Friday, June 28, 2019

Maximum Performance According To His Law!!

1 John 5

We are walking in today:  Maximum Performance According To His Law!!

Witness refuse throughout the Bible:  H3988 ma'ac--to reject, despise, refuse, abhor, cast away, contemn, disdain, become loathesome, melt away, reject

 Psalm 118:22 The stone which the builders refused H3988 is become the head stone of the corner.

The Torah testifies...............
******

The prophets proclaim..................
 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused H3988 him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh
on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

The writings bear witness...........................
 Proverbs 15:32 He that refuseth instruction despiseth H3988 his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding.

Ezekiel 5:6 And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused H3988 my judgments
and my statutes, they have not walked in them.

Read the Fine Print

Nothing can function at its maximum performance if it violates The Most High’s laws or the laws laid down by the manufacturer. These laws set the boundaries or limitations within which all things must operate.

There is no recourse. The pre-established consequences always follow the failure to fulfill the law’s obligations.

If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Books and television shows may tell us that we are free to sleep around, but they don’t caution us about the guilt and the misery that come from such actions. Pro-choice groups may persuade us that we are free to abort our babies, but they do not warn us of the severe depression and never-ending sense of loss that plague many women following an abortion. Cigarette ads may portray healthy, laughing men and women puffing away on the particular brand that tastes best and gives the most satisfying high, but they do not show the hospital rooms, cancer treatment centers, and doctors’ offices filled with smokers suffering from lung cancer and emphysema. Too often we resist obeying rules and living within a given set of laws, stipulations, and regulations because we see them as having a negative rather than a positive impact on our lives. The Scriptures are clear that The Most High’s laws are good. They are given for our benefit.

This is love for The Most High: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome... (1 John 5:3).

If you fully obey the Lord your The Most High and carefully follow all His commands I give you today, the Lord your The Most High will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessing will come upon you if you obey the Lord your The Most High (Deuteronomy 28:1-2).

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path (Psalm 119:105).

Every commandment of negative orientation can be restated in a positive manner. “You shalt not misuse the name of the Lord your The Most High” (Exodus 20:7a) could be rephrased, “Worship only Me.” “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15) might be reworded, “Leave other people’s possessions alone.” “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor” (Exodus 20:16) could be, “Tell the truth.”

Unfortunately, mankind has difficulty obeying The Most High’s commandments. Therefore, The Most High sets forth His commandments as prohibitions that set boundaries within which we must operate. He relates to us at the point of our sin and endeavors to move us beyond our failure and disobedience by giving us very specific guidelines and directions. Because Cain had already killed Abel, for example, The Most High said, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13) instead of “Honor and safeguard your neighbor’s life.” This same phenomenon is evident in the disciplining of a child.

Although the parent may tell the newly-mobile child “You may play only with your toys,” she inevitably must add “Do not touch the stereo, the television, the magazines on the coffee table, etc.” Do not touch...do not touch...do not touch. It is these negative statements that clearly define the child’s boundaries and help him learn what is acceptable behavior and what is not.

So it is in your relationship with The Most High. Through thou shalt nots The Most High delineates the limits within which you can live a healthy, happy, productive life. They are His means of helping you. He does not intend to unnecessarily harm, restrict, or bind you. The Most High created you to fulfill your potential, but you must accept the principles and laws that govern it. That’s the bottom line.

Misconception of Law

The limitless ability The Most High has given us to do all we can think, to accomplish all we can imagine, to fulfill every aspiration we entertain cannot survive unless we obey The Most High’s laws and live within His limitations. To encourage an accepting attitude toward The Most High’s laws and commandments, let us examine some of the misconceptions that surround the concept of law. Our potential cannot survive unless we obey The Most High’s laws and live within His limitations.

Misconception—Laws Restrict Us
All parents have heard the complaint, “You just don’t want me to have any fun,” when they put a restriction upon their children’s activities. Whether it is a curfew, a rule about calling home, or a standard that requires the child to avoid being at a friend’s home if the friend’s parents are not there, the child sees the rules and requirements as the parents’ desire to withhold from him the enjoyable things of youth.

Very often we transfer this same attitude into our relationship with The Most High. We see The Most High’s thou shalt nots as His means of taking the fun out of life. Then His laws appear to be restrictive instruments that limit our freedom to do what we want, when we want, where we want, with whom we want.

Misconception—Laws Inhibit Us
The misconception that law inhibits or restrains us also distorts our understanding of the purpose of law. This perception is readily evident in the attitude of the employee who feels that the obligation to punch a time clock cramps her preferred style of arriving at work five or ten minutes after the designated starting time and making up that time at the end of the day. Or perhaps a young couple believes that an apartment house’s rule to rent only to married couples inhibits their freedom to live together. Or, yet again, a club that makes much of its income from a daily happy hour may consider an ordinance that holds establishments responsible for accidents involving their patrons unnecessarily prohibitive.

