Do I earn wages only to put them in a purse with holes in it? 526-2 - 1 - 6

Matthew 6:19-21, “19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

First things first, why work to earn wages? Is it to take care of basic needs or is it for the love of money? In economics there is the theory of diminishing returns, a situation in which less and less is achieved despite the use of increasing amounts of effort or money. Somewhere between working to take care of basic needs to the preoccupation of storing up money is the love of money.

The Parable of the Rich Fool is an example of putting his wages in “A purse with holes in it.” Jesus tells of a rich man who had such great "fruits and goods" that he had no room for them. His solution; Luke 12:18, "And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods." However, God had other plans; Luke 12:20, "But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?"

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is relevant today as many people/ countries have not accomplished the first level.

Physiological Needs

Our biological needs: The need for oxygen, food, water, and a relatively constant body temperature. They are the strongest needs due to mans need to survive.

Safety Needs

When all physiological needs are satisfied and are no longer controlling thoughts and behaviors, the needs for security can become active.

Needs of Love, Affection and Belongingness

When the needs for safety and for physiological well-being are satisfied, the next class of needs for love, affection and belongingness emerge.

Needs for Esteem

When the first three classes of needs are satisfied, the needs for esteem can become dominant. These involve needs for both self-esteem and for the esteem a person gets from others.

Needs for Self-Actualization

When all of the foregoing needs are satisfied, then and only then are the needs for self-actualization activated. Maslow describes self-actualization as a person's need to be and do that which the person was "born to do."

[http://economicrot.blogspot.com/2006/01/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-and-us.html]

Here in the United States many have reached the pinnacle of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. What self-actualization is to one person may be foreign to another. The new Ager's often speak of reaching a higher vibration and/or dimension. Another example of storing wages in a purse with holes in it. A relationship with Jesus seals our eternity in his presence.

Luke 16:13, “No servant 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.” Luke 12: 21, “So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

What will it be? Working for the short time wages that expire with our physical death? While it is indeed necessary to be productive and take care of our families in this incarnation, what of laying up treasures in our eternal home?

In reading the example of Rich Young Ruler, why is it so difficult for a rich man to be saved? What of tithing?

Matthew 19:24, “And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Repeated in Mark and Luke, a major lesson to be taken literally.

1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money (G5365) is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” 

G5365, love of money, fond of silver (money), that is, avaricious: - covetous.

Avaricious is also defined as greedy, rapacious, and grasping

Applicable verses are found throughout the Bible concerning the use of/ misuse of money. Many are found in the book of Proverbs including;

Proverbs 13:7, “There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.”

One can have great riches but be a spiritual pauper, and the poorest (financially) believer is an heir to the great riches of God.

Proverbs 21:17, “He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man: he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.”

Is there really satisfaction and in luxurious living, here, wine and oil. How often have we read of the poor little rich girl? Many pursue the so-called better things in life which often drains one financially and spiritually.

As for questionable use of wealth, an example would be the oil-rich Arab countries.

Meet the super-rich Arabs

“Meet the super-rich Arabs whose life includes pet Lions, Tigers, Cheetahs, Chimps, Snakes, falcons, his n' her private jets and Collection of cars. How mega-wealthy Arab men are accessorizing their super-cars and powerboats with lions and cheetahs. Meet Humaid, He Owns Many Supercars and Many Big Cats! Humaid really is unlike any other supercar owner in the world. Why? Because he also loves big cats! He owns a selection of big cats most suited to life on the African savannah including a couple of lions, a tiger and a cheetah and he loves nothing more than posing and playing with them around his expensive supercars!”

[http://phimhotnhat.net/xem-video/video-living-with-lions-pet-wild-animals-wealthy-lifestyle-of-rich-arabs.Xequ-622YC0]

Death is the great equalizer:

Proverbs 22:2, “The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all.”

We all come from the same Creator and will all be judged someday. There are no class distinctions that survive death.

Money itself is not an evil. It is the love of money leading to greedy and questionable acquisition and misuse of same that is the evil.

Money can be used for good and for evil. Wealthy families set up foundations that do a lot of good throughout the world. Sadly, there are those such as George Soros who use money as a weapon to destroy countries.

As for the question of the young ruler and why it is so difficult for a rich man to be saved, being wealthy can lead not only to pride but to boasting about what one has done. We could ask King Nebuchadnezzar how well that worked out for him. His pride and boasting resulted in seven years of eating grass like oxen. The good news is that this experience likely saved King Nebuchadnezzar’s soul.

As for tithing, we are really just giving back to God a portion what he has provided for us.

The prophecies of the Old Testament were documented well before the New Testament period 529-2 - 14 - 3

The Septuagint was completed nearly three centuries before the birth of Jesus. The Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947 include Book of Isaiah from ca. 125 BC.

The Septuagint (also known as the LXX) is a translation of the Hebrew Bible into the Greek language. The name “Septuagint” comes from the Latin word for seventy. The Septuagint was translated in the third and second centuries B.C. in Alexandria, Egypt.

