Matthew 5:17-18

Ephesians 4:15 and the Call to Speak the Truth in Love

And thank you for joining me. I'm back by myself, uh, for a video and I hope we have some folks joining us tonight live so we can interact. I'd love to hear from you. Um this is Truth and Love Network, Truth and Love Ministries.

We get that from Ephesians chapter four verse fifteen but speaking the truth and love we are to grow up in all aspects into him who is the head even Christ. So that's what we wanna do. We want to we wanna grow up in all aspects into Christ.

Every single aspect of of this life that he's created. We wanna grow up in him and we want to share with others. We want to multiply. We want to be obedient to Matthew chapter twenty-eight. Make disciples of all nations.

Teaching them to observe all that he's commanded. So we wanna speak truth and love. And uh and I'm enjoying doing this. I I hope that you all have had opportunities to watch the pastor's panel podcast where we've had um uh pastors and leaders on here as we we tackle uh it seems like we've had we've had a focus here lately but I think the focus is important.

Um and and I may can address that at a different point but uh we're answering some tough questions. We come from different perspectives. So we are uh we are offering questions. We're offering answers.

We're we're offering different perspectives and so I think it's really good and it's giving you information as you are yourself a student of God's word. You are having different different ways to look at things.

Essential Doctrines, Differences of Opinion, and Questions for the Panel

Um I was speaking uh to one of the brothers tonight on the phone and and he wanted to uh he wanna talk about in in the video. Make sure that we we talk about those essential doctrines. Um there are essential doctrines that we all each one of us agree with and we we will not compromise on and the same should be for you.

Uh those essential doctrines or essential teachings of the Bible and Christianity that we will not waver on. That we all have in common that we can unite and fellowship with one another because we hold to those doctrines.

But then there's other issues in scripture. That we can have a difference of opinion on on how to interpret things. And that's where we have conversations like we're having. Um on the pastor's panel podcast or or with other guests that I have.

Um so I hope you're enjoying those videos. If you have any questions that you would like the pastor's panel podcast to address, I would love to hear from you and and get those questions from you. So that we can we can help you.

We can help you in your walk with Christ, in your walk with the Lord, and and you can grow up as well in all aspects into him. So, if you have any questions, feel free to give us a message and um and we'll we'll definitely try to address those questions.

If I can pray for you, please let me know. All you have to do is type me in the comments and I will see that and I will be glad to pray for you. Um tonight, I shouldn't uh we shouldn't be too long on the video tonight.

I wanna continue as as me doing the videos by myself. Um I've been walking through Matthew and you've been walking through Matthew with me. And tonight, we are gonna we're gonna stay on pace. We're gonna um stay in in order and we are at Matthew chapter five and if you wanna look at your look at your own Bible, look at your own scripture or Matthew chapter five.

We're just gonna look at two verses and and we're gonna somewhat look at the meaning of the verse. There was something um how would you put it in? An interpretation issue. How we interpret the Bible that that comes into play here.

So, we we may come back to these verses in the next video but we need to know how to um interpret scripture. Um so that we can get the correct meaning out of the scripture. And it's so very important.

If we if we do not know how to interpret correctly then we can apply any meaning that we want to in the scriptures and that's it's caused so many problems over so many years that people apply any meaning that they want to to scriptures and um start start cults and religions or churches and based on their interpretation of certain verses.

And we don't wanna do that. We want we want to hear what God is saying to us. We wanna hear what God Jesus is saying to us. What the Holy Spirit inspired these writers to to write down what he inspired them to say.

We want to hear that. And so that we can um understand and know God rightly and then apply and apply it and live it according to the way he wants us to apply it and live it. That's what it's all about.

It's not about us and and what we want. It's about it's about the Lord and what he wants in our lives. So, Matthew chapter five verses seventeen and eighteen. Um let me let's see what do we wanna do first?

Let let me read the text and and then we'll jump in to in in the direction that we want to go. Uh verse seventeen says, do not think that I came. This is Jesus speaking. He's he's continuing in his sermon and um he he's uh we we went through the what's famously known as the the Beatitudes.

We went through that. Um and and Jesus has just told him you are the you're the salt of the earth. You you are the the light of the world. The city said only he'll may not be hidden or cannot be hidden.

