PERVERSE
GENERATION
Doing
contrary to what was intended; rebellious, corrupt, twisted, crooked, sick, &
stupid.
First Word
·
When God created the world, there was only “One Will”
in the whole universe; the sovereign Will of God. -
When Satan rebelled there became “Two Wills”; Satan’s and God’s.
·
Satan sought to detach man
from God
and to attach man to himself, thus man receiving “Satan’s Will”. - He was successful in detaching man from
God, but man had his “Own Will” and
would not attach himself to Satan. - Now there are “Billions of Wills” in the world;
that’s why God sent His Son to re-attach us.
·
The war began against God and His greatest
creation; “MAN”, who was created in God’s own image. - There is an Invisible War going on - and it’s over us.
·
Wikipedia says that Perverse
is to do,
what is contrary to what was originally intended; it’s the
urge to do exactly the wrong thing in a given situation for the sole reason
that it is possible for wrong.
·
The Book translates Perverse
as corrupt, rebellious, twisted, crooked, sick, and stupid.
·
There was a multitude of
people
surrounding Jesus which included the Pharisees, the Scribes who were the
lawyers of the Law, plus the inner circle of Disciples that were specifically handpicked
by Him, Predestined to be teachers of the Good News, but they ALL became
distracted and self-centered, focusing on arguing and debating about the miracle
healings, and Who’s
In and Who’s Out and their status and position; there
was little interest in the Spiritual Kingdom of God that exist NOW
nor the one that is to come.
·
Jesus goes to the root of
their problem
and calls them ALL, including the father of the sick child, an unbelieving
and Perverse
Generation. – He is speaking to the general body of followers, of
their slowness of Faith, dullness of comprehension, forgetfulness and hardness
of heart in the light of all His wonderful works, miracles, teachings and
Kingdom principals.
Matthew 22:14 – Disciples handpicked; predestined
to come
14 For many are called (to come by Free Will), but few are chosen (Predestined to come). (NLT)
14 For many are called (to come by Free Will), but few are chosen (Predestined to come). (NLT)
Luke 9:41 – Perverse Generation
41 Then Jesus answered and said, "O FAITHLESS and PERVERSE generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?
41 Then Jesus answered and said, "O FAITHLESS and PERVERSE generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?
(NKJV)
Luke 9:41 – Corrupt Generation
41 You FAITHLESS and CORRUPT people,” Jesus said, “how long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man,
41 You FAITHLESS and CORRUPT people,” Jesus said, “how long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man,
(NLT)
Luke 9:41 – Twisted Generation
41 Jesus answered, “O FAITHLESS and TWISTED generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you?
41 Jesus answered, “O FAITHLESS and TWISTED generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you?
(ESV)
Luke 9:41 – Rebellious Generation
41 Jesus replied, “You UNBELIEVING and REBELLIOUS generation! How long will I be with you and put up with you?
41 Jesus replied, “You UNBELIEVING and REBELLIOUS generation! How long will I be with you and put up with you?
(HCSB)
Man on a
Mission
·
The followers of Jesus thought that His mission
was to heal people’s bodies, exorcise demons, do miraculous signs and wonders
and on a good day give them a HAPPY MEAL.
·
The mission Jesus can be found by observing
His teachings. - He wanted to raise the people consciousness of spiritual
things and cause them to have the desire to love and serve God the Father by
the way they lived their everyday lives; how they treated others.
·
Jesus reads His Mission
Statement
in the Temple as written by the Prophet Isaiah saying; The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me
to bring Good
News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be
released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that
the time of the LORD’s favor has
come.” - He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat
down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. Then he began to speak
to them. “The
Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”
·
What He left out of the Mission Statement was
bringing Judgement on people and their suitability to be a part of the
church. What He included was bringing sight to the
blind religious leader guides to
be able to understand the purposes of God and to just LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
·
Jesus, out of His compassion for the people’s needs,
fed them and healed them. Their physical
needs were addressed first and gotten out of the way, so He could teach them
about the Kingdom of God. – However the perverseness of man caused
them to have very little interest in the spiritual aspects of the Kingdom of
God focusing mostly on an earthly Political kingdom and places of leadership.
Luke 4:43 – Mission
Statement – Preach the Kingdom of God
43 But he replied, “I must PREACH THE GOOD NEWS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD in other towns, too, because that is why I was sent.” (NLT)
43 But he replied, “I must PREACH THE GOOD NEWS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD in other towns, too, because that is why I was sent.” (NLT)
Luke 4:18-21 – Preach Good News, Heal sick,
oppressed freed
18 The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free,
19 and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.”