Misconception—Laws Bind Us
Some laws appear to bind us and we, therefore, find them to be irritating. Traffic laws are good examples of these laws. One day as I rode in the car with my son, says Dr. Munroe, I tried to beat a yellow light because I was a little late. As the light changed, my son said, “Daddy, the light is changing.” Just as I pressed the accelerator to make the

light, he spoke again, “Daddy, you’ve got to stop,” and then “Thou goest too fast, O Dad.” Because I had taught him to stop at red lights, I slammed on the brakes and we came to a halt with a terrible screech. The law concerning red lights was particularly binding to me that day.

Misconception—Laws Rob Us
The belief that laws prevent us from receiving the best things of life is also a false understanding of the nature of law. This perception often occurs when something we want defies a given law, but we want it anyway. A young girl, a citizen of the kingdom who wants to marry a nice-looking, well-behaved guy who isn’t saved thinks The Most High is unfair when He says not to be yoked with unbelievers (see 2 Cor. 6:14). A young businessman perceives himself to have been robbed when his partner is unwilling to use dishonestly obtained information to make a killing on the stock market. A single mother struggles between giving her tithe to The Most High and spending the money on a much-deserved weekend away from the kids.

All these misconceptions convince us that laws and regulations are encumbrances and burdens that prevent us from enjoying life to the fullest. In truth, laws are provided for our benefit.

The Benefits of Law
If, then, laws are given to help us and to make life more enjoyable, how do they accomplish their purpose? What reliable benefits do they offer?

Benefit—Laws Protect
The child who lives with no rules and restrictions is much more likely to get hurt or to end up in trouble than the child who lives within a structure of parental guidance. Because he has no boundaries or guidelines against which he can judge his actions, he may make decisions that jeopardize his safety and well-being. The rule “no playing on the kitchen floor when Mom is making dinner,” for example, protects a young child from being scalded. If he is not taught this rule, the child may not even know that he is in danger.

Likewise, the restriction “no swimming alone” protects against drowning. In a similar manner, traffic signs such as stop, yield, slow, and detour have all been established not to restrict, but to protect us and others. Laws protect us. They alert us to possible danger. Laws alert us to possible danger.

Benefit—Laws Assist
Laws also give us assistance. Can you imagine the confusion if everyone addressed their letters however they wished? Some people might put the address of the sender in the upper left corner, but others might put the address of the recipient there. Or one community might have the tradition of putting the stamp on the back of the envelope, while every other community places it on the front. Postal regulations aid the efficient handling of mail so letters go to the sender’s intended recipient. Instead of restraining us, laws provide assistance so we can accomplish what we intend.

Benefit—Laws Allow for Full Expression
Laws also allow us to express ourselves completely within the context of community. Consider what would happen if you bought a house in a nice neighborhood to raise your children in a safe, non-violent environment only to have your neighbor open an adults-only bookstore. The traffic on your formerly quiet street now quadruples and your children are exposed to unhealthy materials as people come from the shop leafing through pornographic literature.

One night a patron is shot in front of your house by his wife, who is enraged by his attitudes and his actions toward her after he has been looking at his girlie magazines. Suddenly, your nice neighborhood is no longer safe. Civil laws help to control what is and is not permitted within a community so that all may enjoy the environment they desire.

Although these laws may irritate us because they compel us to act in a certain manner, they permit us to enjoy personal preferences within our personal space. Consider, for example, the following situation. A resident in an apartment complex enjoys listening to classical music, but the young man in the next apartment blares his rock music so loud that it rocks his neighbor’s walls and drowns out her music.

If you are the young man who prefers loud rock music, the rules of the apartment complex that control noise appear to be restrictive and binding. For the person in the neighboring apartment, however, the regulations permit her to enjoy her own taste in music. Laws allow each person to enjoy his individual preferences so long as he does not infringe on the freedom of others to do the same.

Benefit—Laws Maximize Potential
Laws help us to do and be our best. The very laws that restrict negative behavior also encourage and uphold positive attitudes and actions. The classroom rule, for example, that makes the entire class responsible for monitoring cheating and gives a failing grade to any-

one who copies from another student’s paper also encourages excellence because it exerts peer pressure for honesty and guarantees that each person will be graded by his or her own efforts. Thus, the law both sets consequences for negative behavior and rewards those who work hard and do their best. The very laws that restrict negative behavior also encourage and uphold positive attitudes and actions.

The Bible clearly shows that laws do not restrict positive thoughts and behavior:
...live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you...that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of The Most High. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:16-23).

Since the violation of law destroys potential, and obedience to law fulfills potential, law encourages the releasing and the maximizing of potential. Law encourages the releasing and the maximizing of potential.

Benefit–Law Secures Purpose and Function

Finally, law allows us to function within The Most High’s general design for human life, and the plans and purposes He sets for our individual lives.

