Matthew 3:10……..Ready

Matthew 3:10……..Ready

The axe (Dispensation of God’s grace & mercy) is already at the root (heart) of the trees, (unrepented, self-righteous. Expresses urgency of impending judgment. Portrays a lumberjack who’s axe is in mid swing. Or who has laid his axe at the base of the tree that he may wield his blows more accurately.) and every tree (person) that does not bear good fruit (Saving faith, genuine repentance, true conversion) will be cut down and thrown into the fire. (Expresses the suffering of the unrepentant in eternity in Hell. Or God’s temporal judgment for those who continue to live the way they are.)

Continued From Book

“Calls for asking do we really know the Lord. How honest and real is my faith?” Do I believe because of my parent’s, because it’s expected or is it really mine.”

“Warns against delaying repentance or waiting for a convenient time to set things right with God. Repentance is not food for thought or something to take into consideration for a later time.” ⇒ Repentance is not like making a major purchase, were you need to sleep on it, it’s a matter that needs to be acted on now! One of Satan’s most effective weapons is to get us to procrastinate in thinking there’s no big hurry, that death, judgment, and hell are far off, we can sow our wild oats and get right with God later! (cf. 2-Corn. 4:4, 6:1-2, Heb. 6:4-8)

“Displays the urgency in repentance, that tragedy and death can strike suddenly and without warning.” ⇒ This could be your last day on earth. You could die tomorrow in a car accident, a drive-by, a storm, a fire, a earthquake, a tornado, a terrorist attack, or a mass shooting. Or by a virus, stroke, heart-attack, disease. etc.) (cf. Luke 13:2-4, Rom. 6:20-23, Heb. 9:27) (Note: The intention here is not to scare you or guilt you into a commitment. That doesn’t last. But to take immediate action because we don’t know when we will be given another opportunity!)

“Warns the danger of putting off repentance, or the attitude that says; “I’ll decide when it’s the right time”. Remember WE’RE not the BOSS, but GOD is. WE don’t decide when we’ll get Saved, GOD does. God has supplied you with the Gospel of His Son, which contains the power, means, and grace for Salvation, what have you done with it?” ⇒ In Salvation business, an hour lost, may peril one for all eternity.

“Even today the type of repentance that is being asked for here calls for a lot of self-reflection and soul searching. A repentance that can ask, “Have I genuinely repented of my sins? “Have I truly surrendered my heart to Christ as Lord”?  A repentance that can ask, “Is there some sins I’ve been tolerating in my life? Is there bad habits I’ve come to accept in my life”? A repentance that can ask is there any wrong attitudes or ways of thinking I’ve been holding onto?”

“John’s words are not to condemn, but to Save. It drives us from pride and self-deceit to the cross where we might find grace. That we’re not able to reform ourselves or repent enough, we need Christ.”

“This is not saying we better get busy in good works, giving to the church, loving our neighbor, and obeying the Commandments or they’ll be hell to pay. But God does expect to see a genuine repentance of the heart. Just knowing the proper theology or believing the right things is not enough. Its a deeply personal matter of the heart in facing the hard question of what lies beneath: Is there genuine repentance of sin? Is there Saving faith in Christ”? Is there a real desire to worship and go to church? Do I have a real love for God and a real love for other people? Do I witness and share my faith? Do I bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit, the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control”? (2-Corn. 13:5-6)

Additional Notes & Applications

Warns against failing to see the danger and predicament were in. How many have thought “I’m not that bad of a person” or “I have plenty of time to give my life to God”. And as a result we end up cutting our self’s off of God’s only means of forgiveness and Salvation.

Calls for a living faith that is authentic and real.  Are you just going through the motions in doing the bear minimum, go to church now and again, pray occasionally, and try to be nice to people (So long as they don’t annoy you too much). Though a religion like this doesn’t cost us much, but it doesn’t do much, either. And as a result religion becomes mere shell, never growing in a Saving relationship with God.

Warns of the danger of making light of all that Christ is and all that He has done by remaining unrepented and unchanged.

Calls for laying the axe to the root of pride, self-reliance, self-importance, self-sufficiency, self-righteousness, religiosity, and anything else that is keeping us from genuinely repenting and believing on Jesus. (cf. Heb. 3:12, 2-Pet. 3:9)

Calls for examining our self’s to see if were truly living for the Lord. If the Lord examined your heart today will He find true fruit and faith in Him, our will He find all leaf and no fruit.

