St. Matthew, Chapter 22, verse: 16b; The Opening discussion.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Tribute to Caesar) Part 2. 

The Herodians began by setting the tone of the discussion with Christ and the nature of his character.  They sought from the beginning to set a trap by characterizing him as a man of certain traits upon which they could build a foundation which they could use to tear him down.  What they did not know was that Christ knew what they were doing and saw where they were taking their scheme.

They sought to build him up.  They sought to give him certain features.  They sought to make him out as a man who had boundaries and limits upon which he would not cross because of his character.  So they started out by saying, "Master, we know that thou art truthful, and that thou teachest the way of God in truth." 

They were the smart ones of their group.  They had studied the ins and out of deceit.  They knew how to bring down kings and prophets so they used the same tactics on Christ.  They wanted to create a trap for him.  Little did they know or believe that he was the Christ, the Messiah.  He was the one foretold of old who would come and redeem the sins of the people.  He was the Son of God who would come and walk among the people.

Fear ruled the leaders of the people.  There was excitement in the land.  There was talk of a new king, a new ruler, a Messiah.  And the existing rulers did not like the sound of what they heard.  Also the Romans did not like the idea of unrest in the people so order had to be maintained.  And it was up to the existing rulers to maintain that order or be replaced by Roman rule or Roman brute force.  So there was intense fear in the land.

Christ did not come to overthrow the existing government.  He did not come to challenge the rule of the Romans.  He did not come to create unrest in the people.  Instead he came to forgive sins, to cure the sick, to heal the blind and the lame, to make the broken straight again and to show the people what the love of God could do for them.  He was living proof that there was a God.  And most of all he came to sacrifice himself for the sins of mankind that we may have life again and not death.

That was our time to rejoice, our time to see, our time to believe, our time to be free from the bonds of slavery from the world.  For Christ came to reignite a new light within each of us that was given us from birth.  We have a choice.  We are free, or we can continue to be bound.  That choice is up to us, individually.  This is what Christ has given us, the freedom of life or death.  Choose well, where you will be.  We are all created in God's image and his love extends to each and everyone of us.  But the decision is ours to make.  Love God and Love one another.

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 17, verses:7-8, The Son of God: Jesus consoles them.

Our paragraph topic is: (Jesus transfigured) Part 6.
     
The disciples heard the voice of God and they were afraid.  Out of the cloud came a loud voice that spoke to them.  These were simple men.  They were not scholars.  They were not men of learning, men of power, men of stature in the community, but only simple fishermen, simple farmers, and common laborers.  But Christ chose them to be his followers.  They followed him because he had charisma.  They followed him because he had an aura about him that commanded their allegiance.  Christ cured the sick. He made the lame walk. He opened the eyes of the blind.  He even gave the disciples temporary power to do the same miracles that they saw him perform.  And they followed him because they came to love him.

But when the father spoke to them they became fearful.  They bowed their heads in fear for their lives.  They had not heard such a voice before.  They did not know if they were doomed or if they should rejoice.  Fear came upon them and took hold of them.  Fear opened the door and would have allowed evil to enter.  Fear prepared them for what they considered would be the end.  Yet this was the voice of their father speaking to them.  Hear him, he told them.  Hear Christ he told them.  Hear his words, hear his deeds, hear his actions, hear his presence.  But when the voice ended there was only Christ left for them to see.  There was only Christ left for them to hear.  There was Christ left for them to believe.  And Jesus came near and touched them, and said to them, “Arise and do not be afraid."  But lifting up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.   

Jesus told them, "Do not be afraid."  He told them as he did in many other situations to not be afraid.  He tells us today to not be afraid.  We fear what we do not understand.  We fear what we do not know.  We fear what we can not comprehend.  We are fearful creatures.  There are many things in this world that would cause us to open ourselves to fear.  But why should we be afraid?  Some would say that fear is good because it is a natural emotion built into our defense mechanism that protects us from harm.  We fear harm to our bodies.  We fear loss of life.  We fear loss of possessions, loss of love, loss of happiness, loss of material things, we are afraid of many things in this world.  This is only because we do not have the spiritual understanding that knows no fear.  Christ tells us not to fear.  He tells us not to worry.  He tells us to be happy because we have a father that will protect us from all harm.  It is one thing to believe but it is an even better thing to know with certainty. 

Yet we continue to fear because we do not believe, because we do not know.  We do not know who we are.  We have no idea of our spiritual nature within us because we only judge by our physical beings.  Fear limits us.  Fear controls us.  Fear commands us to act.  Fear closes the door to the opportunity for us to know who we truly are in Christ.  God created us in his image and his likeness.  He gave us dominion over this earth, over this realm, over the material world.  Adam chose for all men to give that dominion to Satan when he chose to be disobedient to God.  But Christ came and gave to all men, individually and collectively, the choice to decide for themselves if they want life or if they want death.

Spiritual life is a wonderful gift to have.  And life is as precious as freedom itself.  How do you know freedom if you have never been without?  How do you know life if you have never been without it?  How do you know death if you have never experienced life?  For he who is dead does not have life but only a dream.  And it is a dream that you wake up from and realize that you are dead.  In our life's dream we are given signs that tell us of our death.  We see death as though it were real life and true spiritual life as though it were a dream, something far off, something that may or may not exist but only in our imaginations. 

For those who seek to know life, Christ gave us the key.  He told us in his words how to experience life.  He spoke to us about the key to unlock death and open the door to eternal life, eternal life that we can see and experience and know with certainty, here on earth.  But we must awaken from the sleep of death.  We must open our eyes and see that we are asleep.  Once awake we can then seek the truth of life itself through Christ.  Some will balk at the idea of being told what to do.  Some will yield to the voice of disbelief and go back to sleep reasoning with the mind of the world.  But for those who seek, the door is open, the path is waiting for you to follow, the light shines at the end of the tunnel.  Come!  Find your treasure.  Know the truth of who you are in Christ.  The eye is the lamp of the body.  See the truth within yourself and gain the knowledge of the Holy Spirit within you.  Christ loves you and so do I.

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!