St. Matthew, Chapter 21, verse:27b; The Deceit of their answer.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The Authority of Jesus) Part 8. 

They refused to answer the question.  They knew the answer.  They knew the outcome if they were to speak the answer.  Having weighed all the possibilities among themselves they decided that it was best to not answer.  But that was the dilemma of their initial issue.  They came to Christ seeking an answer to a question.  They wanted to know the origin of his authority.  They wanted to know who gave him the power to preach, the authority to teach, the wisdom to know, and the knowledge to perform miracles.  So they came to him with the question.

He saw them coming.  He knew of their question.  And he wanted to answer their burning desire that they too would know from whence he came.  But first they had to open their hearts to receive the truth.  Did they believe?  Did they seek the truth?  Could they open themselves so that they could hear the word and be converted?  Jesus asked them a question to open the door that they may walk through.  But they could not.  They did not.  They decided to close the door and answered that they did not know the answer to his question.  Then he in turn said to them, "Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things." 

They wanted to know, but they could not understand.  They wanted to see but were blinded.  They wanted to understand but had not understanding except their own.  So in their wisdom they decided to be deceitful.  In their knowledge they could not respond.  In how they saw the outcome there's was no answer.  And that is what they received, missing out on the opportunity to become open to the joy of the word, the peace of the truth, and the love of the Father.

How often are we the same?  How often do we deny that which is within us only to appear real to ourselves and to others?  We can not see.  We can not believe.  We do not allow the opportunity for something far greater than ourselves to become a part of our lives simply because our own thoughts and beliefs have determined that it is not the truth.  Our thoughts are not our own, but those of the world.  Our beliefs are not our beliefs but those given to us buy the influence of that which surrounds us.

It is only by examination of that which surrounds us and that which is within us that we may come to understand who we are, why we are here, and what is our purpose.  Death is not the answer, life is.  Life is what we have here and now and for eternity, if we choose to accept it.  When the world has beaten you down and you know not what to do, the world may suggest giving up.  The world may suggest despair and depression.  The world may even suggest destruction in one form or another. 

Yet there is life.  There is hope.  There is peace and joy that awaits us in the here and now.  There is an unbelievable guide that will walk with us each and everyday to help us along the way.  And then there is our savior who brought us back from death that we may live eternally with him in his kingdom.  We are blessed.  We are loved and cared for.  We are the children of the creator of the universe and he loves each and every one of us dearly.  Our Father who art in heaven, provide for us.  Our Father who art in heaven, protect us.  Our Father who art in heaven show us your love.

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 nd 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 21, verse:25a; The Dilemma of the Question.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The authority of Jesus) Part 4. 

Shocked by his response, the chief priest and elders were in turn asked to answer a question before their question was answered.  They wanted to know the origin of Christ.  They wanted to know where he was taught, who taught him, what school he attended, where did he obtain such knowledge.

They were angry and indignant at him and his teachings.  He captivated the people.  The people were drawn to him, listened intently, more than they had listened to the priests and the elders.  More than that his words stayed with them long after they were spoken and were pasted on to others.  They Word spread.  So the dilemma to the question:  "Whence was the baptism of John? from heaven, or from men?" 

Most of the common people knew and believed that John the Baptist was anointed, a prophet.  He inspired the people from near and far to come and repent of their sins.  He was the one written of in the Bible as the messenger who came before the coming of the Messiah.  Yet here were the chief priests and the elders, learned men, who knew and studied the Law and the books of the Bible, faced with the question of the origin of John the Baptist.  How could they answer?  How could they speak of this prophet?  How should they respond?

We are faced with a similar question today:  Is Christ the Son of God or is he just the son of Mary and Joseph?  The question goes to the core of what we believe today, or values, our hopes, our dreams, our life, and our being.  If he is the Son of God and the writings of the Bible are true then we can have faith and hope in what was written.  If he was the son of Mary and Joseph, just a man, then those writings are fiction and not believable.

Where lies the truth?  From what realm do we operate our lives?  How do we fit what we know and what we believe in the world we live in?  Is it a mystery, something that we cannot fathom and must store in our minds as a mystery, not to be questioned, only to be accepted?  There is the world around us that we accept with truth and fact, facts that we see everyday.  Then there is belief, a leap beyond facts and what we can see and feel daily.  And it is that leap that allows us to go beyond the everyday, the mundane, the mysterious. 

Some have that ability to leap.  Some do not.  Some only rely on facts that they can see and feel and know within themselves.  But those who have that ability can do more than see and feel.  They can understand the life within.  They can see the truth of what was sacrificed and what was given.  For we are two in one.  We are spiritual in the physical.  We are eternal and perishable.  We are children of the one who created us in his image and likeness.  And it is that image and likeness that Christ came to restore to those who can make the leap, to those who can believe, to those who know the truth of his passion and the love of God our Father.  It is real.  It is truth.  It is eternal.  It is here and now waiting for those to take the leap of faith and believe. 

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 nd 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.