20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently.
21 Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”
18 The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free,
19 and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.”
20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently.
21 Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”
(NLT)
Luke 2:49 – Mission - I must be about My Father's business
49 And He said to them, "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?"
49 And He said to them, "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?"
(NKJV)
Luke 19:10 – Mission
– To seek and save the lost
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” (NLT)
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” (NLT)
Matthew 9:12-13 – Mission
call those who know they are sinners
12 … “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.”
13 … For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” (NLT)
12 … “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.”
13 … For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” (NLT)
John 10:10 – Mission
– that they have life more abundantly
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
(NKJV)
John 13:34-35 - New Commandment - To Love one
another
34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: LOVE EACH OTHER. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.
35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (NLT)
34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: LOVE EACH OTHER. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.
35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (NLT)
Matthew 6:33 – Seek first the Kingdom of God
33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
(NLT)
John 4:24 – Worship God in Spirit and in Truth
24 For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” (NLT)
24 For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” (NLT)
Luke 10:27 – Love God with all your heart, soul,
strength & mind
27 The man answered, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (NLT)
27 The man answered, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (NLT)
The Story
·
Jesus was teaching to the
crowd
when a man called out to Him to heal his child and said he had already asked
His Disciples to heal him, but THEY COULD NOT. – Bypassing His
Disciples, Jesus instructs the pleading father and his friends to bring the
child to Him.
·
Authority had already been
given
to the Disciples to heal and cast out evil spirits, so what was going on? – You
can see in this story that Jesus is exhibiting the traits of man, He becomes FRUSTRATED with those to whom He is
teaching, especially His chosen twelve.
·
Jesus had become known as
a “healer” and those that gathered
around Him were focused on His healing miracles and had little interest in His
life changing teaching of love for their fellow man and seeking more of God in
their present lives as well as interest in the future Kingdom of
Heaven. – They had perverted His Spiritual Mission to
that of a Physical
Mission.
·
DISTRACTED; Peter saw the transfiguration
of Jesus, Moses and Elijah on the Mountain and wanted to build three shelters
for them, but God said, NO – STOP,
just LISTEN to
my Son. - The ministry of
Jesus was being used for the disciples own self-centered purposes, their position and status.
- They had become so spiritually disoriented and disconnected that they had lost
the power to do the work of God, yet when they saw another person outside
their group that was successfully casting out demons in the name of Jesus, they
wanted to HINDER
HIM instead of rejoicing in the success
of his ministry.
·
Jesus’s comments were not just
for the Disciples,
but for the body of Believers today. The crowd as well as the Disciples were ready
for the miracle
healings without putting in the time
to grow their FAITH
through PRAYER
and LEARNING
the teachings of Christ.
·
We can become so
preoccupied
with the business of our own lives and our own ambitions that we become
ineffective in our ministry to others. – We become so eager to get to the
work that we lose sight of what God’s heart originally intended.
·
A wicked and perverse
generation
is self-centered and distracted and disconnected from the intended message of
God.
Luke 9:38-42 - Disciples
couldn’t cast out the demonic spirit
38 A man in the crowd called out to him, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, my only child.
39 An evil spirit keeps seizing him, making him scream. It throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It batters him and hardly ever leaves him alone.
40 I begged your disciples to cast out the spirit, but they couldn’t do it.
41 You faithless and corrupt people,” Jesus said, “how long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man, “Bring your son here.”
42 As the boy came forward, the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit and healed the boy. Then he gave him back to his father. (NLT)
38 A man in the crowd called out to him, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, my only child.
39 An evil spirit keeps seizing him, making him scream. It throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It batters him and hardly ever leaves him alone.
40 I begged your disciples to cast out the spirit, but they couldn’t do it.
41 You faithless and corrupt people,” Jesus said, “how long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man, “Bring your son here.”
42 As the boy came forward, the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit and healed the boy. Then he gave him back to his father. (NLT)
Matthew 17:19-20 – DISTRACTED – Lack of Faith
19 Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, “Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?”
20 You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” (NLT)
19 Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, “Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?”
20 You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” (NLT)
Mark 9:28-29 – DISTRACTED – Lack of Prayer
28 Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?”
29 Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.” (NLT)
28 Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?”
29 Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.” (NLT)
Matthew 17:2-4 – DISTRACTED – Lets build three
shelters
2 As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed so that his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light.
3 Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus.
4 Peter blurted out, “Lord, it’s wonderful for us to be here! If you want, I’ll make three shelters as memorials—one for YOU, one for MOSES, and one for ELIJAH.”
