Sabbath - The regenerating priesthood
First posted: February 8, 2015
Last modified: February 16, 2015
This article is the eighth in a series of articles dealing with the spiritual meaning of the Sabbath as portrayed in Matthew chapter 12. This article will share on the words spoken by the Lord in Matthew 12:37-50.
Index
The prophetic cannot trump the apostolic
Prophetic and apostolic accountability
The matriarchal Korah degeneration
The prophetic cannot trump the apostolic
In Matthew 12:37, the Lord declares the following:
"36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. 37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned." (Matthew 12:37)
The 2 "words" in verse 37 were translated from the Greek word logos, which, as we have shared before, is related to apostolic judgements. This contrasts with the Greek word used for "word" in the preceding verse, which, as we studied before, was translated from the prophetically-related word rhema. The Lord's shift from rhema to logos from one verse to the next (a shift that gets lost in the translation) emphasises a truth that the Church, especially those of the "Balaamite" persuasion, are so wont to ignore: Prophetic words or actions, lively and spiritually real as they may appear, always require an apostolic foundation of truth and judgements to validate them, Without that supporting foundation, they are worthless before God.
The word "justified" in verse 37 above was translated from the Greek verb dikaioo. Interestingly enough, the words dikaioo and logos appear in the same verse only twice in the New Testament, once in verse 37 above and the other time in verse 4 of the following passage:
"1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision? 2 Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. 3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? 4 God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged. 5 But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance? (I speak as a man) 6 God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world? 7 For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto his glory; why yet am I also judged as a sinner? 8 And not rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just." (Romans 3:1-8)
[The word "sayings" in verse 4 was poorly translated from the Greek word logos meaning "word"]
Notice how the passage above speaks of God honouring the calling of the Jewish people as the ones chosen to diffuse His word on the Earth, this despite their unfaithfulness. As we have shared before, the ministry most related to recognising and "calling out" people's callings is the prophetic ministry. Therefore, we can say that the passage above is speaking of God enabling the prophetic calling that He placed on the Jewish people despite their overall unfaithfulness. Even so, the enabling and manifestation of their prophetic calling did not prevent them being accountable to God's (apostolic) judgements, as evidenced by the centuries upon centuries of Jewish Diaspora.
Notice also how verse 5 clearly shows that God's faithful grace does not stop Him taking "vengeance". This runs counter to the matriarchal Church's belief that the "evil", "vengeful" God of the "Old Testament" is dead and has been replaced by a "kinder, gentler, New Testament" God of "grace". The fact that God speaks of "taking vengeance" in a New Testament verse even whilst speaking of His grace reveals how flawed the stubborn Church's understanding of Him is.
God's grace is implicitly referred to throughout Romans 3 (and explicitly in Romans 3:24). As we have shared before, the ministry most directly related to grace is the prophetic endowment. Therefore, we can infer from verse 6 that God's prophetic grace does not nullify His judgements. Despite the prophetic grace bestowed upon the Jewish people, they are still beholden to judgements; and, just as they are beholden to judgements, so are we:
"What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin;" (Romans 3:9)
"21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. 22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. 23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again. 24 For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree? 25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in." (Romans 11:21-25)
A stubborn matriarchal may be quick to emphasise the word "world" in the phrase "how shall God judge the world?" of Romans 3:6, as if to say, "The verse is talking about judging the world and those unbelieving Jews, not us believers; we as believers are under grace and have no expectation of judgements from our loving God". Soothing as that argument might be to a matriarchal soul, it denies ("New Testament") Scripture, as shown by the following verses:
"29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world." (1 Corinthians 11:29-32)
"26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation." (Hebrews 9:26-28)
Notice how 1 Corinthians 11:32 reveals that we are spared from the world's judgement by allowing God to judge us. In other words, judgement is inevitable and applies to all. The difference between the world's judgement and the judgement that faithful believers will receive is that the world's judgement is involuntary because they dismiss and deny God's judgements, while the faithful's judgement is voluntary because they accept them and embrace them. Thus, a believer who dismisses and denies the judgement nature of God ironically becomes susceptible to the world's judgement, which is more judgement than was intended for him.
In short, the reality of prophetic grace and actions does not override the need for an apostolic justification for those actions and for how that prophetic grace is utilised.
The sign of the prophet Jonah
After speaking of prophetic grace with no apostolic foundation, the Spirit of God declares the following in verses 38 and 39:
"38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. 39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas" (Matthew 12:38-39)
The word "evil" was translated from the Greek word poneros, which, as we have shared before, is related to the unnecessary burden of Girgashite toiling. The word "adulterous", on the other hand, points to the Canaanite spirit, since, as we have shared before, that is the spirit most directly related to spiritual (and literal) adultery. Therefore, the phrase "evil and adulterous generation" speaks of souls dominated by the "female" endowments of Girgashite teacher and Canaanite pastor. As we have briefly shared before, the scribes who would attack Yeshua correspond to the spirit of Girgashite teacher, and the Pharisees correspond to the spirit of Canaanite pastor. Hence, it is no coincidence that verse 38 speaks of "scribes and Pharisees", while verse 39 speaks of an "evil and adulterous generation".