The blessing of the Most High brings wealth, and He adds no trouble to it (Proverbs 10:22). Achieving purpose with The Most High’s blessing never brings sorrow.

Those, however, who try to fulfill their potential outside His purposes often experience multiplied sorrow. A businessman, for example, who builds his business without The Most High’s guidance and direction may attain the same wealth as a man who submitted his dreams and plans to The Most High’s will, but his position outside The Most High’s plan does not provide the freedom from worry that the other businessman enjoys. Those who must rely only on themselves to protect their gain often become ill from worrying. There is no joy in that kind of wealth. When the Most High blesses a person with prosperity, He both protects what He has given and He serves as a resource to the recipient. Man needs spiritual resources as surely as he needs physical and material assets.

Your Potential Needs the Benefit of The Most High’s Law

Potential without law is dangerous. Even as breaker switches cut off electricity when an electrical appliance malfunctions and a free flow of electricity is possible, so The Most High shuts us down when we operate outside His laws. This is His safeguard to keep us from self-destructing.
Potential without law is dangerous.

Many people throughout history have harmed themselves and others because they tried to fulfill their potential outside The Most High’s specifications. Adolf Hitler, for example, was a gifted leader. Using his leadership skills, he came up through the ranks of government until he was legally elected the chancellor of Germany. Once he achieved that position, something went wrong. He violated the rules of leadership.

Power is always given to work through the vehicle of servanthood. When we are in a position of authority, we have the responsibility to serve those under us. Hitler violated that law and made himself a dictator. Instead of using his power to serve and bless the country he ruled, he placed himself above the law and forced people to do his bidding.

Hitler also broke the laws of human dignity and equality because he created and enforced policies that treated all people who were not of Aryan descent, with blond hair and blue eyes, as subhumans and half-humans who were created to serve the perfect race. Many Jews and other non-Aryan peoples were victims of Hitler’s beliefs and policies. Eventually he brought death to himself and those who shared his convictions.

Potential is always given to bless, never to harm. If your potential is hurting someone or something, you’d better look carefully at your attitudes and actions. You are probably using your gifts and talents outside their The Most High-given specifications.

Potential Dies When Laws Are Broken
The experience of Hitler and many other people confirms that the violation of the boundaries that delimit potential sets off serious consequences and exposes the violator to potential-threatening circumstances. This is true because violating the specifications set forth by The Most High for the use of potential removes protection, hinders fulfillment, and interrupts performance.

Let’s say, for example, that you are a young executive in a local bank. You have worked for the bank for five years, developing a good working knowledge of the banking industry and building a solid reputation for honesty and integrity. Your goal is to become the manager of the main branch.

Your spouse constantly complains that you don’t earn enough until one day, in desperation, you take $2,000 from the bank safe and give it to your spouse. Several things happen when you do this.

First, you lose the protection of your good reputation. Until now, people have trusted not only your integrity but also the soundness of your decisions. Second, you forfeit the opportunity to rise to the position of branch manager. Third, you interrupt your career because not only the bank you worked for but other employers as well cannot trust you. This one act of disregarding the commandment “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15) destroys your potential to become a competent, respected banker.

Yeshua came to recover the spirit of The Most High’s laws so we can recognize them as the blessings they are, and to show us the power that belongs to those who live within their The Most High-given specifications.

Only by the power of the Holy Spirit can we live within The Most High’s laws of limitation and, thereby, maximize our potential. Laws and limitations established by a manufacturer for a product are always given to protect and maximize the product’s potential and performance, not to restrict it.

Flipping a switch is a helpful way to use electricity. Sticking your finger in a socket is not. Even as you cannot live if you ignore the precautions that govern the safe use of electricity, so you cannot experience the full, abundant life Yeshua promises if you disregard the specifications that limit the use of your potential. You must abide by The Most High’s specifications to enjoy the totality of who you are. His laws and commandments are the security that guarantees you will receive all He planned and purposed for your life.

A man without The Most High is potential without purpose.
A man without The Most High is power without conduction.
A man without The Most High is life without living.
A man without The Most High is ability without responsibility.
That’s a dangerous man. That’s a live wire.


Principles

1. Freedom always has a price. What frees one person may enslave another.
2. Lawlessness defies the standards that govern society. It shows no responsibility toward anyone or anything.
3. Lawlessness results in the loss of existing freedoms, in slavery, and in death.
4. Laws set norms or standards and govern or regulate behavior.
5. Commandments express the will of an authority relative to a law.
6. Demands specify behavior in a specific situation based on previously defined laws and commandments.
7. Violating laws and commandments aborts potential and brings inevitable consequences.
8. Laws and commandments benefit us and have a positive impact on our lives.
Shema selah the laws of the Most High is our guard rail, our boundary of protection that we would be able to maximize our potential!!!

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