Chapter Eleven: Stealth Bombers

In many countries Christianity is forbidden, there are many Christians banished, persecuted, and even put to death for their faith. Here in America this is not the case. In America we have laws such as the First Amendment to the Constitution that protects the rights of those want to practice freedom of Religion, still we are witnessing an ever growing spirit of hostility towards Christians, despite the laws that are designed to protect.

With the increase of evil and a absolute vengeance towards the things of Christ, there are groups that have decided to hinder, slow down, prevent, and take away the God given commands such as found in Mark 16- The Great Commission. So how can the Christian fulfill this commission in an ever-increasing hostile world? 

St. Francis of Assisi is attributed with this saying: “Preach the Gospel and if you must use words.” He has given a great clue in how we can do the work of God despite adversaries. Years ago I worked as a Corrections Officer in a State Prison and I found I was having a hard time being a Christian, because I wasn’t permitted to freely speak the words of God, in fact I was sometimes being accused of proselytizing which was not allowed. So I began to pray to God asking what I should do?

Quickly the Lord instructed me, saying, take a piece of paper and write John 3:16 on it and tape it to your desk and then continue to do your work. Not long after I had done as he instructed, inmates began to approach my desk asking questions about the Bible. This activity allowed me the opportunity to witness and prevented any further accusations because I was not approaching them, Instead, they began asking me.

If someone was to ask what is 2+2 and you told them the answer to their question this was helping someone, in the same way if someone was to ask what is John 3:16 and you told them, you was helping them and not pushing something on them that they didn’t want. Our God is all knowing! In this chapter we will be learning how to become a stealth bomber in this battle to win souls. 

Read John 7:1-10 Jesus’ Brother's Disbelieve

1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.

2 Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.

3 His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.

4 For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.”

5 For even His brothers did not believe in Him.

6 Then Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.

7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil. 

8 You go up to this feast. I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come.”

9 When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.

10 But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.

What questions do you have after reading this? __________________________________________________________________________________ Answer the following questions: What event was happening at this time? __________________________________________________________________________________ What was his brothers asking Jesus to do? __________________________________________________________________________________ Why did they say he should do them? __________________________________________________________________________________ Did Jesus do things the way they thought he should? __________________________________________________________________________________ 253 Did Jesus go with them to the feast or did he wait and go alone in secret? __________________________________________________________________________________ Why did he go in secret? __________________________________________________________________________________ Read John 11:1-50 The Death of Lazarus 1 Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.

2 It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. 

3 Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom you love is sick.”

4 When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.

6 So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.

7 Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”

8 The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?”

9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.

10 But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”

11 These things He said, and after that He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.”

12 Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.”

13 However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep.

14 Then Jesus said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead.

15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him.”

16 Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.” I Am the Resurrection and the Life!

17 So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days.

18 Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away.

19 And many of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.

20 Now Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met Him, but Mary was sitting in the house.

21 Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. 

22 But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.”

23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

24 Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.

26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

27 She said to Him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” Jesus and Death, the Last Enemy

28 And when she had said these things, she went her way and secretly called Mary her sister, saying, “The Teacher has come and is calling for you.”

29 As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly and came to Him.

30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the town, but was in the place where Martha met Him. 

31 Then the Jews who were with her in the house, and comforting her, when they saw that Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, “She is going to the tomb to weep there.”

32 Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33 Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He groaned in the spirit and was troubled.

34 And He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.”

35 Jesus wept.

36 Then the Jews said, “See how He loved him!”

37 And some of them said, “Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, also have kept this man from dying?” Lazarus Raised from the Dead

38 Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.

39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.”

40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”

41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.

42 And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”

43 Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!”

44 And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with grave clothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”  The Plot to Kill Jesus

45 Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him.

46 But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did.

47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs.

48 If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.”

49 And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all,

50 nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish.”

What questions do you have after reading this? _________________________________________________________________________________ Answer the following questions: Why did Jesus wait two days before going to Judea? __________________________________________________________________________________ 260 In your opinion why did many Jews come to Martha and Mary? __________________________________________________________________________________ When Mary heard that Jesus was coming what did she do? __________________________________________________________________________________ Did Mary tell Martha openly in front of the Jews that Jesus was there? __________________________________________________________________________________ Why do you think they kept it a secret? __________________________________________________________________________________ What happened after the Jews saw the miracle? __________________________________________________________________________________ Was there a chance that if they knew Jesus was there before the miracle happened they might have tried to stop it? __________________________________________________________________________________ What does that teach us? __________________________________________________________________________________ 

"Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers unto his harvest." Luke 10:2

Necessity over-rides man traditional rules. Rules such as ordination that would indicate man's permission or permission from levitical laws. There has been times where necessity has out-weighed these rules. Count yourself commissioned this day! There is a higher law and higher one in charge and his name is Jesus. His law is love and mercy.