So, we just finished those verses and now we're in verses seventeen and eighteen. And listen carefully to these verses and see if as I'm reading them, you recognize how you understand them or how you've understood them for for so long, how you've heard them taught.

Um and see if you can um nail that down as as we read it. So, verse seventeen says, do not think that I came to abolish the law or the prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the law until all is accomplished.

Matthew 5, Matthew 24, and 2 Peter 3 on Heaven and Earth Passing Away

Now, there are so many directions and there's so many so many things that we could talk about in this passage and and of course, uh because it's so fresh on my mind because it's the topic that we're on in this season and um just like I was telling the brother on the phone today, uh the reason I want to stay on this subject is because uh and the subject is eschatology or or in times.

Uh the reason that I that I wanna stay on this topic right now and and of course, there's many other topics and if you ask questions, we will we will go on that topic and help you help you in your walk but one reason why I want to stay on um the topic of the end times and eschatology is because like many of you, like many of my brothers that on the pastors panel growing up, we only knew of one viewpoint of end times or eschatology.

We only knew one viewpoint existed that this was the scriptural view and that's the only one that existed. Didn't know of any others until many years down the road and so number one as we want to, we want to make everyone aware that that we come in contact with that that's not the only viewpoint and and so when you come in contact with someone, if you hear it from us and you hear us explain it, then then you can um as you studying study god's word, you can you know, look at the different viewpoints that you can look at scripture yourself and you can determine which direction to go based on what you've been hearing but if you were if you were, you know, blind to other viewpoints like like we were and then all of a sudden, you hear someone talk about a different view of end times.

Uh what's up? Happy up. You're doing pretty good. Um if you if you hear someone give a different viewpoint and you think and you've heard all these years that that you've been living that there's only one viewpoint of end times, then you won't you won't consider them a heretic.

You you won't want to fight them because they're offering a different viewpoint. If you hear it from us and we're saying there's legit other viewpoints and so if you hear somebody um coming at you with a different viewpoint, it doesn't mean that they're a heretic.

Now, like I like I said before, there are doctrines that we will not budge on that we unite on and so that's why we can have fellowship one with another because we hold on to those those viewpoints but we want to we want to be examples of of looking at the different viewpoints of end times and and not call each other heretics and uh be able to still have fellowship and we want to we want you to be able to do that.

Introduce you to the these different viewpoints so that you can study scripture for yourself and see which one is true and if somebody introduces you to another one, you you don't um you're not a taken back and you don't want to call somebody a heretic.

You can you can love them and and fellowship with them as you grow in the lord together and you know on that subject. So, with that being said, this takes that we're going to look at tonight and the direction that I want to go has a taste of that subject in these verses and of course, uh Matthew's Matthew's going to continue to have um things about eschatology that we're going to have to talk about.

You can't avoid it. So, um and this is just, you know, one of those passages, Matthew 517 through eighteen and we can talk about the law and the and the prophets and and what Jesus means when he says um he did not come to abolish but to fulfill.

You know, we will probably jump into that some other time. What does he mean by that? What does he mean by the smallest letter or stroke shall not pass away um until all is accomplished. What does he mean by all is accomplished?

We can look into that and and see what he means by that um but what I want to focus on tonight so that um so that we're not here on here too long. Um just focus on one thing. The heaven and earth pass away and you may think to yourself, how is that controversial?

Because that's just a plain reading of scripture. How can that mean anything other than the heavens and the earth passing away? Well, let me share with you what I think what I think that means. Jesus says uh in verse eighteen, virtually I say to you until heaven and earth pass away.

Not the smallest letter struggle pass away from the wall until it is accomplished. Okay, so you got you got a timeline here and you're looking for an event to happen. You're looking for the heavens and the earth um to pass away and there's two other places where we see this subject happening.

Uh Matthew twenty-four which we're looking looking at in the pastors panel. Excuse me. Matthew chapter twenty-four um right after the famous verse verse thirty-four you have verse thirty-five and it says heaven and earth will pass away but my words shall not pass away.

So, in Matthew chapter five, until heaven and earth pass away, not a smallest letter or stroke will pass away. Here in in Matthew chapter twenty-four verse thirty-five, heaven and earth will pass away.