Here are two often quoted prophetic verses from the Septuagint:

Esaias (Isaiah) 53:5, "But he was wounded on account of our sins, and was bruised because of our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and by his bruises we were healed. 6 All we as sheep have gone astray; every one has gone astray in his way; and the Lord gave him up for our sins."

Michaeas (Micah) 5:2 And thou, Bethleem, house of Ephratha, art few in number to be reckoned among the thousands of Juda; yet out of thee shall one come forth to me, to be a ruler of Israel; and his goings forth were from the beginning, even from eternity.

[Brenton, Sir Lancelot C. L. English Translation of the Greek Septuagint, Including the Apocrypha]

The Great Isaiah Scroll

"The Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa) is one of the original seven Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in Qumran in 1947. It is the largest (734 cm) and best preserved of all the biblical scrolls, and the only one that is almost complete. The 54 columns contain all 66 chapters of the Hebrew version of the biblical Book of Isaiah. Dating from ca. 125 BCE, it is also one of the oldest of the Dead Sea Scrolls, some one thousand years older than the oldest manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible known to us before the scrolls' discovery."

[http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/isaiah]

Isaiah 53 at Qumran

"Among the Dead Sea Scrolls found in caves at the village of Qumran overlooking the Dead Sea (Hebrew, Yam haMelach, Salt Sea) were fragments or whole copies of 21 distinct scrolls of the prophet Isaiah. The best known is the Great Isaiah Scroll (designated 1QIsaa), the only complete copy of Isaiah at Qumran, measuring 24 feet long. It was among seven original scrolls found in 1947."

[http://www.hebrew-streams.org/works/qumran/isaiah-53-qumran.pdf]

2 Peter 1:19-21, “19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” 

353 Prophecies Fulfilled in Jesus - A good witnessing Tool

Christhttp://www.accordingtothescriptures.org/prophecy/353prophecies.html

Jesus decreed blindness on Israel (Luke 19:42) until..... 529-2 - 14 - 2

Jesus rode into Jerusalem in fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” Also, the timing was as prophesied in Daniel 9:25.

Luke 19:41-42, “41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, 42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.” It is as if scales have covered their eyes and they were and are blinded to Jesus as Messiah.

Saul was spiritually blinded by the law to the point that he persecuted the believing Jews. On the road to Damascus, Saul had an encounter with the glorified Jesus and was blinded physically. Ananias was sent to Saul by Jesus, "that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost." Act 9:18, “And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight , and arose, and was baptized.” Perhaps foretelling of when the fullness of the Gentiles come in and the scales drop from the eyes of the Israelis.

Matthew 23:37, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!”

Jesus held the Jews responsible to know the time of thy visitation. Matthew 23:38-39, “38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”

Romans 11:25 speaks to how long the blindness would last. “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.” The fullness of the Gentiles is when the Gentile bride is completed and caught up/ Raptured from the earth; then God will resume His dealings with Israel.

Ezekiel 37 and the “Valley of dry bones” is prophetic of the restoration of the unbelieving Israel that occurred in the 20th Century. Ezekiel 36:22, “Therefore say to the Israelite's, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name.” God cannot abandon Israel without breaking His Word. God will protect the Jews as prophesied in both Ezekiel 38 and Psalm 83.

During the tribulation many Jews will be killed by the Antichrist and his minions, nevertheless, a remnant will escape to Petra. According to Zechariah, the remnant “shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son.” Then the scales will drop from their eyes and they will be brought into the Kingdom.

As Christians we are required to know the time in which we live, to be like the Sons of Issachar.

John 8 and Psalm 69 provide insight into Jesus’ childhood and the reputation that followed Him 529-2 - 15 - 4

John 8:18-19, “I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me. 19 Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also. “

John 8:41-42, “41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God. 42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.”

The temple leadership accused Jesus of being born through fornication, an accusation that followed Him from childhood through His ministry.  

Psalm 69 is a Psalm that deals not only with David; it deals with the crucifixion and provides insight into the childhood of Jesus, considered illegitimate by many.

Psalm 69:4-5, “4 They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away. 5 O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee.”  It’s difficult to understand the hatred directed at Jesus by the very people He came to offer eternal life. Jesus was the sinless lamb of God who took on the sins of the world. As is was 2000 years ago, so it is today.

As a child Jesus was subject of speculation. Psalm 69:12, “They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of the drunkards.”  The men who sat at the gate of the city would be like today’s city council members. They would speculate as to who was the father of Jesus and the town drunks would make up vulgar songs.

Prior to the resurrection Jesus siblings likely rejected and ridiculed Him as possible mentally defective. Psalm 69:8, “I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.” Psalm 69:10, “When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach.”

