Raca was an Aramaic term of contempt meaning stupid. But Jesus was more concerned here with the term Moros – You fool – being thrown around. Moros was actually a more serious reproach than Raca as it conveyed a person being morally worthless… a scorning of the person’s very heart and character. The Lord was warning of the dangers of character assassination…of killing the very spirit of a person with angry words.
Tag: Lord
Jeremiah 32:19 ” O great and powerful God, whose name is the Lord Almighty, great are Your purposes and mighty are Your deeds. Your eyes are open to all the ways of men; You reward everyone according to his conduct and as his deeds deserve.”
Elsewhere in the Old Testament it declares, ” For a man’s ways are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all his paths.” (Proverbs 5:21) We may think we’re being so sly…so cunning…so sneaky, that no one knows about our secret sin…but the Lord does. We may think we’re pulling the wool over everybody’s eyes…but God sees all…hears all…and knows all.
II Peter 1:4 ” Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”
You can be part of this world, but not polluted by it. (James 1:27) God has given you everything you need to live a victorious life here on earth. The Bible is full of His assurances that you can do it…just take a look.
Psalm 35:13 “…and humbled myself with fasting.”
Sometimes when we want the Lord to get serious with us…we need to get serious with Him. A day spent in prayer and fasting not only allows us to focus on the request, but the physical exercise of denying ourselves brings about clarity and direction from God as we humble ourselves before Him.
Psalm 89:1 ” I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make Your faithfulness known through all generations.”
Just praising the Lord is a very effective way of taking our eyes off our own problems and focusing on Him. Our pity party will end when we start thanking Him for His many blessings, known and unknown. Elsewhere in Psalms it says, ” I will sing of Your strength, in the morning I will sing of Your love, for You are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.”
Jeremiah 2:5 ” This is what the Lord says: ‘ What fault did your fathers find in Me? They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves.’ “
We become what’s important to us, ever influenced by what we devote our time and money to. If it’s empty, futile, and meaningless things of the world…we’ll be left wanting and ever searching for more. But if it’s God…our search is over.
Psalm 24: 7-10 ” Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of Glory may come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of Glory may come in. Who is He, this King of Glory? The Lord Almighty – He is the King of Glory.”
He is the mightiest of all Warriors…the all-powerful King…the Ruler over the entire universe, Who stands at the ready to intervene for His people at a moments notice. He is the King of Glory.
Isaiah 61:11 ” For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden cause seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.”
Just as the warming soil causes things to germinate and bud, so the Lord causes His power to be shown before all the earth…His honor and glory on grand display for all to see. For as the mystery of life is unveiled each Spring…God’s goodness and majesty is made evident the world over.
Luke 12: 15 ” Then He said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.’ “
Jesus was warning us to be careful of forsaking God in the pursuit of collecting wealth. We don’t exist for the sake of hoarding riches…and we will never save ourselves by the amount of property we’ve amassed. Our trust can never be in gold and riches. (Psalm 62:10)
Psalm 88: 2-3 ” May my prayer come before You; turn Your ear to my cry. For my soul is full of trouble and my life draws near the grave.”
There comes a time in everyone’s life when anguish, grief and heartache takes over our body. We truly feel that we are approaching death…the pain is that intense. But we can’t allow the pain to overwhelm and consume us…rather, we need to allow the Lord and others to help pull us from the abyss…until the darkness subsides.
Safetypinlove 