So, we're we're looking for this event to to happen and how could it be um anything other than a plain reading of the text here. Heaven and earth. We're looking for heaven and earth to pass away. Um and then you have one more passage that that speaks speaks of that subject.

Second Peter chapter three uh starting in verse ten. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat and the earth its works will be burned up.

Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness looking for and hastening the coming of the day of of God on account of which the heavens will be destroyed or be destroyed by burning and the elements will melt with intense heat.

But according to his promise, we are looking for new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwells. Alright, there you go. There's three passages. Matthew five, Matthew twenty-four, and second Peter chapter three.

Uh speak about this event, heaven and earth being destroyed, heaven and earth passing away, and it we're looking for according to Matthew, Jesus, and Matthew, um and and in second Peter, at least to them, right?

It's a future event. Now, the question is, is it a future event for us? Or is it a past event? You'll say, wait a second. How can it be? How can you even say it? It might be a past event. If by plain reading of the text says, heaven and earth will pass away.

We'll be burned up with intense heat. It actually says, the elements will melt with intensity. Um so, how can you even think that it may be a past event? There's no possible way that you could you could get that.

Here's where we get into knowing how to interpret the text. And let me share this with you. Let's say, let's say 2 ,000, 3 ,000, 4 ,000 years from now. Um a journal that someone wrote from you know, nineteen, from you know, this century.

From the from the 1900s, the the mid to late 1900s. And they they read in their journal, they're reading about vacations that they took. And uh uh one of the places that that this this person with their family visited, one place that they visited was called the White House.

Now, if I was to ask you, do you understand what they're talking about? Do you know where the White House is? You would say, yeah. Um you know, that's that's a no brainer. We, it's in Washington DC. I could point to it on the map.

I know who lives there. I know what's going on. I know what you're talking about when you say the White House. And then, they continue to read in their journal and they also visited, they were able to visit that day, the the Pentagon.

If I ask you, do you know what the Pentagon is? Yeah, I know what the Pentagon is. You know, it's it's a building there in Washington DC and um you know, a lot of military leaders work there. Um so, yeah, I know where it is but you've got this individual two thousand, three thousand, four thousand years later.

They're reading a journal from from our time period and and they read about a White House. They read about a Pentagon and they're like, what, you know, what's so important about someone visiting a a White House?

Um there there must have been millions or billions of White Houses. What's so, what's so important about a White House? How how are we supposed to know which White House they visited or they visited a Pentagon?

They they visited a shape for people who who are gonna be living two thousand, three thousand, four thousand years later. For them to understand the context of that journal, they've got to know the context in which we were living and understand what to us the White House means, what to us what the Pentagon means.

Isn't that right? So, we have to do the same when it same thing when it comes to scripture. We have to look back, learn the geography, learn the history, learn the language, and understand the context of who they were and what they knew, the language that they used, um what was familiar to them so that we can understand their language and how they talk, how they spoke with one another, what they meant when they said certain things so that we don't apply our what how we understand certain phrases, how we understand certain things.

We can't just apply our under our twenty-first century understanding of of words um English words especially when the the original was written in a different language. We can't just apply any understanding that we have to the text.

It's got to start from the other direction. We've got to understand the text from their point of view, from the author's point of view with with geography, with history, with language, and and all that stuff.

And here's another thing that we need to add to that. It's to help us to understand how to interpret these passages, Matthew five seventeen and eighteen, and then Matthew chapter twenty-four verse thirty-five, and then and then in second Peter chapter three.

How do we interpret those things based on looking at the context going back to the um the day and time of the the original authors? There's a way of interpretation that that many um especially pastors or or leaders or teachers.

They they love to emphasize and it's called uh reading and interpreting the Bible literally. How do we understand that? Well, if you take it, if you take the word literally, literally, then, isn't that simple?

Don't we all understand what that means? Whatever the text says, that's what it means and and um if if you grow up in in my context, then, we all believe that. We take the Bible literally. We, whatever it says, that's what it means.

And and here here's the problem though. Even your most staunch literalist, you you come at them with certain passages in scripture. And and you ask them, so you take this literally and they're like, well, you know, obviously that's a that's a symbol um that you know, that's a sign.

That's a symbol. It's supposed to point to something else. So, you know, I'm I don't I don't literally believe that there's going to be, you know, something with ten heads and and ten horns and uh you know, a literal beast that comes out of sea or you know, examples like that.

