Paul Apostle to the Gentiles Least in the Kingdom?
Matthew 5:18-19 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. (19) Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Part One – Jesus’ Relationships In order to get a sense of the true ministry of Paul, we must first examine the focus of Paul’s ministry: Jesus. We will start by examining the relationships of Jesus.
Jesus’ Relationship to the Father:
John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
John 7:16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
John 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
John 12:49-50 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. (50) And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.
John 10:37-38 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. (38) But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
Jesus’ Relationship to the Religious Leaders of the Day:
John 7:19 Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?
Luke 11:46 And he said, 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.
Luke 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.
Matthew 23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Read all of Matthew 23:1-39 to understand the Savior’s disdain for the hypocritical leaders, the Pharisees.
John 3:10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
Matthew 22:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.
Jesus’ Relationship to the Laws of God, given to Moses, the Writings and the Prophets:
John 10:35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Matthew 5:17-19 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. (18) For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. (19) Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
John 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.
Matthew 19:1 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
Mark 12:29-31 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: (30) And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. (31) And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. From these words of our Savior, I am forced to come to these conclusions:
1.Relationship to the Father a.Jesus is not teaching his own doctrine, he is only teaching what the Father has allowed him to speak. b.The words of Jesus are magnifications of the Father’s laws –all of them, not just the famous Ten Commandments. i.In fact, the commandment Jesus named as the “greatest commandment” is a direct quotation from Deuteronomy 6:4-5. Even today, this passage is known as the Shema, the watchword of the Jewish faith. It is the first thing the observant Jew recites when he wakes, the last thing he says when he goes to bed, and is even the last thing on his lips before death. There are accounts of the Nazis hearing desperate cries of the Shema from the gas chambers before the deadly silence during the Holocaust. c.Jesus is not teaching something new, he is reiterating God’s laws that are eternally true.
2.Relationship to the Religious Leaders of the Day: a.The lawyers, Pharisees, masters, and scribes may have had head knowledge of the laws of God, but not heart knowledge. b.They were not teaching the laws of God, they were teaching something else. i.The added laws of man (covered in Part Seven).
3.Jesus’ Relationship to the Laws of God, given to Moses, the Writings and the Prophets: a.The Scripture cannot be broken. i.Heaven and earth are still here, therefore, so is the law. b.Keeping the commandments is the way that our love of Jesus and the Father is manifested. c.Keeping the commandments is how we “abide” in Jesus’ love. i.According to Webster’s, the word “abide” means, “to remain stable or fixed in a state.” d.According to Matthew 5:19, keeping and teaching the commandments has a direct correlation to rewards within the Kingdom of Heaven. i.Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: ii. but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. e.Teachers are NOT to teach against the commandments (the entire law, not just the Ten Commandments). i.How can the law of the Father be “done away with” if Jesus’ doctrine is not his, but the Fathers, and the Father doesn’t change? ii. Nowhere in Scripture was it prophesied that the instructions of God, the law, would be nullified.
1.They are prophesied to continue forever. a.Psalms 111:9 He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name.
Examining Jesus’ relationships portrays him in a very different light than is commonly taught, but consider the following:
1. God’s Word is true - John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
2. God never changes - Malachi 3:6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
3. God’s Word cannot contradict itself - 1 Corinthians 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
