St. Matthew, Chapter 24, verse: 10c; Those who hate.

 Our paragraph topic is: (He tells them of trials and hard times to come) Part 6.  

To them he looked like an ordinary man, but that was far from appearances.  He was more than what he appeared to be.  He saw more, he knew more, he understood more than ordinary man.  And he told his disciples more.  Hard times were to come and he wanted them to know, to be prepared.  The sheep would scatter.  The leaders would be persecuted.  The believers would become martyrs.  Many would turn against one another and dark times would prevail.  

Christ didn't have a crystal ball to tell the future, he knew it.  It was as if he could see what would happen in the future, as though time stood still and he walked through the future to see it all unfold.  He knew that there were many true believers who would become saints.  They sacrificed themselves for their beliefs.  He also knew that there were those who professed to believe but were hypocrites.  They were the ones who would turn and run for their lives.  He told his disciples, their would be those who would deny their belief:  "And will hate one another."

They had to hate in order to survive.  Survival was important to them because it was what they knew.  They did not know the Word.  They did not hear the message.  They did not accept the Word of God that there was more to life than just the physical.  Christ came to testify to the spiritual.  He came that we would have life, true life beyond just the physical.  And many missed the message of the kingdom of heaven that he came to give us.

Today we have the Word.  Today we know that there is life after death.  Christ came and conquered death.  He arose from death and ascended into heaven back to his Father where he sits at his right hand until the time comes for judgment.  We have a choice today.  We can choose life or we can choose death.  We can choose to believe or choose not to believe.  We can choose to love or choose not to love.  We can choose to be with Christ and have life eternal or death eternal.  This is what we are given today.

There is so much love and joy and happiness waiting for us in heaven.  All we have to do is accept and believe that we have a father who loves us.  Belief opens the door.  Love fills the heart.  Faith allows one to see the truth of his hand at work in your life.  Prayer speaks to him of our weakness, our fears and doubts.  It shows him that you seek his mercy and his love.  Open your heart.  Open your mind.  Open your soul and let him in.  For he is the fulfillment of all your dreams.

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 23, verses: 29a; Scribes and Pharisees, Hypocrites.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Their persecution of religion) Part 1. 

Christ cries out for the Scribes and the Phatisees for they still did not understand the serious nature of their crimes.  Evil had taken hold of them and possessed their inner souls so deeply they were unable to comprehend the cry of the Lord for them.  He calls them hypocrites in the public eye.  He cries out for them as one would cry out for a lost child, a lost soul who does not know the way.

His cries only fall on deaf ears for they cannot hear.  They cannot understand.  They can only feel the anger from inside that comes from the hatred of evil against him.  The people look on in amazement.  They do not understand the nature of what is happening between Christ and the Scribes and the Pharisees.  If it were anyone else they would be immediately arrested, jailed, and beaten for the things they said.  But this was the Christ, the miracle worker, loved by the people, the prophet, the Messiah.  He was the one to come and no one should touch him.  So he cried out and called to them: "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"  

Strong words indead for someone to use even today, to be called a hypocrite.  Imagine going to church and having a preacher give his sermon on hypocrisy.  It might be quite a shock to the parishioners to listen to such a speech.  Some may even take it to heart, get up and walk out in the middle of the sermon.  But this was the strength of the sermon Christ gave to the Scribes and the Pharisees on that day they came to question him.  

They came in the guise of curious, inquisitive learners with the hidden agenda of a viper to bite in the end.  But Christ knew their intentions.  He knew the intent of the evil within them.  He knew their desires, their wants, their anger, and their hatred.  Yet he allowed them to question him that he might have them open themselves up to him.  He wanted the opportunity to heal them.  He wanted the opportunity to open their eyes.  He wanted the chance to maybe pierce the shield of evil that they might be wounded and stop to think of the consequences of their actions.

Yes, sometimes it takes a hard knock, a wound to be opened up, to stop and think, to reconsider the consequences of our actions.  What if my life was ended?  What if I had lost a leg or an arm or some other part.  I was luckie this time.  There may not be a next time.  I need to stop and think how fortunate I am to be alive now.  I need to stop doing those crazy things and get my life together before I loose it.  

These thoughts and others are the kind of thoughts that we have after we have a tragic event happen to us or to someone near to us.  And it is these events that open us up to hear the voice of God in our lives to put us on a different path to turn our lives around.  We can repent.  We can change.  We can do better.  We can be a better person, a loving person, a believing person, a God fearing person.  Christ died for all who would believe in him.  His love transcends all.  His heart is open to all.   

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 23, verses: 27a; Woe to you.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Their hypocritical purity) Part 5.  

He cried for them because he knew their fate.  He knew what would happen to them and he wanted to give them the opportunity to change, so he cried out for them.  Woe to you, he said, as though they were going to suffer the fate of those men who were beaten, flogged, hung from the cross, or even worse, suffered the eternal flames of hell.  Christ knew what would happen to them if they continued on the path they followed.

