Christian Living

You Shall Not Bear False Witness Against Your Neighbour

Exodus 20:16

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

I think God wants us to live our politics the same way we live the rest of our lives. The 10 commandments apply to everyone.

One thing that means is that God expects all of us including politicians and the media to tell the truth. If God expects politicians to tell the truth we should expect them to as well.

The commandments apply to everyone, pastors, politicians police, believers and unbelievers. People of infulence have greater responsbility to speak and write the truth. I encourage you to ask politicians you support for the evidence their policies are based on. If we want to drain the swamp we've got to make politicians accountable for their words.

Exodus 20:16

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

Don't lie to God

Acts 5:3

But Peter said, “Ananias, why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”

Very soon after the Holy Spirit filled the believers on the day of Pentecost, a couple named Ananias and Sapphira gave a donation so they could be noticed in the church. They made a false claim about their donation. The main issue is that they had conceived something false and deceitful in their heart and in this case, it involved money.

Ananias and Sapphira sold "a possession" and kept some of the money but claimed to give the full amount to the church. They could have made a donation without claiming it was the full amount and been honnest. However they were prepared to lie to God. They created a plan based on deceit and put it into action not only lying to the Apostle Peter but they also lied to the Holy Spirit.

Satan cannot fill or control believers. But He does suggest and he can influence, and and if we listen to him it will cause a lot of damage to hearts that entertain temptation.

We have to be very aware of what’s in our hearts and minds and repent quickly when we find something there that doesn’t come from God. Avoid temptation and ask God to set us free from anything that would try and hold us in bondage.

If God had ignored the sin of Ananias and Sapphira that sin would have spread and become the standard in the church. They both died the day they carried out their plan.

The incident prompted new believers to come into the church with the holy fear of a holy God. We worship a holy God who is giving us the opportunity to walk with Him in Holiness.

Acts 5:3

But Peter said, “Ananias, why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”

Israel Was Told to Accept Immigrants but They Must Worship God

Exodus 20:2-3 & Malachi 3:5

Exodus 20:2-3 and Malachi 3:5

When I look at how Israel was directed by God to treat migrants, I find two principles in the Word.

The first principle was that the 12 tribes of Israel were to accept the foreigner. The second principle was that the foreigner could only be accepted if they only worshiped the God of Israel. God forbade them to worship anyone else or there would be serious consequences.

God spoke through the prophet Malachi giving a stern warning against turning people away who wanted to migrate into Israel and Judah There are other Old Testament references that God’s people were to accept all those who would join them.

Malachi 3:5

And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness…and against those who turn away an alien - because they do not fear Me," Says the Lord of hosts.

When the 12 tribes left Egypt they accepted all those who joined them.

Exodus 12 :38 says

A mixed multitude went up with them also.

So other peoples left Egypt with the Israelites and were allowed to integrate into the 12 tribes.

Deuteronomy 23: 15

You shall not give back to his master the slave who has escaped from his master to you.

This is the slave who had escaped from a foreign country and made their way to Israel. They could live in Israel if they chose. These are examples of foreigners who were accepted into Israelite society.

The second principle was the first commandment.

Exodus 20:2-3

2 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3 You shall have no other gods before me.

This was a commandment, it's wasn't negotiable. The people living in the land promised by Yahweh could only worship Yahweh. As time went on, the 12 tribes ignored that commandment. The 10 tribes of Samaria were taken away never to return.

King Josiah made a determined effort to rid the two tribes of the southern kingdom Judah from the worship of other spirits but this was flouted by his successors. As a consequence, Jerusalem and the southern kingdom was overrun by their enemies and the people were taken prisoner to Babylon for 70 years. The experience was so painful they never lapsed into worshiping another god again.

Malachi 3:5

"And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness…and against those who turn away an alien- because they do not fear Me," Says the Lord of hosts.

Exodus 20:2-3

2 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt,

out of the house of bondage.

3 You shall have no other gods before me.

People Need to Make Stand for God

2 Kings 23:4

And all the people took a stand for the covenant.

When Josiah was king of Judah the priests found the last copy of God’s Word hidden in the temple. It had been lost for decades and there were no others. Because the Word of God had been missing from their worship, the people drifted so far away from God that the worship of devils become accepted throughout the whole nation.

The king gathered all the people together and read God’s Word to them. Josiah made a covenant with the Lord to follow the Him and keep His commandments and all the people took a stand for the covenant.

That was a defining moment in the lives of those people. Their lives changed that day because the the committment they made to God. We should reflect on the decisions that have shaped our lives so far and will into the future

We were all born for such a time as this. God is calling us to be people who are committed to our relationship with Him. He wants us to be people with a heart like His own who will take a stand.

We make many choices every day. We should choose to be like God in the little decisions and the big ones.

We can fall a long way by not living by God’s Word. It got that bad in the Old Testament that people were sacrificing their children to demonic spirits. God is looking for people who will take a stand for Him and not be easily influenced by ungodly distractions.

2 Kings 23:4

And all the people took a stand for the covenant.

Let us Hear the Conclusion of the Whole Matter: Fear God and Keep His Commandments,

Ecc 12:13

Ecclesiastes 12:13

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.