Teaches how were responsible for our own spiritual condition.

Teaches how the Lord goes beyond the surface and deals with the root issues of the heart that lie hidden beneath. Often times stuff were unaware of, things we don’t even realize is there. The Lord will get to the bottom of our sham. The Lord will challenge our church etiquette, our motives and intentions, and even our belief system. He will uncover our hypocrisy, He will expose our religious pretense. He will uproot our pride, our legalism, our smugness, our self-righteousness, We’ll stand speechless and guilty before Him. Will you give it up, that the Lord sees through your pretenses, your clothes, your façade, your veneer, your religiosity, your sophisticated maneuvers, and any other termites your hiding? (cf. Eccl. 12:14)

Warns the dangers of rooting our trust in our merits and goodness rather than in Christ. Coming to God by our own efforts and self-righteousness is not going to stand.-(Rom. 3:20-21) In fact your going to be cut down if you try to approach God like that! Coming by way of outward displays of devotion and religious piety is not going to stand.-(Matt. 7:21, Luke 18:10-14) Coming by way of keeping rules and regulations is not going to stand. Coming by way of denial and excuses is not going to stand.-(Rom. 1:19-20)

Displays God’s patience and long-suffering. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but desires all men be brought to repentance and Saving faith. No one will ever be able to accuse God by saying; “God you never gave me the opportunity” Or “God you never gave me a chance”. (cf. Luke 13:6-9, Rom. 2:4-5, 2-Pet. 3:9, Ezk. 33:11, Habakkuk 3:2)

Teaches how there comes a point where we need to get real in our relationship with God, that things need to change. If were going to move forward in our walk with God the axe needs to be put to the root of the tree.

Calls for waking people up from their complacency, that they may see their sin and turn from it before its to late. (Note: It’s been said that a preacher’s job has two parts, “To comfort the afflicted, and to afflict the comfortable.”)

–axe at the root of the trees-Meaning: A good farmer is always looking after his crop and he does everything he can to cause his trees to bring forth good fruit. He will till the soil and fertilize it, and prune the trees. The owner of the orchard expects to receive good fruit from each tree planted. If however the tree fails to bear fruit, it is of no use in the orchard since it only depletes nutrients from the ground that could be used by other trees. It’s only productive use is to be cut down and used for firewood. For it is not fit that such a tree should be allowed to take up space and rob him of his precious time of caring for it. The axe laid at the root of the tree is a serious and urgent warning, but it’s a warning given in love. That God loves us too much to leave us the way we are, and wants us to live. Metaphorically the “axe” may be in reference to the dispensation of God’s grace, patience, and providence. The “axe” may be in reference to the Gospel God supplies which contains the grace, means, and motives for godly living. The axe laid at the root of the tree can be the work of the Holy spirit in putting the axe to our conscience, waking us up to the dangers were taking with our souls. The “axe” may refer to men & women God uses as tools in His hand to reprove and admonish sinners, or to press upon people repentance and holiness of life. The “axe” can be the temporal judgments God allows in order to move a person to repentance and Salvation. Sickness can be God’s axe, calamity can be God’s axe; trials can be God’s axe; adversity can be God’s axe. [Note: There are more people who come to Jesus after being arrested, overdosing, or having contracted some virus or incurable disease than any other way.] The axe can be the consequence of sins that enter into your life while your alive. “Axe at the root of the tree” can also be the underground part, where God gets to the hidden source of one’s life and kills it. Or the “axe” in general may mean divine wrath and vengeance to come on the Day of Judgment.-(Rev. 16:1-16) Others see “The axe at the root of the tree” as the utter ruin and destruction of Israel by Rome.-(Fulfilled 70 A.D.) Who for centuries had the inside track when it came to the favor of God. They were the chosen ones, the children of Abraham, yet they persistently turned their backs on the Lord.-(Rom. 9:3-5) Still others see “The axe at the root of the tree” as about new growth and the little deaths that are a part of repentance. It’s the little things we are called to die to daily. Things we need to let go of. Things we need to prune and root-up by cutting the cords of sinful and fleshy desires-(Col. 3:5-10) “Root” can also have the meaning of “source, cause, or reason.” Motives for one’s actions are important. Bearing good fruit is not just doing good things, but also doing them for the right cause and right reasons. Having good roots, receiving the proper nutrition — being connected to the proper source –staying in God’s word, hanging around the right people — will naturally result in the proper fruit.

