Jesus Abundant Hope

Choose the "Bread of Life" over the leaven, sinful influence of the world.

                                                            What is Leaven?

"Your glorying is not good, Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?"

"Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:"

"Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleaven bread of sincerity and truth."   I Corinthians 5:6-8

"Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be ye men."   I Corinthians 14:20

( Malice should be the least of your understanding, it should be even as children understand, malice should always at a minimum. But you should be full of truth and understanding, with sincerity to grow up in the strength of maturity as a strong person.)

leaven defined—a substance, such as yeast or cream of tartar, used as an ingredient in batters and doughs to produce fermentation. A portion of fermented dough used to produce fermentation in a new batch of dough. Any element of influence which works subtly to lighten or enliven the whole.  To raise.

ferment defined—Anything that causes fermentation as a yeast, bacterium, mold, or enzyme. A state of agitation; unrest; turbulence. To undergo fermentation. To be turbulent, seethe. Unrest; commotion.

The leaven that is spoken of in this scripture is speaking of the evil influences in life that affect one another when sinners are accepted within the sinful life they lead. Evil influences when introduced into the mind of anyone, begins to ferment, to affect the people it touches, until it raises turbulence within the whole group.

"Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners." (morals)

"Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame."  I Corinthians 15:33-34

A Christian is not being a good steward of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and God Almighty, when they don't stand up for the fullness of God's word.

Approval of sin, is not God's love, it is human encouragement to do wrong. Sin is breaking God's moral law, it is rebelling against the goodness of God, to do their own will, and the will of the enemy of their soul.

Sin, hurts, hinders, and harms those who are gullibly led into the snare of Satan and sin. The wages of sin is death. Satan has a destiny of death for every person, a death not only of the physical but the spiritual. Death spent in hell, is eternally being shut off from the One True God, of goodness, love and peace.

When people who break God's moral laws are led to believe that you are approving of their sin, instead of leading them through the moral principles of the word of God. They are not led to repent of their sins, and to make the change from transgressing God's moral laws, to obeying God's moral laws.

True love of God, makes people aware of their sins. The truth of God's word warns them of the consequences of sins, and leads them to repentance. Repenting of one's sins, to the only one who can and will, fully forgive their sins, it is bringing the abundant life of Jesus Christ into their heart and mind.

Sincere repentance lifts the burden of sin, with it's condemnation out of the sinner's heart and mind so they can feel cleansed of sin, and walk away from all the hurt, pain and misery of sin.

Turning away from the good stewardship of God's word, is to accept a sinning sinner as they are within their current condition, as the influencing agent of evil. They are not told that we care for you enough to warn you of the evil you are participating in is not only harming you, but all you affect with your evil ways. Evil influence spreads like a virus to infect those who are morally vunrable, like a virus sin viciously attacks moral goodness to do harm to all who are infected with its hateful aggression.

Christians should always show the Love of God, and in the tender kindness of God's love care enough about the sinner to help him to see the truth, that living in sin, hurts them and whomever they influence to follow them.

The Church should always let the sinner know, we accept your presence but you are here to be warned that the evil that rules your life is not accepted on the grounds of God's moral laws. We will be kind and considerate, but not accepting of anything that contradicts the good morals that represent who our God is, and what he desires for his church.

When sinful influence is accepted within the church, it starts to bring in unrest, agitation and turbulence, that affects the whole congregation where they become like the sinful influence.They will become like the person that is evil affected, if they are not mature enough in the word of God, or have their spiritual discernment, making them aware of the danger that exist in their midst.

The leaven, of sinful influence whether in sinful actions of the people, or whether the subtlety of error brought into the messages. Both the messages of sinful human activity and the message of error in preaching, teaching and conversations, affects the whole body in the same way dough is totally affected by the yeast, that ferments the dough enough to make it rise.

Sinful influence within the body of Christ, is brought into the congregation as a means of the enemy to bring the spiritual value of the body, down to be vain (worthless, empty) pertaining to the delivery of the strength of the gospel message.

Sinful influences within the body of believers, gradually pulls other Christians into duplicating their deceitfulness of sin. That's when pretentiousness overlays the sinning Christian, to cover up their sins, with a pretending love, rather than the true love of God, expressed one to another.

Sin within the congregation when accepted as approval, rather than admonishing, reproving and rebuking sin, causes the church as a whole to fail, in delivering the full power of the truth in the gospel message, and within the body of believers ability to live up to the full spiritual delivery of their own God-given gifting. It's that failure to live up to their greatest potential that keeps the congregation ineffective to help lift up sinners out of the quicksand of sinfulness.

Sinful influence ignites fear, foolishness, emotional conflicts, confusion, strife and meddling within the congregation, to hinder the full power of the Gospel message, the teaching and the operation of spiritual gifts through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

Sinful influence ignites carnal passions, and emotional displays, rather than the power of faith delivered to believers that need the spiritual strength of the full truth of the word of God, delivered in compassion.

~ Joan Jessalyn Cox            KJV Scriptures

                                                                                        Copyright Joan Jessalyn Cox © 2013