St Matthew, Chapter 19, verse: 30a, Those who are first and those who are last.

Our paragraph topic is:  (A hundredfold reward promised) Part 5. 

Christ has spoken to his disciples of the rewards that await them.  He told them of the twelve thrones that await them.  This is a prize that is beyond the imaginations of his followers.  But he wanted them to know that what awaits them in heaven is different from what is theirs in the here and now.  For in the here and now they are fishermen, tax collectors, farmers, everyday men and women who do not have the power and prestige as the men of their day. 

What they were doing in the name of Jesus transformed them, made them different.  They went against the grain.  The preached the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.  They healed the sick, cast out demons, made the lame walk and the blind see, all in his name.  And they suffered the persecution of the evildoers who sought to maintain their control over the souls of men.  Christ gave them their purpose.  Christ taught them what to say and do.  He showed them by example and not just by words.  His example was the ultimate sacrifice for mankind.  And he told them: 
"But many who are first now will be last."

They wanted to be first.  They wanted to be at the head of the line, just as we want to first today.  We all want to be privileged.  We want to be first.  We want to sit at the head of the table, to be recognized.  We want to be seen and spoken to by everyone of importance.  This is what we are given from birth, to be famous, to have of power, to be recognized.  Humility is not in our behavior.  It is not what we are given as examples to follow in our daily lives.  But Christ told his disciples many who are first now will be last.

Can we stand at the end of the line and still feel welcomed?  Can we be last in place and still have a feeling of self worth?  Is it in our nature to practice humility?  Not in this day and time.  For everything in our being strives to be first.  Everything in our value tells us that we should be first or near first.  Everything we are tell us that we should be proud and not humble.  But Christ told his disciples that many who are first now will be last.

Christ is the first of all beings.  For God our Father, through his love, gave forth of himself to bring forth Christ his Son, the first of all beings.  And of his love for his son came forth the angels and all the beings of heaven.  And then from his love came the creation of man.  And man though he lost his life was redeemed through the loving sacrifice of Christ .  And he was the first.  And we are the last. 

At the regeneration,  many who were first will be last.  And those who are the last to transition into the kingdom will be the first to be rewarded.  Christ awaits you that you may receive your reward.  It is not of this earth.  It is not made of the stuff that we know today, but of the love that fills and transforms the soul for all eternity.  It is the stuff that satisfies, that you will never thirst.  Christ calls you to his table.  He seeks to know you.  He desires to love you, if you let him.  He wants to fulfill your every need.  Open your heart and let him in and you will be filled forever. 

Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you.  Open the door and let him in.

St Matthew, Chapter 19, verse: 29b, Life everlasting for my names's sake.

Our paragraph topic is:  (A hundredfold reward promised) Part 4. 

For his name sake is what Christ told his disciples.  They would receive a hundredfold reward for all that they left behind.  He told them that they would sit on the twelve thrones in heaven and would be judges for the twelve tribes of Israel.  This was a great reward for fishermen and a tax collector, and for the everyday common man that followed Christ.  He wanted them to know that there was something greater than what they might strive for here on earth, here in the physical.

He wanted them to know that they would have life.  To follow Christ and forsake all would bring life everlasting.  He told them:  "Amen I say to you that you who have followed me shall possess life everlasting."  

For they did not have life.  They had not yet been redeemed.  Christ had not yet made the sacrifice for their sake.  But he told them anyway because he knew that he would make the sacrifice and that they would be saved.  He knew that they would have life everlasting and that they would sit on the twelve thrones in the regeneration.  And he makes that same offer to us today that we may know that we too will have life everlasting.

He has given us the choice.  It is up to us to accept it or reject it.  It is up to us to follow him or to follow the way of the world.  The path is not easy.  The path is filled with trials and tribulations.  But we have someone to walk with us.  We have someone to talk to us.  We have someone to protect us along the way.  Christ did not leave us alone.  He sends the Advocate to be with us on a daily basis.  But it is up to us to accept him, to open the door to him, to open our hearts and let him in.

We are the children of God our Father.  And he loves us so much that he has not forsaken us.  He loves us so much that he will provide for us.  He loves us so much that he will protect us.  We have to know that he is with us.  We have to believe that he will provide for us.  We have to trust that he will protect us.  And when we do, he will re-arrange our entire destiny and put us on a path that will lead us to him in all his majesty and glory.  To believe is to see.  To see is to know.  To know is to trust.  To trust is to experience the miracles of life.  And the miracle is within us.  Come!  See the miracle that is within you given you by Christ Jesus through God our Father.  You will be amazed at what you will find.

Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you.  Open the door and let him in.

St Matthew, Chapter 19, verse: 29a, A Hundredfold for my names's sake.

Our paragraph topic is:  (A hundredfold reward promised) Part 3.  

