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In a conversation with a certain priest on the internet it became apparent that he didn't know the link between the Keys of the Kingdom and the Keys of Knowledge, which, by the way, is a very old connection well understood by the prophets, the Jewish Fathers and, following on their heals, Jesus Christ.
The Kingdom of God is at the head of the Lord's Prayer. This teaches what to watch for in the Kingdom from Jesus' point of view.
In the internet conversation, I made a comment that the Keys of Knowledge and the Keys of the Kingdom are one and the same. A priest questioned this, asking for the reference. In response to the priest's request, I listed the scripture: Matthew 23.13 and Luke 11.52.
The priest ignored the answer, continuing with the concerns of this world. Who focus upon the concerns of this world and answer only those who curtsy to them happened to be the commentary around which Jesus composed the thoughts on the Keys to the Kingdom in Mathew 23 and Luke 11. Know that Jesus, in His Second Coming, does not change and has the same mind as He had when He was addressing the scribes (lawyers) and Pharisees (priests). In the Second Coming a confrontation with the priests is highly likely, following much after the confrontation between myself and the priest who ignored my answer on the Keys to the Kingdom. The priest treated me, in fact, just the way the Pharisees and scribes answered Jesus.
Matthew 16.18...upon this rock I will build my church..and give thee the Keys to the Kingdom...whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven; whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven.
Jesus had a wonderful mind, but few inquire of it, for they substitute an image of Him in their hearts which is not prepared to recognize one with His quick understanding of the precepts of the Lord. He who carries the Keys to the Kingdom is one with quick understanding (Isaiah 11.3), for He comes to judge, and the foundation of judgment is righteousness: the knowledge of being just and merciful. Thus:
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Psalm 89.14: righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne
Zech. 7.9: execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother..oppress not the poor..let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.
This happens to be YHVH ELOHIM, the attribute of the Father who judges with mercy and compassion. We intend to illustrate how this was viewed by the fathers of the Oral Torah.
To judge according to this criteria, St. Peter and those who inherited the keys, have a responsibility to do justice and have mercy. Anyone reading St. Peter's and James' judgments will see that they were very righteous in their judgments. Now they had the keys of knowledge to apply judgment. And knowledge comes through understanding, seeking after righteousness.
In one conversation on aol, I think it was Magdallena who replied to one of my comments, correcting me (most appropriately) as it were:
Proverbs 9.10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.
I answered, using another set of scriptures which tie into this: the beginning of wisdom is to get wisdom. Jesus used this framework when He spoke of those who come to the light and those who do not:
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John 1.5 [His] light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
3.19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
3.20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
3.21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought of God.
8.12...I am the light...
This links to:
Isaiah 59.4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
59.14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.
59.15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.
59.16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no man...
If you see the light, you should go to it even though your deeds may be reproved. He who avoids reproof is one who avoids the light. And such a one cannot, then, see the Keys of the Kingdom.
My comment was leading to showing some light on one who carries the Keys to the Kingdom. For the above link (as one web page into another) into the following:
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Matthew 23.8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
23.9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in Heaven [elsewhere Jesus said my father is greater than I; ed. note]
23.10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
23.11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.
23.12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
23.13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
23.14-39...Woe unto you..[for you] have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgement, mercy and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone..ye make clean the outside of the cup..but within they are full of extortion and excess..ye are like whited sepulchres...for I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, til ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Luke records the same conversation about hypocrites who prevent people wishing to enter to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Keep in mind that Jesus had been talking about the Light of God which is Wisdom which unlocks the Gates of Heaven so that those who are attracted to the light, even though it may carry reproach, will still come in. Ye hypocrites, on that day, said Jesus, will then come to the light and say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Let's look at Dr. Luke's rendition. We will list the prologue and lead into the depth of the wisdom:
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Prologue:
Luke 11.2..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.
11.8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity [persistence ed. note] he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.
11.9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened.
11.10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
11.11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Of if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?
11.13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask?
11.32 The men of Nineveh shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
11.33 No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light.
11.34..when thine eye is evil, thy body is full of darkness.
11.35 Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.
11.36 If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light [This can be applied to the Body of Christ (church), with the end desire to fill the entire body with light, which is by allowing the light to be placed on the table where all can see it; ed. note.]
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Now comes the chastisement:
11.39 And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness.
11.40 Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?
11.41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.
11.42 But woe unto you, Pharisees! For ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
11.43 Woe unto you, Pharisees! For ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets.
11.44 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.
11.46 ..Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! For ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
11.47 Woe unto you! For ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.
11.48 Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres.
11.49 Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
11.50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, amy be required of this generation;
11.52 ..Woe unto you lawyers! For ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.
11.53 And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things:
11.54 Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.
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Jesus' pronouncement (as Jonah) against hypocrites led into a teaching on how to recognize the King of the Kingdom when he comes again (the Second Coming of the Bridegroom). The Bridegroom, carries the keys of the Kingdom, which are the keys of knowledge, opening the Gates of righteousness to His Father's House which is the Kingdom of God on earth. The knowledge the Bridegroom carries is light, that which opens the doors, allowing everyone to enter. Now in the Second Coming it is expected that the Nations will see a Great Light and kings, wise men, and prophets will all put their hands over their mouths, for what they shall see they had never considered, etc. I was offering to the communion a little light to that end, which calls into remembrance Jesus' teachings on light, how one who carries the keys of knowledge is one who carries the keys to the kingdom.
I was not using my words, but Jesus', which also reflect the Wisdom of God.