Notice that, in the verses above, the teachers are mentioned before the pastors ("teacher" scribes before "pastoral" Pharisees and "teacherly" evil before "pastoral" adultery). This means that, within the context of the passage above, the distorted teacher endowment is the pre-eminent one. As we have said before, Girgashite teachers focus on what is visible, and they have deep disdain for the prophetic due to its hidden, invisible nature. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the word "see" in verse 38 was translated from the Greek word eido; as we have shared before, speaks of seeing with the mind, which is what Girgashites obsessively do.
The fact that these Girgashite matriarchals were seeking to see a sign speaks of their desire to enter into the supernatural and the prophetic, all while remaining with their feet on Girgashite soil. This is why the Lord replies to them that the only sign that will be shown them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. As we have studied before, Jonah represents someone with an invisible anointing, a person who emanates spiritual authority from the fact that he or she has been to Sheol and back, just as Jonah did when he emerged from the fish's belly after being inside of it for 3 days and 3 nights. In other words, the spiritual "Jonah"s are those who emanate an invisible resurrection glory that can only be discerned by the willing heart. When Jonah preached to the Ninevites, there was no mantle of human authority on him. He was not performing supernatural "miracles" to dazzle the crowds and convince them of his authority. He was not even a "local" and was, in fact, a citizen from an enemy nation. Even so, the people of Nineveh recognised the resurrection authority in him, and, even though he did not perform any visible miracles, they still recognised somehow that his very presence there was a miracle, for he had emerged from a fish's belly after 3 days.
As we have shared before, the green-horse rider is called to go through Death and Sheol and is made to resurrect from it to inflict God's redemptive vengeance on Earth. Therefore, the reference to Jonah in Matthew 12:39 emphasises the spiritual connection between this section of Matthew chapter 12 and the green horse of the Apocalypse. As we have also studied before, the spiritual enemy that emerges during the green-horse stage is Korah, who is a Canaanite-Girgashite gone Hittite that tries to establish a permanent matriarchal, soul-centred "Nirvana" so as to thwart the manifestation of God's Spirit Kingdom on Earth. In a sense, the green-horse stage involves the battle between two competing "end visions" for humanity. It is within this context that Matthew 12 speaks of Girgashite matriarchals attempting to peer into the supernatural and the prophetic, which points to a spiritual fungus that has permeated the Church: the eschatological parrots, i.e. those who use their Girgashite minds to make bold and "authoritative" interpretations of God's prophetic word in books such as Revelation and Daniel. Because these parrots work within the Church's pastoral system and abide by its hierarchy and traditions, their teachings are accepted as "God's authoritative word" on what shall transpire in the "end times". These teachings, which are mere compilations of misguided "insights" into various passages from people in the recent past, are accepted with the same enthusiasm with which orthodox Jews accept the teachings and interpretations of their Rabbinical "experts" from the past. It is through these "eschatological teachings" that Korah has been able to erect a wall of protection around his little kingdom, preventing people understanding God's true purposes in these latter days, which has led to the Church not discerning the Jonahs among them.
Forging God's latter-day purposes requires a willingness to operate in the prophetic in a transcendental way. God will "grow you along" in the prophetic during the first 3 horse stages (white, red, and black), but, once the 4th stage (green) is reached, He will not acquiesce to your stubborn incredulity in any way. If you demand a Cain with well-accepted authority, He will send you a person with no visible authority. If you demand (Balaamite) power, He will send you external weakness. If you demand a visible Korah sign, He will give you an invisible sign, for God will not allow the Spirit to submit to the stubborn soul.
Prophetic and apostolic accountability
After verse 39, the Lord declares the following in Matthew 12:
"40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here. 42 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here." (Matthew 12:40-42)
Notice how the Lord emphasises (apostolic) judgement in the passage above, certifying yet again how our prophetic actions (or pseudo-prophetic actions, in the case of Girgashite scribes) cannot escape the need for apostolic accountability. In the passage above, this accountability is divided in two:
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Accountability for how we react to the prophetic anointing Jonah clearly represents the prophetic in this passage, especially since the Lord explicitly refers to him as a prophet in verse 39. As evidenced in the book of Jonah, the "preaching of Jonas" (v41) was not a message steeped in spiritual nuances and a deep analysis of Scripture. It was a simple and straightforward message, but it was a message imbued in the thick anointing of a man who had been to "Sheol" and back. This "simple" message evoked a strong visceral reaction from those who heard it, prompting them to seek God's righteousness. Therefore, the Lord's words in Matthew 12:41 speak of how we shall be held accountable before the Lord for how we react to the prophetic word. Those who refuse to have their emotions stirred by it, those who refuse to go beyond the limits of their natural understanding and who demand more "mental evidence" before embracing God's prophetic word shall be held accountable before the Lord. The lack of "empirical evidence" shall be no excuse for having remained idle at the sound of God's prophetic trumpet.