What are we here for? We're here to live in a right relationship with God and serve Him, living by HIs commandments. For believers the fear of God turns into great respect, then we don't have to fear Him.

Anyone who makes their relationship with God their priority in life worshipping Him from their heart, and making a determined effort to live a godly life will please Him. They are on a path to make good decisions, gain a lot of contentment in this life and enter into the joy of God’s presence for eternity.

Solomon wrote “Vanity of vanities all is vanity” Ecclesiastes 1:2. He meant life is meaningless without a relationship with God.

Ecclesiastes 12:13

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.

Don't Be Angry Without a Cause

Matthew 5:21-22

Matthew 5:

21 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the

judgment.

22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.

The motivation to murder (or hurt) someone begins in the heart. We are allowed to defend ourselves using proportional force but murder is different, it is forbidden by God and will bring a person “in danger of judgement”.

Jesus uses the term “in danger of the judgement” twice in two sentences. He is stressing to everyone that murder is serious to God and it will not go unpunished.

It’s easy to be angry but it’s dangerous. It’s very dangerous and very wrong to be angry without a cause. We have to learn to control ourselves. Just as someone in training, repeats an exercise over and over again to improve. So we must train ourselves to have self-control even when we are provoked.

People are becoming desensitized to violence. It’s too late afterwards. We need to train our hearts every day to control our emotions.

Jesus says in Matthew 5:

21 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the

judgement.

22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.

Jesus says adultery begins in the heart

Matthew 5:27-28

Matthew 5:

27 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’

28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

We’ve got to be really careful about what we let into our hearts. We’ve got to guard our hearts and carefully decide what we think about and dwell on. Whatever we give our attention to will grow in our hearts. We have to choose.

As soon as we notice we are dwelling on the wrong thing we need to repent. God forgives us as soon as we repent. We can ask the Father for the strength to overcome those things that try to overcome us in Jesus name.

Lust has a spiritual force that can become an addiction.

Lust interferes with the ability to have healthy relationships. It can lead to behaviour that destroys lives in this world and the next.

Matthew 5:

27 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’

28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Jesus Said You Will Know Them by Their Fruit

Matthew 7: 17 & 20

Matthew 7: Jesus says

17 every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Jesus is saying that in the same way you know a tree by what fruit it grows you can know the nature of a person, a religion or a community by what it produces.

Don’t just listen to what someone or a community says about themselves. Ask yourself what do they produce in their lives, what effect are their values and beliefs having on themselves and others?

We should ask ourselves “what are our lives producing”? If we want to produce something better, we should seek God in His Word.

If we nourish our spirits with the Word of God and act on it we will move onto a path in life that produces good fruit.

Matthew 7: Jesus says,

17 every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Jesus Said Follow Me

Mark 1:17

Then Jesus said to them “follow Me…”

In Luke’s account of the last supper Jesus knew that Peter would deny Him publicly and ministered to Peter saying He’d prayed for him and “when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.” Lk 22:36.

Jesus spoke of following Him and returning to Him. He was speaking of the personal relationship He wants with all of us. He is firstly concerned about us having a right personal relationship with Him, the Father, Himself and the Holy Spirit and then a lot of our life will move into place for us.

He meant follow Him completely and return to Him completely when we repent. The trouble is we often draw a line and won’t yield beyond a certain point.

If we compromise and let something be a stumbling block, that will cause us to miss God’s best.

The more we give attention to Jesus and His Word the more we will become like Him. We’ll have more of the life of God in us and more victory in our lives.

We all need a personal revelation of Jesus and we need to pray that the Father would grant that to others as well.

Mark 1:17

Then Jesus said to them “follow Me…”

We Need the Light of God in Our Lives

Luke 11:34-35

34 The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.

35 Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.

The light and the darkness are spiritual. We get into trouble in the dark, we trip over things and go the wrong way. It’s easy to hurt ourselves in the spiritual dark.

When we look at things with our physical eyes we take those things into our thinking and into our heart by what we see and give our attention to.

John’s gospel (John 1:4-5) talks about the light. Jesus is the true light that everyone needs so they can see spiritually and not walk into trouble.

It’s absolutely necessary that we have the light of God in our lives and the way to do that is by having Jesus and His Word in our lives. We need the ligh of God to overcome the dark light of deception and wrong thinking.

We choose how much light we want and where we want to shine it. That’s a big decision and we are all making it. We should not draw back and only want the light of God to only shine a little so that it doesn’t inconvenience us.

Let Jesus shine the light everywhere in our lives so we can see everything God wants us to see. We'll see Him more clearly as well.

Luke 11:34-35

34 The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.

35 Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.

For the Love of Money is the Root of all Kinds of Evil

Ist Timothy 6:10

1st Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil…

God loves people not money. Most politicians think the economy is their core business and give it their first priority. In God's eyes people are their core business and first priority. If they were as concerned with household budgets as they are with government budgets, and the economy in general we would have a better society.

Yes we have to have financially responsible governments but not at the expense of the wellbeing of people. Don’t be harsh or unfare to people just to make government accounts look good.

If you’re harsh on people the only thing that can happen is that people and circumstances become harsh for you.

God expects governments to be good stewards of finances to benefit as many people as possible. None of us can afford to lose our way and serve money instead of God and love our neighbour.

Paul’s 1st letter to Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil…

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