-Roots-Meaning: Often times we think of “Roots” as a positive thing, as being rooted, grounded, and established. Or being solid, balanced, and having a good foundation. But here “Roots” has a negative connotation in being rooted in the wrong things and how it can cause to stay in places that God does not want us to be in any longer. God wants us to move forward, that we’ve lived in that sin, that bitterness, that pain, that anger, that hurt, that wrong, that unforgiveness long enough and it’s time to move forward. (cf. Philp. 3:13)

Note: If your a believer you need not dread the axe of God’s wrath because it has already fallen on the Cross having been fully satisfied by Jesus.-(Rom. 8:1-4) But the “axe” can also be a place where God takes us in order to get our attention. God’s axe can be a place of desperation, a place of sickness, hardship, trials, and whatever else it takes to wake us up. Not only that, but the axe can be of our own making when we give into anger, hate, pride, greed, bitterness. Or we make our lives miserable and destructive when we fail to follow God’s Word. God has established principles and standards in His Word from which we can extract godly wisdom, truth, values, and principals to live by.-(2-Tim. 3:16) But it’s when we go off on our own do we end up making poor decisions and suffer the consequences. People who fail to follow God are miserable people on the inside, their lives are out of control. They have little love, little joy, little peace, little kindness, little goodness. (cf. Rom. 1:22-24, Gal. 6:7-8, 1-Tim. 6:10)

Note: Though this warning may seem harsh and downright scary, but it’s spoken in love. Because God wants us to live. But when there is no response, opportunity is eventually lost. God gives multiple opportunities, but when we say; “I’ll do that later” or “I’ll get around to that when the times right”. And as a result we end up cutting our self’s from God’s only means of forgiveness and Salvation. The Spirit often convicts us in moments of pain, emptiness, and brokenness. Or pierces us with anguish, shame, and guilt. Don’t ignore or distract yourself from these calls! Each time the Lord touches your heart, it is a unique moment, God-given opportunity for Repentance. Conviction is a precious gift from God and a great loss if you ignore it, leading to a hard heart or seared conscience over time. (cf. Heb. 3:8-15, 6:4-6) [Note: If your hearing the voice of God today, if the Holy Spirit is cutting your heart like a razor blade, it is a fleeting opportunity and favorable moment, so don’t put it off or fool around, it might not come back again. Even if your a believer do not put off the work of God in your life.]

AREAS YOU MAY NEED TO PUT THE AXE TOO….

• Do you truly believe in Jesus as your Lord & Savior who died on the cross for your sins? Or do you see Him just as friend and good person?

• Do you truly hate sin and want it out of your life? Or are you unconcerned and indifferent about it?

• Do you hunger for the Word of God and how to apply it to your life? Or can you take or leave it?

• Do you desire to be around other Christians and learn from them? Or do you prefer the company of your non-Christian friends?

• Do you confess and admit your sins? Or do you bury them and pretend they don’t not exists?

• Do you “walk the walk”, versus just “talking the talk”?

• Do you demonstrate a love for God and other people?

• Do you see a decreasing pattern of sin in your life or no change at all? [Note: This is only talking about sin as a way of life, not a total absence of sin.]

• Do you have a desire to witness & share Christ with others, or do you shy away, too afraid or too embarrassed?

• Do you find yourself ready for the Lord’s return or will you be ashamed when He comes for you?

WHOM THE AXE IS LAID…..

• By Ministerially, the Church, Preachers of the Word

• By way of temporal judgments & disciplines (Not to punish, but to correct and change course)

• By God Himself (An axe for the ungodly, a pruning knife for the Saint)

• By oneself in cutting off and rooting up the chain of sin and temptation

  INEVITABILITY OF THE AXE FALLING…..

• God’s judgments are certain and inevitable (There is no escape from divine vengeance!)

• God’s judgments are near at hand when least expected, least prepared for.

• God’s judgments begin to operate when we chose to go our own way.

• God’s judgments bring their own consequences when we fail to follow His ways.

  (For more Applications get the Whole Book)

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