The word "men" in the phrase "men of Nineveh" in verse 41 was translated from the Greek noun aner, which goes beyond the mere connotation of "people" in general, referring specifically to "males". As we all know, men tend to be less "emotional" and more "mentally oriented" than women. Therefore, the phrase "men of Nineveh" emphasises the fact that the Ninevites allowed themselves to be emotionally moved by Jonah's message despite being men. They were willing to look like "weeping, emotional women" so as to flow in God's prophetic anointing and fulfil His purposes for them.
It is also worth noting that the strong prophetic anointing in Jonah's message did not prevent it having a strong apostolic component, for it led men to recognise God's judgements and seek His righteousness. Unlike the Balaamites' version of the "prophetic", which is geared towards self-serving emotional frenzies, God's true prophetic anointing forges apostolic repentance and growth in God's judgements. The reason why the Church in black America is abhorred and cursed by God is because she, in her Cushite stupidity, refuses to accept this truth. How accountable shall you be, black America, for the stupidity of your actions!!! You bring shame to the name of the Lord by your daily actions, for which reason you are cursed of God!
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Accountability for how we react to apostolic wisdom In verse 42, the Lord speaks of people's reaction to Solomon's wisdom, and, as we have shared before, the endowment most directly related to wisdom is the apostolic endowment. Notice how the Lord then speaks of a woman's reaction to Solomon's wisdom. As we shared above, women tend to be more "emotional" and less "mentally oriented" than men. Therefore, the fact that a woman was willing to go to great lengths to learn apostolic wisdom speaks of the willingness to submit the emotional soul to the "colder", "logical" mindset that is required to learn wisdom. The fact that the woman in question was a "queen" in search of a king with wisdom emphasises the need for the emotional soul to submit despite the (very real) power that it is capable of wielding. The fact that Solomon is not referred to as a "king" in the passage above (being referred to by his name only) emphasises the fact that this submission requires the need to recognise the value of wisdom for wisdom's sake. Hence, it is a submission that is not based on external signs of power or authority but is based on a recognition by the emotional soul that this submission is simply the right thing to do.
Notice also that the queen of the south (who, interestingly enough, is not referred to by name) is described as having come from the "uttermost parts of the earth" to hear the wisdom of Solomon. This has two messages within it. The phrase "uttermost parts" was translated from the Greek word peras, which is derived from the word peran meaning "beyond, on the other side". Therefore, the phrase "uttermost parts of the earth" has the implicit connotation of someone who has gone beyond the limitations of earthliness, which speaks of the prophetic endowment, since that is the endowment that takes a person beyond the Girgashite limitations of the visible and into the fullness of the spirit realm. Thus, the phrase "uttermost parts of the earth" means that the queen of the south was a woman who moved in a strong prophetic anointing. Therefore, the fact that she wanted to hear apostolic wisdom speaks of the willingness of those with a strong prophetic anointing to submit to apostolic wisdom and the apostolic way of things, this despite the great spiritual power that emanates from the prophetic anointing.
{As a parenthesis, it is worth noting that the word peras is also related to the verb peiro meaning "to pierce", which also points to the prophetic since it refers to "prophetic stings", thereby reaffirming the queen of the south's connection to the prophetic}
The other message hidden in the fact that the queen of the south came from the "uttermost parts of the earth" is the following: Operating in the apostolic requires the willingness to go through a long journey of exploration that at times may seem "dry" and "unappealing". Whereas the prophetic delves in speed, inner certainty, and power, the apostolic operates in slowness, uncertainties, and the limitations brought on by laws and judgements. Operating in the apostolic requires the willingness to be led by questions, follow strict rules of logic, answer the challenge of explaining (or accepting) apparent (or real) contradictions resulting from assumptions made, etc. In that sense, the prophetic soul must stop being a powerful queen emanating decrees from her palace and become just another weak, wandering soul searching for the truth, being willing to be taken through a "logical" journey with many twists and turns, a journey that may not be in perfect accordance with her preferences. |
Having said the above, the question then becomes, "Why did Yeshua speak of our accountability to how we react to the prophetic and the apostolic in the passage above? How does it relate to the rest of the chapter?" The answer lies in the fact that Yeshua is confronting evil, Girgashite scribes and adulterous, Canaanite Pharisees.
