"And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory."
Re 16
Question 300: What Did Our Saviour Mean By Saying To Peter “When Thou Art Converted Strengthen Thy Brethren”?
Answer:
The revised version renders the passage (Luke 22:32): "When thou hast turned again, establish thy brethren.'' We cannot suppose that after Peter's fall, he needed conversion in the sense in which we use the word. He needed repentance and restoration. His words, his actions and the intense devotion he had previously shown to Moshiach, all indicated a man already converted. He fell under temptation as Moshiach had foreseen, but it was a backsliding which Moshiach forgave. At Shavuot their experience was not conversion, but an enduement of power for service, notably the power of speaking foreign tongues.
Question 299: Who Is Represented By The “Elder Brother” In The Prodigal Brother?
Answer:
Primarily, the Pharisees and chief priests, who were scandalized by seeing Moshiach associate with the lower classes and notorious sinners. It was a rebuke to selfishness and formalism - to those who believe they have the spiritual right of way and that less worthy persons, who had been basking in the divine goodness, should be envious or critical of the cordial welcome that is extended to a redeemed sinner. The lesson applies to people in our own day who have no sympathy with the work going on at rescue missions and are sceptical about the conversion of evildoers. The parable was a reproof to such persons, but it also conveyed a weighty lesson as to the evil of sin. Although the father forgave his younger son and gave him joyful welcome, he said to the elder, "All that I have is thine," thereby intimating that the younger son's lost patrimony could not be restored. The sinner is urged to repent and is promised pardon, but the time he has wasted and the health he has injured and the mischief his example has done, are irreparable evils.
Question 298: What Were The “Husks That The Swine Did Eat?”
Answer:
The husks (see Luke 15:16), were the fruit of the carob tree, which is common in Palestine and is used by the poor as food and for the fattening of swine or cattle. When ripe, it is like a cooked bean pod, brown, glossy and filled with seeds. Children eat it readily and seem to thrive on it. The carob is of the same family as the American locust tree. Its fruit is sometimes called "St. John's bread," as John the Baptist is thought to have lived upon it in the wilderness.
Question 297: What Was Meant By The “Ninety And Nine Just Persons Which Need No Repentance?”
Answer:
There was a tendency among the Pharisees (see Luke 15:2) to despise the sinner and make no effort for his reclamation. They prided themselves on their scrupulous observance of the Law and on their lives being free from open sin. Moshiach met them on their own ground and showed them that the recovery and reformation of the sinner was pleasing to YHVH. He desires that none should perish, but that all should forsake sin and return. They thought that as there were no flagrant sins in their lives to be repented of, that they were YHVH's favourite children. Moshiach showed them that if as they contended, they were free from such sins, their self-righteous attitude was not so pleasing to YHVH as was the attitude of the man who knew he had done wrong and abjured it and asked pardon. There was need for repentance on the part of those who claimed to be just persons, as Moshiach showed them over and over again; but He was teaching another lesson at that time and was proving to them that, even assuming that they were sinless as they claimed, they were wrong in the position they took toward the sinner.
Frequently asked questions and answers:
Question 296: What Is Meant By Hating Father And Mother For Yeshua’ Sake?
Answer:
In Luke 14:26 our Saviour asserts His claim to our most loyal service and our supreme affection. In taking up one's cross to follow Him, we must be prepared for trials for His sake and to break even the nearest and dearest ties, if need be. He must have the first place in our hearts. It may come to choosing between Moshiach and our nearest relations. Compare Matthew 10:37 with the passage in Luke 14. "Hate" is not the preferable word, as the passage in Matthew shows. The passage in Luke obscures the true form of the expression and invests it with harshness while Matthew makes the true meaning clear, that we are to love Him better than all else, even those who are nearest and dearest to us and that this love must assert itself loyally at the crisis, no matter what it may cost us. A loyal soldier will give up all to serve his country; so we too must be prepared to give up all if need be, to serve Moshiach.
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