Mathew 10:28
Sue asked me to comment on Mathew 10:28, so here goes:
Matt 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
The verse above was written within the context of a chapter that clearly had to do with the coming destruction of the Jewish system.
The verse below is speaking about the apostles and how they would not have gone to all the cities in Israel before the Son of Man (Jesus) would come in judgment on a system of religion that was coming to an end (the destruction of the temple in 70AD). He is clearly talking about the ending of the Jewish system that is also spoken of in Mathew 24 and the book of Revelation.
Matt 10:23 But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.
FIRST: Let me state the obvious about verse 28. WE NEVER HAVE TO FEAR GOD. If you understand PERFECT LOVE why would you think you still need to FEAR GOD?
God loves us, always has, always will, and Jesus came to reveal that love. God’s love for us can be hidden by our own delusion about who we are and that’s exactly what was happening to Israel in the first century.
What Jesus is doing in verse 28 was to warn the Apostles about what they should fear as they spread the good news of the Kingdom of God.
He told them NOT to fear them which could kill the body but not the soul. What did he mean when he said “SOUL”? The word soul in both places within this verse comes from the Greek word “PSUCHEEN”, and means:
the seat of the feelings, desires, affections, aversions (our soul, heart, etc.
Now Jesus goes on to say that they (the apostles) should fear him which can destroy both body and soul in hell. The word “HIM” in that verse can also be translated “THAT”. Since love casts out all fear we know that LOVE does not contain fear and therefore would have no need to be feared. I believe Jesus was telling them not to worry about physical danger but rather worry about losing focus about who they were. He was saying to fear that which can take away their personal faith. That can be any number of things including our own self doubt. Judas is a good example of this, but regardless of what Judas thought about himself God still has the power to redeem him and He did just that at the CROSS.
The interesting thing about this verse for me is that even though Jesus does not rely on our faith for redemption He still cares about how we feel about ourselves and wants us to be aware what might destroy our view of who we realy are (God’s children) during our journey here on earth.
The verse that best contrasts the difference between the soul Jesus was talking about in verse 28 and the reality of our true identity can be found in the following:
1 Cor 15:45 So also it is written, The first man Adam became a living soul. The last Adam (became) a life-giving spirit.
The soul of Adam was the same word Jesus used in both places in Mat 10:28 and the destruction of that soul has nothing to do with our eternal destiny which is to be A LIFE GIVING SPIRIT.
The bottom line is that the church continues to use verses like this to create FEAR. DOES THAT REALLY SEEM RIGHT TO YOU? Did Jesus really want HIS apostles to fear GOD?
As Audrey would tell us: Look deep within yourself and ask "what does that still small voice say to you?"
It says to me "I AM DEEPLY LOVED BY GOD"
PS. The word HELL in verse 28 is "Gehenna" which was a garbage dump just outside of Jerusalem. It has nothing whatsoever to do with our eternal destiny.
Thanks for the post Cliff! If you don’t mind can you please explain this verse in Heb. 13:4 that says …but fornicators and idolators God will judge. It doesn’t make sense especially in light on the previous chapters that talked about Christ being the sacrifice once and for all. Thank you! Hope you had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Kiara, Give me a couple of days and I will make that my next post. Thanks for stopping by.
Scripture can be seen on several different levels. Mostly it is just ink on paper and might as well be double dutch for all the sense it makes to us – until we are personally involved from within and allow the spirit to ‘raise it up’ a level! Then it enlightens us because it has meaning and relevance. Running through each of us and in nature and indeed in everything created including the bible is a dimension that until now has been hidden, but it is ‘up a level’. This level of understanding became hidden when Eve (the soul part of Adam) took the forbidden fruit. She took the fruit because she had wandered off apart from Adam and so was not in contact with the TRUTH.(Adam is a picture of the spirit who never sinned but participated in the eating in order to become the last Adam, and as such took the punishment) So, unprotected and unable to discern truth from error, Eve was deceived. She was deceived by a twisted thought – the serpent (the carnal mind that has in it all the opposites – up/down, in/out, good/evil. That is the ‘him’ spoken of in Math 10.28. Actually ‘he’ has no reality because he has been dealt to, through the cross, because Jesus (the second Adam) died taking with Him, our humanity – the ability from the fruit to think this twisted way. We may think this only happened 2000 years ago but it WAS PROVIDED FOR RIGHT AT THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD WHEN THE TWISTED THOUGHT WAS FIRST BELIEVED or taken hold of – ‘eaten’. The problem is that we havn’t ’seen’ that we are free from this way of thinking and that we have another mind to think with – the mind of Christ. Jesus never had that problem because although he was wrapped in swaddling clothes at birth, he never once wrapped himself in a ‘worldly mind-set’, but constantly looked to the Father for what he would say and do. We have this same ’seed’ or ability, planted within us, but until we turn from that old twisted mind-set and allow the seed to germinate, we give full permission for the carnal mind (the serpent) to rule over us and as a result we live in hell, and gehenna describes this situation very well. It truly is a garbage dump. Thanks Cliff for giving that very graphic description.