Girgashite scribes are "teachers gone bad" who are inherently anti-prophetic. As we have shared before, the teacher endowment is "right-handed", meaning that it has a natural affinity for the apostolic endowment, which is also right-handed. When the apostolic is mingled with the Girgashite, it creates hardened, dry "men" (spiritually speaking) who are always trying to bring the prophetic down to their Girgashite ground, "men" who cannot flow in prophetic emotions, and who therefore cannot recognise the prophet-Jonah anointing when it appears before them during the green-horse-versus-Korah stage.
On the other hand, Canaanite Pharisees are "pastors gone bad" who are zealously anti-apostolic. As we have shared before, the pastoral endowment is "left-handed", which means that it has a natural affinity for the prophetic endowment, which is also left-handed. When the prophetic is combined with the Canaanite, it creates rebellious "women" (spiritually speaking) who are controlled by emotions and who are incapable of submitting to the "apostolic process", making them unwilling to make the long and unpleasant-to-them journey required to enter into the fullness of apostolic wisdom. As a result, these "women" end up using their prophetic endowment to entrench the "queendom" of the rebellious soul over the "male" spirit.
In conclusion, Korah, who is Canaanite-Girgashite, will (Girgashitely) demand a sign from the "prophets Jonah" and (Canaanitely) refuse to make the long journey to learn from the "Solomon apostles". Instead of submitting to the spirit, Korah uses the apostolic to shun Jonah and the prophetic to discard Solomon, all in a last-ditch effort to reaffirm the weakening hold of the pastoral matriarchy over the affairs of men.
The matriarchal Korah degeneration
After verse 42, the Lord declares the following in Matthew 12:
"43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation." (Matthew 12:43-45)
A similar passage to the one above appears in Luke 11:24-26. When we shared on the passage above (around 11 years ago), we studied how the words "swept" and "garnished" referred to the actions of the 2 "female" ministries (teacher and pastor, respectively). We also shared how the words above speak of the actions of a false prophet who deals with external symptoms, with no interest in judging the root that draws the unclean spirit back, that "root" being the seat in the person's heart that is left standing without being overturned.
Viewed from the 4-horses perspective, the removal of the unclean spirit described in verse 43 above correlates with the red-horse stage, during which Cain is exposed by red-horse Abel, which leads to Cain being "evicted" from the Church, in a way. This is when unyielding Cain morphs into a grace-abusing Balaam that wanders the black-horse wilderness, just like the spirit described in verse 43. During the black-horse stage, Balaam is exposed yet again by the black-horse remnant's invisible judgements. This is when all the wandering in the wilderness becomes too unbearable, forcing Balaam to return "home" to try to re-establish the stability and comfort that Cain lost due to Abel. Being very aware of what happened when he was Cain, the enemy, now morphed into Korah, recruits "7 spirits more wicked than himself" to "ensure" that the story will not repeat itself. He can do this because the Church is Hittite ("empty"), Girgashite ("swept"), and Canaanite ("garnished"), meaning that it is receptive to the Canaanite-Girgashite-gone-Hittite spirit of Korah. Why? Because the Church's heart is bent on preserving the matriarchy of the soul. No matter what happens, no matter how much God exposes the failure of her ways, she is bent on staying in charge and not surrendering to the regeneration process that God intends for her. She wants the spirit of Girgashite teachers and Canaanite pastors to remain in charge, for it would be too much of a tragedy for her to see her temple torn down, the temple she has worked so hard to sweep and garnish all these years. She does not trust God enough to believe that He can raise a new, resurrected Temple from the one she clings to, so she fight to keep it "alive" at all costs, even if it means preserving it in a zombie state.
If you compare Luke 11:24-26 with Matthew 12:43-45, you will notice that Matthew 12 adds the word "empty" right before "swept" and "garnished". As we have shared before, the evil spirit most directly related to emptiness is the Hittite spirit. Therefore, we can say that the 3 evil spirits represented at the end of verse 44 are the Hittite spirit (of "empty" deceit), the Girgashite spirit (of distorted teacher who "sweeps"), and the Canaanite spirit (of distorted pastor who "garnishes"). Notice how these 3 spirits correspond precisely with the spirit of Korah, which, as we have said before, is a Canaanite-Girgashite gone Hittite that acts as the enemy's last stand to preserve the rule of Canaanite pastors and Girgashite teachers in the Church.
The "7 spirits more wicked than himself" correspond to each of the 7 evil spirits delineated in Deuteronomy 7:1. As we have shared before, these 7 evil spirits result from the distortion of the 7 Spirits of God, and, as we have said before, the 7 Spirits of God reveal the 7-faceted nature of God that man is supposed to fully develop. Therefore, the infiltration of the "7 spirits more wicked than himself" speaks of a degradation of man across the entire spectrum of his spiritual makeup.
