St. Matthew, Chapter 20, verse:30b, They cried out.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The blind men at Jericho) Part 3. 

The word was a powerful thing in those days.  The people did not have television.  They did not have radios.  They did not have books and many did not know how to read.  All they had was what they heard by word of mouth.  And the words about Christ spread like wildfire; all wanted to hear of his deeds.  Even those who were not spoken to directly heard.  They were near to where the words were being spoken.

And then there were the two blind men sitting by the wayside going about their daily business of begging their food, begging for their needs.  This is how they provided for themselves.  Many saw them as sinners because they were blind.  It was believed that someone had to commit a sin in order for them to suffer the fate of being blind.  But the word did not discriminate.  It came to all who would listen.  It came to all who could hear.  It came even to the blind.

The blind men spoke to all who came by.  They begged loudly for a penny, or a quarter, or anything that would help them.  Their voices were heard by all who passed by.  And then they heard that Christ was coming to their town.  They heard that Christ was in their village.  They heard that Christ was traveling the road that they were on.  Their hearts were uplifted.  For surely Christ would hear their plea.  And when he came near, they "Cried out, saying, 'Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!' " 

Fortune shone on them that day.  Their opportunity knocked on their door.  The Lord and Savior of the world walked passed their begging place and they cried out with a loud voice.  They would not be silenced.  They would not speak quietly.  They would not stop calling his name.  They knew that this day was their day to be heard.  All the days of their lives they never thought that they would have this opportunity.   All the days of their lives they never imagined they would be near the presences of the Lord.  They had heard of his miracles.  They had heard of his deeds.  They knew that he had made the cripple walk, expelled demons from the sick, opened the ears of the deaf, and even raised the dead.  Why was it not possible for him to give them sight?

Christ comes to us in many forms.  He may come in an unexpected gift, or through a person, or through an awakening that we have never experienced.  He may even come to us in a life saving event that made us aware of how vulnerable we are in this world.  We go about our lives everyday without acknowledging how fragile we are.  We take our lives for granted not expecting anything to harm or destroy that which we have.  And when tragedy strikes and we come to realize the truth of our existence. 

The world around us is dying, everyday.  Our existence is dying.  Our lives as we know it can be taken in an instant.  Why not be ready?  Why not be prepared?  Why not know who you are inside?  The inevitability of our lives is that death awaits us.  The truth of who we are is that we are eternal beings, the death of the body is not the death of the soul.  For those who believe, God is our Father.  He created us in his image and his likeness and our Father is eternal.  Whether we accept who we are or deny it, the outcome is still the same.  We face a physical death and then the spiritual life within is transformed.  Where we end up is our choice.  Acceptance is the key.  Love is the vessel.  And Christ is our savior.  Come!  His love awaits you!

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 15, verse: 14, The Lesson: Blind Guides

Our paragraph topic is:  (Disciples warned to shun the Pharisees) Part 4.  
    

Christ had spoken and the Pharisees heard and took offense.  Christ called the people to himself.  He called their attention to what he was to say.  He told them to hear and understand, and his words opened the eyes and the hearts of the people.  For he told them that what goes into the mouth does not defile a man as had been preached by the Pharisees.  He told the people that it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles a man.  It is what is spoken that indicates that a man is defiled and unclean.  And the Pharisees had taken offense for this was against their teachings.

And the disciples heard the murmurings of the Pharisees.  The disciples listened to the Pharisees and they were upset that the Pharisees were upset.  The disciples were concerned that the Pharisees had taken offense to the words of Christ for they did not know the evil that possessed the Pharisees.  And Christ calmed their minds.  Christ spoke to his disciples and reminded them of the power and majesty of his father who did not plant seeds in the Pharisees.  He reminded them of outcome of those seeds that were planted by evil and what will happen to them in the final days.  They would be rooted up and thrown into the fire to burn.  And finally he spoke to his disciples in a way to let them know that the Pharisees were blind.   Let them alone; they are blind guides of blind men.  But if a blind man guide a blind man, both fall into a pit."

And so it was spoken that the disciples could understand.  And so it is written that we, today, may understand.  Who is blind and who is sighted?  How do we know who we follow?  Are we being led by blind men, the blind guide?  Or are we being lead by the teacher, the Advocate, that Christ promised?  We go to church, we perform our religious duties, we pray, we fast, we do all the things that we are taught to do.  But who is teaching?  Who is leading?  Who is our guide?  Christ has given us instructions.  He has left us his words.  He has provided us a path to follow that we may not be misled.  Hear and understand, he commanded us, that we may know.  Every plant that the heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up.

Will you continue to follow an uprooted plant?  Will you continue to believe in the words that come from the seed not planted by the Father?  Will you continue to follow the blind guide that will lead you into the pit?  Seek and you shall find the true guide that leads to the Father.  Knock and it shall be opened to you that you may have sight beyond your earthly vision.  Ask and it shall be given to you that you may have the wisdom of heaven to understand that which is given you.   For those who seek will find, those who knock will have doors opened to them.  And those who ask the Father, it will be given to them that they may see.  The true teacher seeks to teach you.  The true guide seeks to lead you.  The true spirit of Christ seeks to dwell within you that you may know your Father in heaven and yield fruit a hundred fold.