Again, Psalm 69 is prophetic of the crucifixion including Jesus being given vinegar to drink. Psalm 69:21, “They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” John 19:28-30, “28 After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. 29 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth. 30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”

Psalm 69 also suggests the second coming of Jesus as the avenging Lion of Judah and of His reign during the Millennium. Psalm 69:34-36, “34 Let the heaven and earth praise him, the seas, and every thing that moveth therein. 35 For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah: that they may dwell there, and have it in possession. 36 The seed also of his servants shall inherit it: and they that love his name shall dwell therein.”

Adam was a type of Christ 529-2 - 13 - 5

Who Created God?

“Every event has a cause.

The universe is an event.

Therefore, the universe has a cause. (And, of course, he said that cause was God).”

[Pastor Lutzer]

As a Christian I hold to the worldview is that our world is deliberate result of our Creator: Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning (H7225) God created (H1254) the heaven (H8064) and the earth (H776).

H7225 - the first, in place, time, order or rank (specifically a firstfruit): - beginning, chief first-fruits, first part, principal thing.

H1254 - to create; select, feed (as formative processes): - choose, create (creator), cut down, dispatch, do, make.

H8064 - to be lofty; the sky, aloft; alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve.

H776 - to be firm; the earth, a land, country, earth, field, ground, land, nations, wilderness, world.

Genesis 2:7, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

Adam was created by God as were the angels. God formed his body from the dust of the ground, but only by the breath of God did Adam become a living being.

Micah 5:2, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

Jesus was not a creation of God but was from everlasting.

Genesis 2:21-22, “21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.” God provided Adam with a helpmate, Eve.

Genesis 2:24, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” God created he marriage bond between Adam and Eve, a type of the relationship that exists between Christ and the Church.

Then came Satan. Eve was beguiled by Satan; however, Adam ate of the forbidden tree with full knowledge. Adam chose to join his bride in a hostile world suffering spiritual death, a foreshadowing of Jesus sacrificing his life on the cross for his bride, the Church.

Genesis 3:21 “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.” In his concern for his creation, God sewed skins of animals for Adam and Eve to wear both to protect their bodies and to demonstrate that a blood sacrifice would be needed to redeem mankind.

Hebrews 2:9, “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.”

By giving up paradise for his wife, Adam was a type of Jesus who was the propitiation for his bride the Church: Philippians 2:8, “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

Both the Shroud of Turin and the fiery serpent of Numbers can be a hindrance to a person's faith 543 - 8 - 2

Numbers 21:8 “And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent (H8314), and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.”

H8314, A masculine noun meaning a serpent, generally a poisonous snake. There is a burning sensation from the serpent's bite sent as judgment.

King Hezekiah, a ruler in Judah, was one of the kings who did what was right in the eyes of God. He was a great reformer, campaigning against all forms of idolatry. 2 Kings 18:4, “He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.” Nehushtan, meaning literally "A Bronze Thing."

Much has been written and theorized concerning the Shroud of Turin as being the covering that was used to wrap Jesus's body

Why Shroud of Turin's Secrets Continue to Elude Science

“The 53-square-foot rectangle of linen known as the Shroud of Turin is one of the most sacred religious icons on Earth, venerated by millions of Christians as the actual burial garment of Jesus Christ.

It is also among the most fiercely debated subjects in contemporary science, an extraordinary mystery that has defied every effort at solution.

Over the 117 years since a photographic negative of the linen unexpectedly revealed the image of a tortured body, ranks of physicists and chemists have weighed in on the fabric’s age and the image’s composition. Forensic pathologists, microbiologists, and botanists have analyzed its bloodstains, along with specks of dirt and pollen on its surface. Statisticians have combed through mountains of data.”

[https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/04/150417-shroud-turin-relics-jesus-catholic-church-religion-science/]

The shroud appears to be that of a man who was crucified. Carbon dating indicates that it postdated Jesus by centuries. Then it was theorized that the piece of cloth tested had been added later. Speculation concerning the shroud continues.

Full Scale 3D Printed Model of Christ Created Using the Famous Shroud of Turin

“Professor Giulio Fanti at the University of Padua created this 3D printed carbon model of Christ using precise measurements taken from the Shroud of Turin.”

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsSKfCm8Fxo]

The Roman Catholic Church places great values on relics such as:

Head of St Catherine of Siena

Blood of Saint Januarius

The Tongue of St Anthony of Padua

The Finger of St Thomas

Like the fiery serpent, the above relics including the Shroud of Turin are just things. King Hezekiah broke the fiery serpent, “A Bronze Thing” as it had become an idol. Relics denigrate who Jesus was. It's very easy to get caught up in things and forget the simple declaration by Paul 1 Colossians 15:3-4, “3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4  And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”

Of great spiritual importance to me is the burial napkin that was neatly folded beside where Jesus' head would have been. In that day a folded napkin meant "I am coming back." Jesus rose again and was seen by hundreds of people. We still have His promise of the folded napkin, He will be back!