The original spirit and the 7 additional spirits form a total of 8 spirits. As we have shared before, the number "8", when taken in a positive sense, speaks of regeneration. Thus, the 7+1 evil spirits in Matthew 12:45 speak of the exact opposite of regeneration, i.e.- degeneration. As evidenced by the amoral hypnotist bastard residing in the American White House at the time of this writing, the spirit of Korah is very good at promising "regeneration", a "new beginning", the "dawning of a new age". This is because Korah appears during the green-horse stage, a time when the remnant have done enough spiritual work to forge a legitimate regeneration. Since people perceive a legitimate door of opportunity for regeneration, the words from Korah's frog mouth ring true to those who are eager to be deceived (2 Thessalonians 2:13). And, thus, this is how Korah takes the legitimate regeneration door that is in the air and uses it to promise a fake regeneration and forge a very real degeneration, all to derail any hopes of the spirit beginning to rule over the soul.
The words "first" and "last" in the phrase "last state of that man is worse than the first" (v45) were translated from the Greek words protos and eschatos. These words only appear together in 16 verses of Scripture, the first being Matthew 12:45. The 10th time they appear together happens to be the first time they appear together outside of the 4 Gospels, in a different verse 45:
"And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit." (1 Corinthians 15:45)
The words "man" in the phrases "last state of that man is worse than the first" of Matthew 12:45 and "the first man Adam" were both translated from the Greek word anthropos. Interestingly enough, the words protos, eschatos, and anthropos only appear together in 3 verses of Scripture: Matthew 12:45, 1 Corinthians 15:45, and Luke 11:26, which happens to be the parallel verse of Matthew 12:45 in Luke. All of this shows that the Lord set up Matthew 12:45 to be the spiritual opposite of 1 Corinthians 15:45. Whereas 1 Corinthians 15:45 points to a regeneration from a living soul to a life-giving spirit, Matthew 12:45 points to a degeneration from a living soul to a depraved, lower-level matriarchal soul. When the door for regeneration opens, you either walk through it and are transformed into a new being, or you regress into a lower level of degradation. It is impossible to stand still and remain the same.
Regeneration, i.e. resurrection into a new nature and a new state, happens on "Sunday", on the 8th day, and the priestly work done on the Sabbath, the 7th day, is intended to forge that regeneration. When that work (or lack of it) is matriarchal, it results in degeneration instead of regeneration.
Idle matriarchal interruption
As the Lord was carrying out His priestly work, the following interruption happened:
"46 While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him. 47 Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. 48 But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? 49 And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! 50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother." (Matthew 12:46-50)
It is interesting to note that the word "his" in the phrase "his mother" of verse 46 does not appear in the original Greek text, but the word "thy" in "thy mother" does. In other words (unlike the KJV translators), the Holy Spirit refused to call the woman "his mother" while narrating in verse 46, but the person who spoke to Yeshua in verse 47, speaking in the natural, had no problems calling her "thy mother". This contrast between the Holy Spirit's words and natural man's words shows that, from the Holy Spirit's perspective, the woman standing outside was acting as a "mother figure", not just for the historical Yeshua, but for everyone present there. This points to the legitimate "motherly" role that the 2 "female" ministries of pastor and teacher are supposed to play. However, this "motherly" role is designed for when believers are in their "child" stage, and is intended to prepare them to become "independent adults" who operate in the "male" spirit nature of God. This contrasts with the woman standing outside in verse 46 above, for she seemed more than OK with having her grown children, Yeshua's biological siblings, standing outside with her whilst the Lord ministered inside. Instead of letting them go and urging them to follow and learn from the Lord, she held on to them, and she even sought to have Yeshua join them outside.
As we have said before, the incident narrated in the passage above could have turned into a very "teachable moment" for Yeshua, a moment in which He could have taught His followers about the importance of "family" and "family values" in the "Christian life". This is what the soul-centric, matriarchal Church constantly emphasises, yet Yeshua did the opposite, showing Himself indifferent to the importance of "family", at least in the context of God's Kingdom and will. As shown by the "two greatest commandments" (Matthew 22:37-40), "family" is nothing more than a subset of the "neighbour" we are to love, with that love always remaining subservient to our unconditional love for God, which is the most important commandment.
Notice how verse 48 above declares that Yeshua "answered and said unto him that told him", meaning that He specifically confronted the one who was trying to get Him to submit to His earthly family. Instead of using the situation as an opportunity to teach about "family values", Yeshua used it to teach about the importance of the Spirit over the soul. Whereas the man of verse 47 emphasised the importance of the female mother, Yeshua emphasised the importance of the male Father (v50), who is the Father of spirits (Hebrews 12:9), not the Father of souls. Whereas the man of verse 47 believed that "family" is defined by immutable, external parameters beyond our control, Yeshua declared that "family" is defined by dynamic, internal parameters that depend on the decisions people make. This reality not only applies to the concept of "family" but to the wider concept of "race" and "ethnicity". This is a reality that the matriarchal soul has a stubborn unwillingness to comprehend.