Hi Cliff,
Great post. It’s so funny (sad, ironic, etc) that we just read this passage uncritically as a reference to God and the afterlife. You do a great job of offering an alternative. It’s interesting ot me that Jesus could be telling his first century zealous audience that they should lay down the sword. If they continue to fight against Rome, the should be very afraid that the entire city would end up as a burning heap of rubble — which is exactly what happened in the Roman-Jewish war.
Cliff,
Thank you. Because HE first loved us – Sue
Interestingly enough, Gehenna is now a garden. Hrm…that could be a bit of a metaphor, no?
Kevin, I know you have done extensive studies in this area and I really appreciate your input. I would also invite all our readers at BG to check out Kevin’s new book “THIS BOOK will change YOUR WORLD”. You can find out more about it here: http://www.transmillennial.blogspot.com
Shelly, I also think it’s quite interesting that Gehenna (hell) is now a garden and I’m glad about that because a lot of people say I’m going there someday…..ha ha
Audrey……thanks so much for your input, you always make us think.
Cliff…thank you for your acknowledgment, I do appreciate the softness of your heart, your openness to Truth and acceptance of me on your blog. It’s not so much the thinking process that I long for enablement of your readers to engage in, but the ability to see clearly the two realms where thinking takes us. It all depends on THE SOURCE of our thinking. If we think as we have been taught (through copying parents, society, educators) we end up in a world-orientated realm, because we have been thinking from the source that ‘opened up’ when the world was founded ie at the ‘fall’. In short this type of thinking judges, eg good/evil. straight/crooked, pure/contaminated etc (all the opposites). It is twisted, false and is temporal. This is the world that is experienced through our 5 senses, time and space. It knows nothing of the spirit realm and cannot experience it because the spirit cannot be experienced through tasting, smelling hearing, seeing or touching. This type of thinking is useful in our practical everyday chores, but it cannot reveal the Father, nor can it show you the Kingdom realm, because these are spirit. The good news is that we have within us the spirit of Christ and the ability to think in his nature. This ability is accessed through metanoia, turning from our old mind-set we have grown up with to the spirit within and allowing those deeper feelings to rise up into our consciousness Once we become aware of the feeling we can then put it into words, bearing in mind that our first steps in this new realm are similar to a baby taking its first steps. In this realm is TRUTH, all is good, and we touch eternity, all knowledge and the power of the creator. It feels like coming home, and the Father envelopes us in his loving arms.
The brain is designed to take in and send out thoughts. Mankind was created carnal and in the shadow of God. God breathed his life into mankind and therefore lives. The carnal will die and the image of God, his shadow, continues to live. The carnal shadow can be seen when the SUN shines. Gods image, his shadow, can be seen when the SON shines. This carnal part of man lives in a carnal home, the earth. All our senses teach us about this state of being. The part of us that is the shadow of God, his image, teaches us we are more than carnal. The carnal must die(change). We, the image of GOD, the shadow of GOD, the children of GOD. Our Parents breathed their very life into us and gave us their heart of love. Knowledge – wisdom- understanding (discernment)—-Our life as carnal and our life as Gods shadow, their child, is always with US , before, during and after the lessons they give us to learn. This carnal being is in school, learning about our value to our parents. Our GOD parents are always with us but must let us be free to learn how much they love us. ALL of US. Right or wrong, right now, this is my diamond in the sky. Because he first loved us – SUE
ALL:
A very interesting article called “TRUTH – LIKE A DIAMOND IN THE SKY”
and “THE SERPENT, SATAN, LUCIFER, and RED DRAGON – Identity of the
Serpent” and many more articles can be found at;
http://members.cox.net/8thday/serpent.html
http://members.cox.net/8thday/diamond.html
The website is called “EIGHTH DAY ASSEMBLY”
Because he first loved us – Sue
Loved it Sue. Thanks for the great input into our carnal life. I hope to check out the web sites in the next day or two.