We see this several times in the Bible where traditional rules have been over-ruled by God's needs and his law of love and mercy, for example in 1Samuel 21:4, "And the Priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; and if the young men have kept themselves at least from women."

Hallowed Bread or shewbread was the symbol of twelve tribes of Israel and their consecration unto the Lord, it was tradition and only the Priest were to eat of this bread! That was the rule! David was hungry though! He was on the run from King Saul, but on a mission from a Higher King! 

God our High King, and he has different rules, his rules are of course the Ten Commandments, but of those Ten there are Two that Jesus refers to as the summary of all rules. They are, Love God with all of your heart and love thy neighbor as thyself. Jesus reminds us of his thoughts about these rules in Mathew 12:3,4 and how they out-weigh all other rules that man creates.

In these times the necessity for love and mercy over-rules all of the rules that religion and tradition has created. "But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was hungry, and they that were with him; How he entered into the House of God, and did eat the Shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the Priests?" Mathew 12:3,4

The necessity for love and mercy out-weighs the traditions of having man's permission to serve. the harvest is ripe, but the laborers are few!

Read John 9:14-29 14 Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. 

15 Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.”

16 Therefore some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.

17 They said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight.

19 And they asked them, saying, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?”

20 His parents answered them and said, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;

21 but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself.”

22 His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. 

23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

24 So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, “Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner.”

25 He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”

26 Then they said to him again, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?”

27 He answered them, “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”

28 Then they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples.

29 We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.”

What questions do you have after reading this? __________________________________________________________________________________ Answer the following questions: What is this story about? __________________________________________________________________________________ 265 Why couldn’t the disciples heal the boy? __________________________________________________________________________________ After Jesus healed the Boy did he focus on the Disciples inability and announce it to everyone? __________________________________________________________________________________ Why did the Disciples go to Jesus in secret to ask why they could not cast the demon out? __________________________________________________________________________________ What do you think the reaction of the crowd might have been if they knew the disciples tried but could not? __________________________________________________________________________________

Read Proverbs 4:1-11 Security in Wisdom 

1 Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding;

2 For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law.

3 When I was my father’s son, Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,

4 He also taught me, and said to me: “ Let your heart retain my words; Keep my commands, and live.

5 Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.

6 Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you.

7 Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.

8 Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will bring you honor, when you embrace her.

9 She will place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to you.” 

10 Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, And the years of your life will be many.

11 I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths.

What questions do you have after reading this? __________________________________________________________________________________ Answer the following questions: What is the principle thing that is taught here? __________________________________________________________________________________ What will getting wisdom and understanding do? __________________________________________________________________________________ Whose sayings are being talked about here? __________________________________________________________________________________

Read Proverbs 25:6-15 6 Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the place of the great; 

7 For it is better that he say to you, “ Come up here,” Than that you should be put lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen.

8 Do not go hastily to court; For what will you do in the end, When your neighbor has put you to shame?

9 Debate your case with your neighbor, And do not disclose the secret to another;

10 Lest he who hears it expose your shame, And your reputation be ruined.

11 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold In settings of silver.

12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold Is a wise rebuker to an obedient ear.

13 Like the cold of snow in time of harvest Is a faithful messenger to those who send him, For he refreshes the soul of his masters.

14 Whoever falsely boasts of giving Is like clouds and wind without rain.

15 By long forbearance a ruler is persuaded, And a gentle tongue breaks a bone.

What questions do you have after reading this? _________________________________________________________________________________ 269 Answer the following questions: Why shouldn’t you exalt yourself in the presence of the king? __________________________________________________________________________________ Should you be quick to debate those that oppose what you believe? __________________________________________________________________________________ The right word at the right times is like? __________________________________________________________________________________ Is a soft-spoken word weak? Why? __________________________________________________________________________________

In your own words write a paragraph explaining why it is important to be wise when preaching the good news.

Tell someone today that they are loved! 

NOW ABIDETH THESE THREE - WEEK TWELVE