Abusers of the Law
I would say it’s a pretty safe bet that those who find themselves facing the “second death” are those who feigned fealty to God, but deep down in their souls, actually have a hatred for God. In this light, consider the following observation.
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. ° Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. ° Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. ° Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. ° These things I command you, that ye love one another. °°If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. ° If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. ° Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. °But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me. °If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin. °He that hateth me hateth my Father also. °If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. °But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause. — John 15:13-25
Jesus speaks of those of the world who hate Him and the Father in Heaven. But notice that is was the Pharisees and other religious elite who persecuted Jesus. They heard Him speak, they saw the miracles, and not only rejected what He said; they even denied the miracles He performed that could only be attributed to the work of God.
Notice though something else, easily overlooked. God chose His followers out of the world.
But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; — 1 Corinthians 1:27
And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3 ¶Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. — Matthew 5:1-12
Who persecuted the prophets?
Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. °Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: °Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it. — Acts 7:51-53
The religious elite and leadership of the nation of Israel and Judah, right down to the Sanhedrin who controlled the legal courts of Israel. And Stephen here rubs their proverbial noses in the fact that they were the administrators of the law they themselves did not keep.
But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; — 1 Timothy 1:8
But it was not used lawfully. It was abused by those who wielded it. It was misapplied; used as a weapon against their foes, even as the Pharisees used it to try and destroy Jesus.
Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, °For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; — 1 Timothy 1:9-10
The law was not made for the righteous, and the righteous are righteous as a result of their faith in God and His Christ; the righteousness of faith. But not to those who wielded the law; abused and used the law unlawfully. They use the law to persecute those who refuse them; refuse to join them.
The righteous have embraced Christ and His law of the Spirit that frees them from the law of sin and death, administered and manipulated by those in power to persecute them and even the prophets, along with the Lord Jesus. This has not changed down through the millennia. False Christianity uses the law for their own, nefarious purposes, always falling back on the claim, its “God’s law” they use against the people they are persecuting.
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It is important that you understand; Everything on this blog is based on the current understanding of each author. Never take anyone's word for it, always prove it for yourself, it is your responsibility. You cannot ride someone else's coattail into the Kingdom. ; )
Acts 17:11
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