5 But even as he spoke, a bright cloud came over them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. LISTEN TO HIM.” (NLT)
2 As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed so that his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light.
3 Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus.
4 Peter blurted out, “Lord, it’s wonderful for us to be here! If you want, I’ll make three shelters as memorials—one for YOU, one for MOSES, and one for ELIJAH.”
5 But even as he spoke, a bright cloud came over them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. LISTEN TO HIM.” (NLT)
Mark 9:33-34 – DISTRACTED – Which Disciple will be
the greatest
33 After they arrived at Capernaum and settled in a house, Jesus asked his disciples, “What were you discussing out on the road?”
34 But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest. (NLT)
33 After they arrived at Capernaum and settled in a house, Jesus asked his disciples, “What were you discussing out on the road?”
34 But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest. (NLT)
Matthew 20:21 – DISTRACTED – Places of honor in the
Kingdom
21 What is your request?” he asked. She replied, “In your Kingdom, please let my two sons sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left.” (NLT)
21 What is your request?” he asked. She replied, “In your Kingdom, please let my two sons sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left.” (NLT)
Mark 9:38-39 – DISTRACTED – An outside disciple healing
people
38 John said, “Teacher, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but WE TOLD HIM TO STOP because he wasn’t in our group.”
39 Don’t stop him!” Jesus said. “No one who performs a miracle in my name will soon be able to speak evil of me. (NLT)
38 John said, “Teacher, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but WE TOLD HIM TO STOP because he wasn’t in our group.”
39 Don’t stop him!” Jesus said. “No one who performs a miracle in my name will soon be able to speak evil of me. (NLT)
Now and Not
Yet
·
Two Kingdoms - The Kingdom of God and The Kingdom of Heaven are both spoken of in the Book
and are the same kingdom; however scripture speaks of a Present Kingdom;
where evil is defeated and sinners are redeemed, as well as a Future Kingdom where Satan and death are both defeated and
thrown in the lake of fire and the believer lives and reigns forever in the presence
of God.
·
We must first enter into the Present Kingdom to be able to inherit the Future Kingdom where we will be in the presence of Christ and
reign with Him forever – So, there really is two kingdoms; The NOW and the NOT YET. – NYOBS 12.02 - NOW AND NOT YET
·
TWO KINGDOMS
·
The Present – The kingdom is Present for believers to enter NOW and
enjoy His blessings. (In the Nasty Now and Now)
·
The Future – The kingdom is Future,
when we enter into eternal life and reign with Christ. - (In the Sweet Bye and Bye)
·
The Realm – Where God’s reign is
experienced.
·
The People – The “redeemed” are the
people of the kingdom.
·
The Reign – The reign of Christ with
“believers” sharing in the reign.
·
The believer accepts God’s
reign
in their Present
lives; and reigns with Him in the Future. Blessings in the Present – Even greater blessing
in the Future.
1 Peter 2:9 – We are a chosen people, a royal
Priesthood
9 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession.
9 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession.
As a result, you can show others the goodness of
God, for
He called you
out of the darkness into His wonderful light. (NLT)
Invisible War
·
The boy’s father has come kneeling
down and desperately begging Jesus to have mercy on his only son, to heal him
from Satan’s demons that were making him epileptic; saying that the
Disciples could not banish the demons.
·
This is a spiritual battle, an invisible war in
which the Disciples were powerless to fight off the demonic attacks of Satan. –
Casting out demons requires a sincere Faith combined with Prayer and Fasting;
this is the
practice of Faith.
·
The power to cast our
demons
comes from Jesus Christ and we have access to that power through our commitment
to prayer which deepens our Faith, Belief, Confidence and Trust.
– All humanity is in an Invisible War, where the battle ground is littered with
toil, hardship and pain experienced through the effects of the Evil One. Satan seeks to separate us from our Faith. –
It is Christ that seeks to strengthen our Faith, to make us fruitful and equips
us with every good Gift of the Spirit to fight this battle. – NYOBS 08.12 – GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT; 18 GIFTS -- NYOBS 20.36 –
GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT; TOOLS
·
We do good works NOT
to GET saved, but because we ARE saved. - The believer has the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit and “Good Works” will always follow the believer’
Ephesians 2:8-10 - Saved
by Faith to do good works
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ
Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we
should walk in them. (NIV)
Last Thoughts
·
At this writing the Reverend
Billy Graham
has just passed away at the age of 99 and his Mission Statement was to preach to the world the Gospel message simple
and clear; the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ. - He preached ONE MESSAGE HIS WHOLE LIFE and was
never distracted with position or status. – HE MADE THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS;
·
“The word REPENTANCE is sadly missing
today from the average pulpit. It is a
very unpopular word. The first sermon
Jesus ever preached was ‘Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
·
“What does repentance mean? It means to change—to change your mind, change
the way that you’re living—and to determine that with God’s help you will live
for Christ.”
