the evil away from you.
Deuteronomy
18: 9-13 When thou art come into the land which the
LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the
abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that
maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an
observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with
familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things
are an abomination unto the LORD; and because of these
abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before
thee. Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God.
Deuteronomy
19: 14-21 Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's
landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit
in the land that the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it.
One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any
sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three
witnesses, shall the matter be established.
If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that
which is wrong; Then both men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD,
before the priests, and the judges, which shall be in those days; And the judges
shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold if the witness be a false witness, and hath
testified falsely against his brother; Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to be
done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you. And those which
remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you.
And thine eye shall not pity; but the life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth
for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
MORE
OF THE BLESSINGS
Deuteronomy
28: 1-13 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken
diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I
command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all
nations of the earth:
And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou
shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.
Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit
of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou
goest out.
The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up
against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and
flee before thee seven ways.
The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in
thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in
the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto
himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.
And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.
And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in
the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in
the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure,
the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of
thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.
And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the
tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou
hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day,
to observe and to do them:
MORE
OF THE CURSES
Deuteronomy
28: 14-48 And thou shalt not go aside from any of
the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after
other gods to serve them. But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken
unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his
commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day;
that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of
thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest
out.
The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation,
and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed,
and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast
forsaken me.
The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto
thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it.
The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and
with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword,
and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under
thee shall be iron.
The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder
and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before
thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them:
and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the
earth, and no man shall fray them away.
The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt,
and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be
healed.
The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and
blindness, and astonishment of heart:
And thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt
not prosper in thy ways: and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and no man
shall save thee.
Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build
an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not
gather the grapes thereof.
Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine
ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee:
thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them.
Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall
look, and fail with longing for them all the day long; and there shall be no might in
thine hand.
The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not
eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway:
So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.
The LORD shall smite thee in the knees, and in
the legs, with a sore botch that cannot be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top
of thy head.
The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which
thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and
there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations
whither the LORD shall lead thee.
Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for
the locust shall consume it.
Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine,
nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.
Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint
thyself with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his fruit.
Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall
go into captivity.
All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume.
The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt
come down very low.
He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and
thou shalt be the tail.
Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall
pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto
the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and
his statutes which he commanded thee:
And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for
ever.
Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the
abundance of all things;
Therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and
in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron
upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.
AN
oFFER FROM GOD
TO RETURN
Deuteronomy
30: All verses And it shall come to pass when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and
the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the
nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,
And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt
obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with
all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
That then the LORD thy God will turn thy
captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the
nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee. If any of thine be driven out
unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy
God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:
And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land
which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and
multiply thee above thy fathers.
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart,
and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all
thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
And the LORD thy God will put all these curses
upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee.
And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the LORD,
and do all his commandments which I command thee this day.
And the LORD thy God will make thee
plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy
cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the LORD
will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers: If thou
shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his
commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou
turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all
thy soul.
For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden
from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest
say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do
it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea
for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the
word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do
it.
See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;
In that I command thee this day to love the LORD
thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his
judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD
thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.
But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be
drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this
day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land,
whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I
have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both
thou and thy seed may live:
That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and
that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life,
and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto
thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
God reveals to
Moses the future Actions of the Jews
Deuteronomy
31: 16-18
And the LORD
said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up,
and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among
them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them. Then
my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will
hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall
befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because
our God is not among us? And I will surely hide my face in that day for all evils
which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods.
Moses'
Prophetic Message to the Jews includes their Latter Days
Deuteronomy
31: 24-29
And it came to
pass, when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they
were finished, That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the
LORD saying, Take this book of the law, and put it in the side
of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be
there for a witness against thee.
For I know thy rebellion, and thy stiff neck: behold, while I am yet alive
with you this day, ye have been rebellious against the LORD; and
how much more after my death? Gather unto me all the elders of your tribes, and your
officers, that I may speak these words in their ears, and call heaven and earth to record
against them.
For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and
turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the
latter days; because ye do evil in the sight of the LORD,
to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands. |
Rules
of Engagement
Samples from
the New Testament
Matthew 5:1-12
And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his
disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
Blessed are the poor
in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they
shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all
manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad;
for great is your reward in heaven; for so persecuted they the prophets which were
before you.
Matthew 5:
17-20 Think not
that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to
fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle
shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall
break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the
least in the kingdom of heaven; but whosoever shall do and teach them, the
same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, That
except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye
shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:
27-28 Ye have
heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shall not commit adultery: But I
say unto you, That whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath
committed adultery with her already in his heart.
31-32 It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a
writing of divorcement: But I say unto you, that whosoever shall put
away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and
whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
33-37 Again, ye have heard that it
hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform
onto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven;
for it is God's throne: Nor by earth, for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for
it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou
canst not make one hair white or black, But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay:
for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. Ye have heard that it hath been
said, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, that ye resist not
evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
43-48 Ye have heard that it hath been said,
Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your
enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which
despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father
which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and
sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what
reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your
brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans
so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is
perfect.
Matthew 6:1-4
Take heed that ye do not your
alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which
is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet
before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have
glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when
thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That
thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward
thee openly.
Matthew 6:
5-18 And when
thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in
the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men.
Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest,
enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in
secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But
when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they
shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them; for
your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. After this
manner therefore pray ye:
Our Father which art
in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it
is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as
we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from
evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
For if ye forgive
men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will
your Father forgive your trespasses.
