Don't Be Needy

Someday in heaven they are going to hang a “Needy” sign on some people. I have been called so many times when I have been typing or reading or otherwise Recently I placed a cup on a liege and had Kleenex above it and in reaching for it I knocked the Kleenex box off, hit the cup, split the drink all over several documents, and a couple of books. Isn’t experience an interesting teacher?

One other thing before the facts. I am thinking about changing my email account which I have had since 1996 before there was even an INTERNET. It was ARPNET back then and did not have a browser. For another time perhaps. A couple of facts to open things that you may want to file away for a game you play in the future.

• Levi was a Publicans who collected fees for Herod Antipas. The Jewish people had a genuine hate for the Publicans and even classed them with the sinners. You will recall the Levies were one of the Lost Tribes?
• So, Matthew was a customs official, as such, he had to be skilled in shorthand. If you have read my other essays you already know this is why his Gospel had main discourses, he probably took down verbatim?

Mark 2.13-15, “Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.”

The challenge to Matthew was rather sudden and sharp, but Levi was ready to respond at once. He had heard of Jesus and quickly decided. Great decisions are often made on a moment’s notice. Tax collectors got paid on an incentive; they purchased the franchise and incentives to be rigorous. The Roman Customs House at Capernaum levied taxes on the fishing as well as other things.

Luke 5.28, says in part, “And he left everything behind,” indicating Levi had burned his bridges and could never go back.

NOTE: Levi has acquired a new name: Matthew: “Gift of God” apparently celebrating his new calling and allegiance with a feast. (Wish we were there!)

Mark 2.16-18, When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: ‘Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?’ On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

These guys knew the mission of the Lord. So are way too many even today. Gossipers and backstabbers happened then and it is happening now. It was an offense then for a Jewish person to eat with Gentiles as many of the early Christians, Publicans, and sinners were.

• Romans 3.10, states it rather bluntly, As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one;”
• The Romans verse above takes every self-righteous attitude, mine included, and paints the streets with them. There is no place for them. We are all in this together and need to be helping one another.

Pharisees often get the bad rap but ultimately did come to faith in Christ (Acts 6.7), but there is not one record of a Sadducee - the liberal bunch of the period - coming to the faith in the Lord. Beware the physicians:

"They have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace, peace; when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 6.13; 8.11)

We live in a very needy world. The world and its inhabitants have never required a savior more than now, and I am not talking about the current physical storms we can see. No, I am talking about the storms we cannot see being fought in the heavenly realms. They are raging.

Very few humans have ever been able to see into the spirit world. It is not for us to touch it, see it, or hear it. However, the Bible tells us about it, and we can learn and glean insight into that world we otherwise would not know much about.

First, what does the Word says about our Father?

• He is spirit (John 4:24). As I learned at KI, and you can too free by the way,
• He exists outside the bounds of time, space, and matter He created
• His heavenly home is talked about further in Acts 7:55;and Isaiah 63:15
• But this is a distinct place, not to be confused with “the heavens,” referring to the atmosphere (Genesis 1:1; Psalm 148:4)
• or the “heavenly realms,” which encompass all spirit beings.
• In God’s heaven, He sits on a throne (Matthew 23:22; Hebrews 4:16)
• Surrounded by adoring angels (Revelation 7:11; Psalm 99:1)
• Who exist to serve God and minister to His saints (Hebrews 1:14; Matthew 4:11; Genesis 19:1).
• Angels also have the ability to appear as men when sent to deliver messages from God (Genesis 18:2, 16–17; 19:1–2; Daniel 10:5–6).

Help Me Grow My Readership Please

If I have one reader, he/she can get me two. I will write more if that is the case. I have thousands of notes and I just have to go through them. Thank you for reading. I hope you get something from them.

God's blessings and have a good one.. Gary