·
“There are thousands of
people
who have had some form of emotional experience
that they refer to as conversion, but who have never been truly converted to Christ. - Christ demands a change in the way
you live, and if
your life does not conform to your experience, then you have every reason to
doubt your experience!” – NYOBS 38.20 – MAKE
BELIEVER -- NYOBS 16.13 – MAYBE SAVED -- NYOBS 43.02 – BAD SIDE OF THE
GOOD NEWS
·
“I am not going to heaven
because I’ve read the Bible, nor because I’ve preached to a lot of people. I’m going to heaven because of what
Christ did.”
·
“Someday you will read or
hear that Billy Graham is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! I shall be more
alive than I am now. I will
just have changed my address. I will
have gone into the presence of God.”
·
The Book calls for
us to GET SAVED and get out of this Crooked,
Sick, Perverse and Stupid Culture. That each
of us must
repent of our sins, turn to God, and BE BAPTIZED in the name of Jesus
Christ TO SHOW others that we have received forgiveness
for our sins. - Then we will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. - This promise is not only for the Chosen Jews,
but also for the Gentiles, to ALL who have been called by the Lord; to us,
and to our children.
The
choices that you make on this side of life have eternal consequences.
LIFE IS CHOICE DRIVEN
Acts 2:38-39 – Each person must repent of their
own sins
38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins, turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ to show that you have received forgiveness for your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39 This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”
38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins, turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ to show that you have received forgiveness for your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39 This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”
(NLT)
Acts 2:40 - Be saved
from this perverse generation
40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this PERVERSE generation." (NKJV)
40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this PERVERSE generation." (NKJV)
Acts 2:40 - Save
yourselves from this
Crooked Generation
40 Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this CROOKED generation!” (NLT)
40 Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this CROOKED generation!” (NLT)
Acts 2:40 - Get out of
this sick and stupid culture
40 He went on in this vein for a long time, urging them over and over, "Get out while you can; get out of this SICK and STUPID culture!" (MSG)
40 He went on in this vein for a long time, urging them over and over, "Get out while you can; get out of this SICK and STUPID culture!" (MSG)
In the
multitude of counselors,
there is wisdom.
Proverbs 11:14
I am grateful to those that went before me
providing concepts, ideas, historical
information, and scripture verses. Because of them I can stand on their
shoulders
and
see further that I otherwise ever could have.
A Commentary; Critical,
Experimental and Practical - Eerdmans
All the Women of the Bible – Edith
Deen
Antiquity of the Jews – Flavius
Josephus Matthias
Apocrypha – Goodspeed
Baker Commentary on the
Bible – Elwell
Bible Almanac; The – Packer-Tenney-White
Bible Commentary – F.B. Meyer
Bible Dictionary – Harper and Row
Bible Dictionary – Nelson’s
Dake’s Annotated Bible – Dake
English Standard Version
Bible – ESV
Expositor’s Bible
Commentary – Frank E. Gaebelein
Forgotten Books of Eden; The – World
Gospels Interwoven; The – Karmit Zarley
Illustrated Bible
Dictionary; The – Tyndale
Interlinear Greek-English
New Testament – Baker
Invisible War; The - Barnhouse
King James Version Bible –
KJV
Lost Books of the Bible; The - World
Lost Books of the Bible; The - Bell
Matthew Henry’s Commentary - Zondervan
Missing Books of the Bible; The – Halo Press
Mysteries of the Bible – Readers Digest
Nag Hammadi Library; The – James M. Robinson
Nave’s Topical Bible - Zondervan
New International
Dictionary of the Bible; The – Douglas -
Tenney
New International Version
Bible (2011) – NIV
NOTE: The “new” NIV has been corrupted & made gender
neutral. AVOID IT.
New Living Translation Bible - NLT
Secrets of the Dead Sea Scrolls – Hugh J. Schonfield
Thru the Bible – J. Vernon
McGee
Vincent’s Word Studies of
the New Testament – Mac Donald
Who’s Who in the Bible – Paul D. Gardner
Wycliffe Bible Commentary;
The – Pfeiffer & Harrison
Wikipedia –
Zondervan Pictorial
Encyclopedia of the Bible; The – Tenney
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