But I thought you took the Bible literally. I thought you read it, interpreted it literally. And they say I do. Well, you don't take it word for word literally. Like you, like you profess. So, we need to be consistent.

We need to be consistent. When we say that we read the Bible, interpret it literally. And I I do agree that we should understand that we should interpret, that we should read the Bible literally. But we should have a good work understanding of what literally means.

And here is a good definition, a good understanding of what literally means so that we can take the word literal now as a interpretation tool and get the correct meaning out of the text. So, what how should we truly understand the word literal or literally?

A good definition and to give credit where credit's due, I heard this definition from Gary DeMar. He says, the word literally means to, well, it just left me, to to literally understand it according to the literature.

That's it. My apologies. Um to to take the Bible literally and and understand it according to the literature. And and I think I I think I butchered that definition but that's basically the summation of it.

According to the literature. So, if if the literature is symbols and signs, I'm going to read it and understand it literally according to the literature. And and I don't have to I don't have to wrestle and think I'm contradicting myself when I say I read the Bible literally and then come across a verse that's a symbol or a sign and backtrack and try to finagle my way out of something so I don't look like I'm a I'm a both sides of my mouth.

You don't have to do that when you have a a good working definition of literally according to the literature. And so that's what we want to do here. We want to read this literally but we want to read it according to the literature and we want to read it in context according to the the original author's intention and and what they meant, understood, their language that they use back then and I think we will we will see something very important and and it may blow your mind and and you may push back on what I'm trying to say but I but I ask that you just receive it.

Study it. Look into it. See if what I'm saying is true. See if it lines up with scripture and I'm not going against reading, interpreting, learning the Bible literally. Again, we've got to have a good working definition of literally according to the literature and so keep in mind and I'm going to repeat this because I think it's so important.

We're we are going to focus on in verse eighteen where Jesus says, for truly I say to you until heaven and earth pass away. And those who say, well, I read, I take, I understand the Bible literally. So, they are looking for a future event where the actual literal heaven and earth will pass away.

Will be destroyed. Will melt. That's what they're looking for because they take the Bible literally. The best definition of literally is according to the literature. According to the context. So, what does that mean?

If if it doesn't mean if we are not to be looking for a future event where God is going to destroy the heavens and melt the earth and then start over afresh, what does it mean? What does Jesus mean here?

What does Peter mean when it says heaven and earth? Here's the context. Here's what the original readers, the original audience, the original hearers of the sermon, this is what they would have heard and understood when this language was used.

When they heard the term heaven and earth, which is found here, Matthew chapter five, Matthew chapter twenty-four, and and second Peter chapter three. When they would have heard this this term, what they would have envisioned, the picture that they had in their mind was of the temple.

It was of the temple. Because that is where from their point of view, heaven and earth met. God represented heaven and that was with his dwelling place. That's what tabernacle means, dwelling place. He he tabernacled, he dwelled there in the holy of holies and then the people represented the earth.

And so you have the all the different courts there at the temple. And that's where the place, that's the place where heaven and earth came together. That's the place where it met, where God met with his people.

And so when Jesus says, for truly I say to you until heaven and earth, what? The temple pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the law until all is accomplished. And let's look at second Peter chapter three again.

For the day of the Lord will come like a thief in which heaven will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all of these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people are you to be in holy conduct and godliness?

Looking for the heavens to be destroyed and the elements to be to melt with intense heat. And listen to verse thirteen. But according to his promise, we are looking for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

And Dan and I in in several of our videos, we we cover that. The new heavens and the new earth and new Jerusalem. What is that? Who is that? Because those who are staunch, um hardcore literalist, who they hold fast to their definition.

I wanna I wanna term it like this. They hold fast to their definition of literal. Not not the good definition of literal. Not the consistent definition of literal according to the literature. Because their definition of literal is not consistent.

You know and I'm just speaking the truth in love. Because if you if you ask them about verses that are symbols and signs, they would have to say, well, no, that's not literal. That's a similar sign. So, your definition of literal is not consistent.

This definition is consistent according to the literature and according to the literature, according to the context, heavens and earth represent according to the original audience, the temple. That's what they would have understood as they read or heard this being preached or spoken.