The words "will", "Father", and "heaven" in Matthew 12:50 were translated from the Greek words thelema, pater, and ouranos respectively. Interestingly enough, only 4 verses in all of Scripture include all 3 words at the same time. Besides Matthew 12:50, these are the other 3 verses that include these words:
"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." (Matthew 7:21)
"Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish." (Matthew 18:14)
"And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth." (Luke 11:2)
Notice how Matthew 7:21 points once again to all that we shared on false prophets in a posting around 11 years ago. As we shared then, false prophets and their followers like to say "Lord" twice but not thrice because they are willing to recognise God's Lordship at the mental and emotional levels, but not at the level that matters the most: the heart level. The mental acknowledgement of God's Lordship is promoted by the teachers who teach religious doctrine and traditions, and the emotional acknowledgement is promoted by the pastors who espouse a soulish relationship with the Lord that is devoid of its true spiritual essence. As they promote this "double Lordship", the 2 "female" ministries of pastor and teacher effectively block off the 3 "male" ministries, thereby preventing the "triple Lordship" that God requires, the Lordship that recognises God's apostolic judgements in the mind, God's prophetic anointing in the emotions, and God's evangelistic Kingship in the heart. As they do this, the pastoral matriarchy hinders the spirit's growth in God's believers, causing their spiritual potential to perish. Hence, it is no coincidence that Matthew 18:14 appears in the list of verses above, especially since it is in the context of a shepherd (i.e. a pastor) who leaves 99 sheep to go after one sheep. As we have shared before, the soul tries to simulate infinity through large numbers, but the spirit sees infinity in oneness with God. The soul tries to simulate higher quality through higher numbers, but the spirit knows that one eternal thing is worth more than a multitude of temporal things (Psalm 84:10).
Notice that the last of the 3 verses listed above is from what is known as "the Lord's prayer". And, as we have shared before, the "Lord's prayer" points to man's role on Earth: the execution of God's will and the manifestation of God's Kingship on Earth. As Psalm 115:16 declares, what happens in Heaven is directly determined by God's will and what happens on Earth is directly determined by man's will. And, as evidenced by the "Lord's prayer", our role is to use our control over events on Earth to bring forth the Kingship of God on Earth as it is already manifested in Heaven. The matriarchal Church, spiritually idle as she always is, cannot understand this, teaching believers instead that their role is to enjoy themselves and have God serve them in their banal, earthly pursuits until the end comes and God "fixes up" the Earth so that our "idyllic" (or, should we say, "idle-ic") existence may be prolonged into eternity. Those who reject this idle, matriarchal perspective are those whom Yeshua calls His "brothers", His "sisters", and His "mother". Those are His true family on Earth. It goes without saying, therefore, that Yeshua has very little family inside the Church. The vast majority are standing outside with mary, endeavouring to interrupt Yeshua's ministering of the spirit on Earth.
Brothers and sisters
Notice that, in Matthew 12:50, the Lord says "brother, sister, and mother". The Greek word for "brother", adelphos, is used in 319 (=29 times 11) verses of Scripture, and the Greek word for "sister", adelphe, is only used 24 times, meaning that female siblings are not often referred to explicitly in Scripture. Out of the 319 verses where adelphos ("brother") is used, the word adelphe ("sister") only appears in 10 verses, meaning that adelphe is rarely used when adelphos has already been used. Thus, we can safely conclude that the unusual presence of the word "sister" in Matthew 12:50 must be meditated on.
The 10 verses that contain both adelphos ("brother") and adelphe ("sister") can be categorised in the following way:
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Whosoever practices the will of the Father is Yeshua's brother and sister
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Matthew 12:50, Mark 3:35 |
You must be willing to forsake brothers and sisters for His sake
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Matthew 19:29, Mark 10:29-30, Luke 14:26 |
Yeshua had literal brothers and sisters
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Mark 6:3 |
Marriage between a brother and a sister in Christ
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1 Corinthians 7:15, 1 Corinthians 9:5 |
Helping brothers and sisters in need
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James 2:15 |
These are the thoughts we can discern from these categories:
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Notice that 40% of the 10 verses (category 2 above) have to do with the willingness to forsake literal brothers and sisters for God's sake. This speaks of the willingness to sever soul ties when those ties start to compete with our Spirit-centric relationship with God.
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The above, however, does not mean that we should only care about God and ourselves, as shown by the fact that 30% of the 10 verses (categories 1 and 5) speak of recognising who our brothers and sisters are when they are brothers and sisters in the Spirit, i.e. fellow men and women who are submitted to the will of the Father of Spirits (Hebrews 12:9) and who are therefore our siblings on our Father's side.