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad
countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to
fast. Verily I say unto you. They have their reward. But thou, when
thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to
fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret,
shall reward thee openly.
Matthew 6:
19-21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth
corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not
break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
22-23 The light of the body is the eye: if
therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if
thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that
is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
24-34 No man 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. Therefore I say unto you, Take no
thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body,
what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor
gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than
they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why
take ye thought for raiment?
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do
they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not
arrayed like one of these.
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to
morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we
drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the
Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these
things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all
these things shall be added unto you.
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought
for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Matthew 7:1-5
Judge not, that ye be not
judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure
ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote
that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own
eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother. Let me pull out the mote out of
thine eye; and behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first
cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out
the mote out of thy brother's eye.
7
Ask, and it shall
be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall
be opened unto you:
12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would
that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.
15-20 Beware of false prophets, which come to
you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by
their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good
tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree
cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every
tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore
by their fruits ye shall know them.
21-28 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord,
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven.
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?
and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that
work iniquity.
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I
will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended,
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it
was founded upon a rock.
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall
be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the
rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it
fell: and great was the fall of it.
Matthew 10: 26-28
Fear them not
therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall
not be known. What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what
ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. And fear not them
which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is
able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
32-40 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him
will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall
deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a
sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter
against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a
man's foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother
more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me
is not worthy of me.
And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of
me.
He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my
sake shall find it. He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he
that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
Matthew 11: 28-30 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are
heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of
me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Matthew 12: 30-37
He that is not with
me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. Wherefore I say
unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the
blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him:
but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither
in this world, neither in the world to come.
Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and
his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.
O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of
the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good
treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure
bringeth forth evil things.
But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give
account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be
justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
Matthew 15: 8-9 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with
their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me,
teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
17-20 Do not ye
yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast
out into the draught? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth
from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil
thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are
the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
Matthew 18: 3-6
And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little
children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever
therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the
kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name
receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which
believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and
that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
10-14 Take heed that ye despise not one of these little
ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the
face of my Father which is in heaven. For the Son of man is come to
save that which was lost. How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of
them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains,
and seeketh that which is gone astray? And if so be that he find it, verily I
say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went
not astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one
of these little ones should perish.
15-17 Moreover if thy
brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him
alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear
thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses
every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell
it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as
an heathen man and a publican.
18-20 Verily I
say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and
whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say
unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall
ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For
where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Matthew 19: 7-14 They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of
divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto them, Moses
because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the
beginning it was not so. And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his
wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery:
and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery. His
disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to
marry. But he said unto them, All men cannot receive
this saying, save they to whom it is given. For there are some
eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which
were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for
the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it. Then
were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and
pray: and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, Suffer
little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of
heaven.
Matthew 20: 25-28
But Jesus called them unto him, and
said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion
over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so
among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And
whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of
man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for
many.
Matthew 23: 1-13 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,
saying The scribes and the
Pharisees sit in Moses' seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that
observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
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.
But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and
enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts,
and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be
called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
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. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your
Master, even Christ.
But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And
whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall
be exalted.
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.
~
The listed samples above, are
taken from the Gospel of Matthew, the first book of the New Testament.
These samples are only the tip of the iceberg.
The other three gospels, Mark, Luke and John, are also rich with these Rules of
Engagement, the commands, counsel, and clarifications from Jesus of Nazareth.
~ ~ ~
The remaining books of the New
Testament, including the record of the Acts of
the Apostles, contain first hand accounts of more of the teachings of Jesus of
Nazareth as to the Rules of Engagement.
Below, for now, we include only one example from the rest of the
New Testament as a sample of more Rules of Engagement, to
encourage each Reader to peruse the written Word over and over again.
Romans 2: 1-11 (Conveyed by
the Apostle Paul) Therefore
thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest another, thou condemnest
thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. But we are sure that the
judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.
And thinkest thou this , O man, that judgest them which do such things,
and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? Or dispisest thou
the riches and goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness
of God leadeth thee to repentance?
But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself
wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Who
will render to every man according to his deeds:
To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and
honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are
contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, Tribulation
and anguish, upon every soul of man that doth evil, of the Jew first, and also to the
Gentile; But glory,honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first,
and also to the Gentile: For there is no respect of persons with God.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
All scriptures are from the King
James Version
of the Holy Bible in English, translated in 1611. |
Dearest Reader,
It is our prayer, that those of our dear
Brethren who are led to find this material, will trust the Spirit of Truth to lead them
personally to apply this new awareness to the next part of their life's journey and that
they will be provided the precious time necessary.
In all that you called to do, may you be
accompanied by the Holy Spirit of God's Wisdom, as your personal teacher, counselor, guide
and illuminator as to the consequences generated by your human heritage; and the discovery
of our need for God's gift of these Ground Rules of Engagement and how, not only your own,
but also your ancestral life choices, past and present, may have resulted in your present
life's circumstances.
May you experience a renewed sense of
awareness and priority as to what the Most High is calling you to do inwardly to
the ultimate end that you may know His voice, and become a totally cleansed and yielded
vessel, worthy of our Master's use in these dark times.
We agree with you
that a rediscovered discerning light
now shines a bit brighter in your hearts.
Instead of the science of
humankind let us choose to follow
the light of conscience (con-science) from our Heavenly Father.
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