And Peter is saying, there's there's a promise of and we are looking for a new heavens and a new earth. And in the videos in the past where Dan and I were discussing this issue, it's not a new heaven as in geographical location and a new earth, a geographical location.

If if the place where heaven and earth meet is the temple, there's gonna be a new new heaven, new earth, new Jerusalem, a new temple. What does the Bible say about us in relationship to the temple? We are the temple of God.

We individually and corporately. We are we are being built up as living stones. We are the temple. We are the new Jerusalem. We are the new heavens and the new earth. That's the promise fulfilled and what God has has done.

I know to our ears who who have grown up in believing and and hearing only one viewpoint is it's very difficult. It's very difficult to to have your interpretation, your viewpoint challenge. Not only uh it probably comes it comes across offensive to us because a part of it's pride, right?

Because who are you to say that I'm wrong? Are you saying that I'm wrong? And we don't like to be told that we're wrong. And then another issue that we have is we had to hear it from somewhere, right?

And we usually heard it from a pastor that we respect and appreciate and we listen to a lot. And so, if we heard it from him, um that there's no way that that he would have led me astray or taught me wrong.

So, you you can't be right with that interpretation. We we must wrestle with those thoughts. With those issues. Um and and come to the understanding and come to the place in our lives where we where we lay down our pride and we say I can be told that I'm wrong.

And we come to the place where we say even our most well-respected pastor and preacher is just a man. And he could be wrong. And and I know that there's um there's a wrench in our on our wheel and it causes us to stumble because um why would we want to listen to someone that that it could be wrong and may lead us astray?

We can do it all day long. If they're if they're good on the essentials as we talked about earlier. If if they hold to the central doctrines of Christianity, you can continue to listen to to your favorite pastors.

Because you know what? Our hope is not in ourselves. Our hope is not in our pastors. The our hope is in Jesus Christ and our hope is in his word and our hope is in the Holy Spirit to be growing us in sanctification in his word.

So that's where our hope is. And if we get it wrong, if our if our pastor or our favorite preacher, if they get it wrong, it's not the end of the world because that's not that's not where our hope is.

Our hope is in Jesus. So we can continue to to listen to them. Even if we disagree with them sometimes, we can continue to listen to them and learn from them as we all grow together at a different pace learning from our Lord Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit what he would have us to know.

So the heavens and the earth passed away. It was destroyed in 70 AD. That's that's how I'm I'm viewing the scripture right now, which I I see as the most consistent view. And so if you have any questions about anything that I said tonight, I'd love to interact with you.

If you have any questions about the questions for the the pastors panel podcast, we'd love to try to answer your questions. We we are here for you. We want to fellowship with you and and help you in your walk with Christ.

We want to bring our communities together as as Jesus is growing his kingdom. We want to be we we want him to be using us in in those efforts. And so we we are for unity. We are for standing on doctrine and we are for sharpening one another as we discuss our our differences and disagreements in love.

Repentance, Faith in Christ, and the Gospel Call

And so one last thing that that I wanted to say. If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, if you do not know him as king, you're not submitting to him as king. Please turn to him today.

We've we've all lied. We've all stolen. We we've we've broken every single commandment. James chapter two verse ten says, if you've kept the whole law and yet stumbled at one point, you're guilty of it all.

So there's no getting around it. We we can't be good enough. We can't make up for the wrong that we've done and we can't we can't suffer enough to to to pay for the penalty of the the crimes against our holy God.

We're we're just hopeless and helpless except for the fact that God came down. The the painter became part of the painting. The builder became part of the building so that he could save it. He came down and become a man so that he could rescue his children and what we must do according to the Bible is repent of our sins and put our faith and trust in him.

Put our faith and trust in the work, the life and work of Jesus Christ. He will forgive us of our sins and he will he will take our sins on himself, which he did on the cross, but he he'll take them and and take responsibility for them and then he will give us impute into us his righteousness, the the life of holiness that he earned with his life.

He'll give it to us. He'll credit it to our account so that when the father sees us, he will see the savior and we can be right with him because of what Jesus did. No other way, no other means except through Jesus Christ.

So thank you for watching. I really appreciate it. Remember that Jesus is king. Go live in that victory. Go speak with the authority of Christ and go share the gospel of Jesus Christ. I hope you have a good evening and we hope to see you soon.