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The one verse in category 3 (Mark 6:3) speaks of how others may seek to use your literal linkage to others as a way to diminish your Spirit potential, which shows how soul relationships can weigh you down spiritually, even when you have resolved in your heart not to let them do so. This means that 50% of the verses (categories 2 and 3) are related to the spiritual damage that soul relationships can cause.
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One of the verses in category 4 (1 Corinthians 9:5) speaks of the legitimacy of soul relationships among believers who have submitted their souls to the Spirit, and the other verse (1 Corinthians 7:15) is related to the legitimacy of upholding soul obligations even when they are not under an optimal spiritual environment; even so, those soul obligations can be allowed to end under certain conditions, and they are not to be deemed as having the same "binding" or "permanent" nature as our "spirit obligations" have. |
Having said all of the above, the question becomes, "Why did Yeshua use both the words 'brothers' and 'sisters' in Matthew 12:50?" Having recognised the hindrance that soul relationships can pose (category 3) and having forsaken all those that do (category 2), we are to discern those who are seeking the Father's will (category 1) and minister to them (category 5). Sometimes, we shall act like "male" siblings (i.e. "brothers"), ministering to them in one of the 3 "male" endowments of apostle, prophet, or evangelist, and, at other times, we shall act like "female" siblings (i.e. "sisters"), ministering to them in one of the 2 "female" endowments of pastor and teacher. When we minister in the "male" endowments, we strengthen the other person's spirit; when we minister in the "female" endowments, we bring comfort and security to their souls, which, when done in the Spirit, enables their spirits to continue operating, flourishing, and multiplying. By explicitly referring to "sisters", therefore, the Lord was certifying the need not to "forget" about the soul even when giving priority to the spirit. As we have shared before, we are not "soulless angels", and it is because of our weak souls that we can be "like God" (Genesis 1:26) and reproduce His nature on Earth. Thus, our roles as "sisters" who minister to the souls of others should not be belittled or dismissed. As a parenthesis, notice that we did not mention category 4 in this paragraph. This is because category 4 falls outside the scope of this posting.
The two mothers
Having considered the words "brother" and "sister" in Matthew 12:50, the question then becomes, "What did Yeshua mean by 'mother'?". To answer this, we must first consider the following passage:
"22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. 23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. 24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. 25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. 27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. 28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. 29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. 30 Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. 31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free." (Galatians 4:22-31)
Notice that the passage above speaks of two mothers, one a slave and one free. The slave mother is the literal "Jerusalem" (v25), thus representing the visible religious institutions that tie us to the Old Covenant. This means that the slave mother is one who provides for us, allows us a certain amount of growth, but never lets go, keeping us under her bondage for life. By contrast, the free mother sees us as "the promise" (v23). Therefore, she sees a purpose and a plan that goes beyond herself, like a mother that knows of the great future that is possible for her son. Even when she sees us small and dependent on her, she never reduces us to that state of dependency, always seeing beyond that temporary dependence and perceiving the grand future that is available to us.
Thus, the "mother" the Lord is referring to in Matthew 12:50 speaks of believers who are in a state of greater soul maturity and who can therefore hold you over during your state of soul weakness until you have matured enough to stand on your own. These more adult "female" souls will nurture your weaker soul until it is enabled to operate in the spiritual things it is called to do. Such "mothers" do not see your relative weakness in the soul as a sign of inherent superiority on their part. Why? Because they see you as "the promise" and know of all that God intends to do as you grow in your spirit nature. For a time, Yeshua's earthly mother understood this, having been prophesied from the beginning what God intended to do through Yeshua. However, at some point, she became so used to being "taller" than Yeshua that she forgot the promise, and her soul became offended at the fact that Yeshua had separated Himself from her and was now doing the things in the Spirit that He was called to do by His Father. In that sense, therefore, Yeshua's earthly mother was acting like a Hagar in Matthew 12:46, demanding that her "freed slave" return to the matriarchal soul "plantation".
Giving a Sabbatical hand
As we saw earlier, Matthew 12:49 reads as follows:
"And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!" (Matthew 12:49)
Notice that the Holy Spirit "went out of His way" to mention that Yeshua "stretched forth His hand" when He described who His true "mother and brethren" were. There is a spiritual reason for this. The words "stretched forth" and "hand" were translated from the Greek words ekteino and cheir respectively. These words only appear together in 13 verses, the first time being in verse 3 of the following passage, where ekteino is translated as "put forth":
"1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them."
Notice that Yeshua stretched forth His hand towards a leper, a man whose soul was in a great state of weakness. As you may imagine, this man carried a horrible burden of shame everywhere he went, and he lived every day with little sense of hope for the future. In that sense, therefore, we can say that he was trapped in a "Perizzite" state of being, a state where he considered himself permanently small and with no right to dream any dreams of greatness in the future. As Yeshua saw this weakened soul, He "stretched forth His hand" and ministered health to him, removing the shame from his life, giving him a sense of hope and a reason to dream. In doing so, Yeshua was restoring his immature soul and preparing him for the spiritual work that the Father had for him. Notice also how Yeshua instructed him to show himself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded. This points to the priestly nature of the spiritual work that Yeshua had just performed on him, and it points to the priestly role that the ex-leper was now to transition into, offering a gift (i.e. a sacrifice) at the temple just as a priest would.