I have often said in aol, [quoting St. Maximos as I recall] that one who loves someone wishes to spend as much time with his/her lover as possible. This is what the Wisdom of God (Shekhinah) is likened to [re: Ecclesiastes and Ecclesiasticus]: the more you love her the more she will nourish you, and those who love the nourishment will always want to be near to her to absorb her unfathomable nourishment. It becomes a craving and through the craving for her doors become unlocked.
The Bridgroom is of the Holy Spirit (there is but one Holy Spirit), awakened as it were [Psalm 119.40: Behold, I have longed after thy precepts: quicken me in thy righteousness; Psalm 19.50: This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me], to unlock the doors to His Father's House.
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This will lead to Peace on earth, being remembered as the opening of the Gate to Paradise, allowing the Children of Adam to reenter and reclaim their bodies of light. Jesus spoke of cleansing the body so to enable it to assume the promised covering of light. But there were those who did not know the scriptures as well as He did, and thus, having jealousy in their hearts, were wicked, filled with evil thoughts of trying to catch Jesus in saying something which would embarrass him. But he knew what was in their hearts and, thus, launched his teaching on how hypocrites prevent those who wish to enter the Kingdom to enter. For His Gospel is remembered as the Gospel of the Kingdom and He said it is nigh at hand.
Jesus said that the Kingdom is within you, in your hearts, which can be realized through an epiphany. I am trying to show an epiphany which is dear to our hearts.
I put the epiphany in part on my webpage.
Now to close this so you can appreciate [one named] Magdalena's correction of my speech, we return to:
Proverbs 9.10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of Wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.
This relates to:
Job 28.28 .. Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.
The more the knowledge of the LORD the more one comes to fear and love Him, as one does a father. For with that knowledge comes the wisdom that God can deliver on His Promises and the pronouncements of His Prophets. Prophets, such as Jeremiah, who had to endure his own prophesy, came to understand the implications and weight of their knowledge. What they bind on earth will be bound in Heaven. God confirms the word of his prophets. This is his Holiness and his Glory.
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Through Jesus' teachings one can obtain knowledge of the holy. Those who are perfect in their heart will understand this, for (Proverbs 11.9) through knowledge shall the just be delivered. Thus, it is said:
Isaiah 53.11..by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities.
Ecclesiastes 1.18: For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge inscreaseth sorrow.
Thus, Jesus spoke of how the Son of Man (which refers also to the prophets who called themselves the son of man [Daniel, Ezekiel, etc.] is burdened with the knowledge of God. But with that knowledge (Isaiah 53.3) He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him: he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
God has been known to use foolish shepherds to magnify His Wisdom. That happens to be the scenario, in fact, where Jesus was teaching on the Keys of Knowledge, which seems to be repeated more often than it should.
Since Jesus said God is Spirit and Truth, it follows that God's Wisdom reflects the truth. Those who are of the truth will know His Voice (John 18.37). Micah 6.8 says it all: He hath showed thee O man what is good and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
Being of the Truth, one sees through the secrets hidden in the depths of men's hearts and exposes them. This knowledge is not a knowledge most men would enjoy having, for it is a terrible burden and loaded with grief. Because it shows the vision of much oppression under the sun. He who tries to relieve the oppression (see Psalm 12) all hypocrites fear.
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One day, however, after the anger of the nations has run its course, causing men to want to turn back to righteousness, many hypocrites also will turn back to the light.
This leads us back to how the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Being humbled is the path to wisdom and (Eccles. 7.11..wisdom giveth life to them that have it.). The conclusion of the matter, knowing God's ability to shed light (truth) is:
Eccles. 12.13: Fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
Jesus said I have kept all of my Father's Commandments. In the Second Coming the same truth will prevail. Here the Bridegroom is one who, being of quick understanding, has the charge of judgment, to bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. For the righteous that day will be a day of joy, for they will be relieved of their afflictions and those who persecute them. It will be a day of Marriage. On that day, when they see the Bridgroom's Wedding Party coming (for he comes at night) ten virgins with their lamps are placed waiting showing the party the way to the Bridesmaid's house. When the Groom's Party reaches the Ten Virgins who hopefully still have their lamps lit, men from the Bridesmaid's house come out to query the Groom to ascertain His understanding of the Holy Scriptures. The greater his knowledge, the more valuable a catch in a Groom the Father of the Bride has. The precepts on the Watchmen explain this.
Some of this is discussed in more detail on Maravot's Homepage. It is there for the entire world to see. Hopefully the righteous will see it, and when they see it hopefully they will be glad.
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I speak with peace and goodwill in my heart. Sometimes it can be offending, because Leviathan (Job) the King of Pride still rules over many hearts and is offended in peace and goodwill. You know the saying: Proverbs 29.18: "where there is no vision the people perish." I have an eye salve for them. Remember (Proverbs 11.2) with the lowly is wisdom and (Proverbs 24.3) through wisdom is a House Built. One will see through Maravot's Homepage an introduction of scriptures showing the House of our Father in Heaven, built precept upon precept, light upon light, to the end that those seeing it will enter and marvel. For there is no thing on earth like it.
peace
M
Please beam me back up to Maravot's_Index.html
Please send me over to From Dust and Ashes to Joy.html; how Christ viewed His Second Coming.
Please send me over to What Price Justice
Please send me over to Judgment.hml
Please send me over to My Father is Greater than I.html: a collection of teachings of Jesus which reflect his view of His relationship with God, the Father.
Launched in 1997; updated 7.5.99; 5.27.2000; 2.12.06
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Copyright © 1996-2006 Mel Copeland. All rights reserved.