Peter had asked the question that was on the minds of the disciples.  They wanted to know what they would receive for following him.  They wanted to know what their reward would be.  Christ told them that they, the twelve, would sit on the twelve thrones and judge the twelve tribes of Israel. They would have power.  They would have influence.  They would have more than what they desired in the here and now.

And for those who gave up all, Christ told them that they would also receive a reward.  He wanted all to know that there was sacrifice.  But there was also a reward for those who followed him.  He told them:  "And everyone who has left house, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold." 

For my name's sake, those who follow me will receive a hundredfold.  Sacrifice and leave all behind, mother, brother, sister, leave all and receive a hundredfold.  This is the reward for those who follow Christ.  There will be sacrifice.  There will be tribulation.  There will be suffering, and pain, and temptation, and challenges but the reward is a hundredfold greater than anything that we can imagine.

These are the challenges that Christians face today.  The world is against us.  The world will fight to stop us.  The world will seek to prevent us from receiving the hundredfold reward.  For the reward is our birthright.  It was given to us from birth by our Father.  And it was stolen through deception.  And deception is still being used today to prevent us from receiving it.  Yet we have a provider.  We have a protector.  We have a warrior who will work with us and help fight with us through the trials and tribulations that the world puts us through.

The choice is ours to make.  Live in the world today and abide by its rules or live according to the rules given us by our Father through Christ Jesus.  The rules are simple.  They were given to us by a loving father to keep us from harm.  They were provided to us to show us the path to follow.  They are with us today so that we may know the path to follow that will lead us to our reward.  The choice is simple.  The choice is easy.  The choice is yours to make.  Come!  Open your heart to the Lord and he will lead you to eternal happiness.

Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you.  Open the door and let him in.    

St Matthew, Chapter 19, verse: 28, The Twelve Thrones of Judgement.

Our paragraph topic is:  (A hundredfold reward promised) Part 2. 

Peter was puzzled by the words of Christ.  He did not understand.  He did not know, so he was compelled to ask the question that was on the minds of all the disciples, what do we get.  They who had left all to follow him, what would they get for following the Christ and sacrificing all?  They wanted to know.  They wanted to understand.  They wanted to believe that there was a purpose and a reward to what they were doing.

Christ had told them that riches would hinder a man from entering the kingdom of heaven.  He had warned them of the dangers of riches.  Yet he wanted them to understand that there was a greater reward than the riches the world had to offer.  He wanted them to have a glimpse of the rewards that the kingdom of heaven had to offer.  So he told them.  And Jesus said to them, "Amen I say to you that you who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of his glory, shall also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.  

And there is was, the explanation that they wanted to hear.  He gave them the understanding that they needed to have that they too will sit in glory with Him, judging the tribes of Israel.  The words came from his mouth.  The words were heard by all.  The words stayed with them through all the tribulations.  And the words became truth as they now sit on the twelve thrones in heaven. 

What then are we to have who follow after them?  What then are we to look forward to who follow Christ today?  He gave the disciples the twelve thrones of judgment.  What does Christ have in store for those who follow his words and keep his commandments?  What will be our hundredfold reward?  This is the questions that we all ask ourselves as we go about our daily lives trying to live by the principles that Christ has given us.  

The world is here and now.  The kingdom is tomorrow, in the future.  What lies between to help us to continue to practice what Christ has given us from the Father.  Thou shalt not steal.  Thou shalt not kill.  Thou shalt not bear false witness.  Thou shalt honor thy father and thy mother.  Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  Thou shalt not commit adultery.  Thou shalt not covet thy neighbors wife or possessions.  All these shalt nots are the guidelines by which we are given to live.  These are our boundaries.  These are our limits.  These are the barriers that keep us in the light and keep us from the darkness.

Is heaven such a glorious prize?  Do we desire so much that which is in the future over that which is before us now, today?  How do we live such lives contrary to all that is around us?  We fight just to live a life without transgressing the limits.  We strive to live a life that upholds the standards given us by Christ.  We struggle against all the forces in our lives that would turn us away from the path that our Father has given us to follow.  How is this possible? 

Christ told his disciples that he would send his advocate to be with them for all times.  And he gives each and every one of us the same message.  The Advocate will come and be with you if you open your door and let him in.  And then your eyes will be opened.  And then your heart will know.  And then all your questions will be answered.  And then you will have peace.  For the Father will provide.  The Father will protect.  The Father will satisfy the needs of all that know him and love him.  What do we get?  We get the love of the one who created us.  We get the love of the one who sacrificed to restore us to life.  We get the living spirit of the one who will come and live with us everyday.  And we get to know the truth of who we are.  For heaven is our home.  And God is our Father.  And Christ is our Lord.  And the Holy Spirit is our light.  And through them and with them and in them, we live, we breathe, and we are one.  Come!  Step into your reward here and now.  Know the truth of who you are in Christ and you too will receive the light of life that Christ has given you through the love of God our Father.

Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you.  Open the door and let him in.