Interestingly enough, the second time that both ekteino and cheir appear together is in a verse we studied in the first posting of this Sabbath series:
"Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other." (Matthew 12:13)
As we studied then, the "other hand" speaks of the areas in our soul that we are naturally skilled and strong at, and the hand that Jesus restored refers to the areas in which we are naturally "awkward" and weak, areas we tend to shy away from as we grow older and older. Hence, we can see how this passage speaks of a "taller" (i.e. more "mature") soul ministering to a "shorter", weaker soul that needed help to mature in an area where its growth had been stunted.
After Matthew 12:49, the next verse where both ekteino and cheir appear together is in verse 31 of the following passage:
"28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. 29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. 31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? 32 And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased." (Matthew 14:28-32)
Notice that Jesus stretched forth his hand to aid a man whose soul had maturity problems in the area of belief. After catching him, He reproved him pastorally for having a stunted faith. He then proceeded to uphold him in faith until they returned to the ship, like a mother aiding a struggling toddler to finish his walk back to the crib.
From all of this, we can see how the "stretching forth of the hand" is spiritually related to aiding someone who is shorter and weaker in some area of the soul. When the "height difference" is significant, we become like a "mother" to that person, but it is a "mother" relationship that is intended to last only for a season until the other person's soul is grown and strong enough to operate on his or her own.
As we have shared before, the "hand" is related to ministering to others, with the 5 fingers correlating with the 5 ministerial endowments of Ephesians 4:11. Therefore, we can say that Yeshua "stretching forth His hand" speaks of the priestly service we are to carry out on behalf of our brethren in Christ using the 5 ministerial endowments. When we act as a "brother", we use the 3 "male" endowments to directly bolster the Spirit nature of the other person. When we act as a "sister", we use the 2 "female" endowments to minister to the other person's soul, which is important and necessary so that that person may fulfil his or her spiritual calling. When we act as a "mother", our role is as a "taller" and "stronger" soul coming to the aid of a significantly "shorter" and "weaker" soul; this weaker soul may have to depend on us for a season, but a righteous mother knows that it is only for a season, never forgetting the spiritual end goal of her aid.
In short, the hand that Yeshua stretched forth in Matthew 12:49 refers to our priestly work, the spiritual work that we are to do in the spiritual Temple during the Sabbath. The spiritual structures of the "Jerusalem from above" are so that we may carry out this priestly work. Whereas the matriarchals remain in the structures of the Jerusalem from below, ministering and being ministered to Old-Covenant style, the remnant remain in the structures of the "Jerusalem from above", attending the epi-synagogues in the heavenlies, ministering to each other like "brothers", "sisters", and "mother", carrying out their New-Covenant, Melchizedek priesthood so that the will of the Father may be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
In a previous article, we saw how Matthew 12:1-8 points to the galloping of the white horse and Matthew 12:9-14 to the galloping of the red horse of the Apocalypse. In the next article, we saw how Matthew 12:15-21 points to the black horse of the Apocalypse. In the next article, we saw how Matthew 12:22-30 points to a transition from the black horse to the green horse of the Apocalypse. In the next article, we began to study the portion of Matthew 12 that deals fully with the green-horse stage, which begins in verse 31. In the next posting, we studied the nature of the "Sabbatical blasphemers" who blaspheme during the green-horse stage, as detailed in Matthew 12:32-34. In the next posting, we studied on the spiritual treasures that we are to accumulate and utilise "angelically" to establish the Kingdom of God on Earth, especially during the green-horse Sabbath, when the warfare from "fallen angels" intensifies. In the previous posting, we studied how the matriarchal Church instils spiritual idleness in believers, preventing them carrying out their priestly Sabbath work. The accountability for this matriarchal idleness increases during the green-horse phase of the Sabbath. In this posting, we saw how the matriarchal Church corrupts the interaction between the apostolic and the prophetic and how the prophetic is reduced to Girgashite rubble during the green-horse stage, making the sign of Jonah completely unrecognisable. We also saw how the corruption of the priesthood by the pastoral matriarchy leads to utter degeneration rather than regeneration; this is due to the matriarchy's corruption of soul relationships, which ends up idling believers spiritually. By contrast, the remnant understand our soul relationships in the context of God's Spirit will, and they stretch forth their priestly hands as "brothers", "sisters", and "mother" during the 7th day, the "Sabbath", working towards the 8th-day regeneration of the Earth unto the Lord.