He used the harshest words that he could think of in the worst way he could use them to affect them in the deepest sense.  Did it work?  Probably not.  Did they change.  Probably not.  Yet he still wanted to open a crack in their armor so that maybe some light might get through.  So he cried out for them:  "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"  

He called them hypocrites and he did it in the public where everyone could hear.  He knew that it would anger them.  He knew that it would enrage them.  He hoped that it would cause them to question their beliefs, their motives, their faith in their religious behavior.  Were they that blind?  Could they not see the purpose of what he was doing?  Were they so far gone that they had no idea of what was happening around them that they failed to see the obvious?

What is life all about?  There are those who are the achievers in life who are in the spotlight.  There are those who are talked about all the time in the news, in the media, on the radio, television, and elsewhere.  There are those who are our favorite persons that we would like to be like, movie stars, persons of interest, people we would like to know.  And there are those who in our immediate circles that we wish we could be like or have the character traits they have so that we can be liked by so many.  

The need to be liked, be wanted, to have friends that like us that we can influence is very strong in our lives today.  It goes a long way in our everyday life both at work, at play, in the community, in social circles, and in all walks of our lives.  We are compelled to be liked, to be known, to be loved, and to do almost anything to gain that attention and to keep it.  Compare this to the quiet person who seeks no attention, the person who is just there being who he is without the need to show off or take the spotlight.  What speaks of his character, his personality, his wants, his desires, his beliefs, his needs to be known.  Are they nonexistent?  Or is he at peace with himself as he is without the need for attention?

Where do we want to be in this world?  The beauty of the answer to that question is, we are already there.  Christ has promised us a new life.  He has opened the doors for us.  All we have to do is walk in and accept him as our savior.  We do not have to fight or struggle to gain his attention.  We don't have to put down or trample others to get to him, because he has a place for all who will accept him, all who will love him.  We can be at peace in this world because he has already given it to us and more.  He has given us more than our hearts can desire if we simply ask to be with him.

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 23, verses: 25a; Hypocrites.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Their hypocritical purity) Part 1.  

Once again Christ called the Scribes and the Pharisees out in the public eye.  He wanted the people to know who they were.  They acted as though they were pious religious leaders, but instead they were wolves in sheep's clothing.  To the public they were revered.  They were honored by the people.  But to Christ they were masquerading as something else. 

They talked the talk and walked the walk some of the time but behind closed doors the masks came off and the talk was completely different.  They looked down on the people.  They were arrogant and unbelieving in what they preached to the people.  They thought the people were fools, unlearned, and could not discern the truth.  They were deceitful and this is why Christ called them out: "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"   

Is this a warning to our religious leaders today?  Are they the same as the Pharisees of old who were hypocrites?  We see from time to time where preachers have transgressed the line and committed sin, had some affair with another woman while married, molested children, robbed from the church, even committed murder and attempted to cover it up.  

These are just a few of some of the stories that have come to the public's attention.  Christ was telling the Scribes and Pharisees back then they had a greater responsibility to the people as do the preachers of today.  We are all human and subject to failure, but those who take up the calling to become messengers and preachers are governed by a higher standard.  They are given a special blessing from God to carry his message to the people.  

I pray each time that I write that the words that come from me are not mine but come from the spirit through me.  I seek not glory in these words but only to complete a commitment made upon become a new person, a new me.  My awareness was so strong that I wanted to do something to let anyone know that they too could experience what was given to me, a new life, a new beginning, an awakening.  I know forgiveness.  I know love.  I know eternal life within.  I know the light of life that Christ has awaken within me.  I know God's 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 23, verses: 23a; The Hypocrites.

Our paragraph topic is:  (They overstress the nonessential part of religion) Part 1.  

They were zealots in their desires to control the people.  They believed that every part of the Law must be applied to everyday life or else the people would find ways to get around the Law.  So they created rules to cover every possible way to keep the people in line and to limit any way that would allow outlets for them to get around the Law.

This is why Christ called them out on all the unnecessary rules they placed upon the people.  These were not rules in the Law.  They were only rules put in place by the Scribes and the Pharisees.  This is why Christ admonished them: "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"

Again he called them hypocrites in the face of the public that all would know them for what they were, and again the Scribes and the Pharisees were angered at being publicly humiliated.  But they could not see.  They could not understand.  They could not comprehend that this was an opportunity for them to realize who they were and what they had done to the people.  It was an opportunity for them to become open and be healed of their evil influences.  But this was not to happen.

Instead, as we know today, they were too far gone.  They were pawns in the game of chess between good and evil being played out for the prize of mankind.  Christ came to save us from the forces of evil that had held mankind in its grip since the garden of Eden.  Death was born and brought forth into the world and reigned until Christ came and conquered it.  He is the first of the new born.  He is the master and savior of the new man.  

All now have the chance at life instead of death.  All now have the opportunity at eternal life if they choose.  For the life here on this earth is only temporary.  But the life hereafter is for all eternity.  The comparison of life now to life eternal is but a speck of sand to the entire beach of sand.  Yet that choice is ours to make and we each must come to the awareness of who we are and why we are here.  Choose life eternal and not death.

Life is not about how much money you can make or your status, your home or car, or your clothes, or job.  Life is about life, and that is already given to you if you choose it.  Live a good life.  God will provide all that you need.  Trust in his love for you and he will provide.  Do not be anxious about tomorrow for you have a Father in heaven who knows what you need and he will take care of you.  He is loving and caring, protecting and providing.  All we need do is thank him for the saving grace he gives us.  Amen. 

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 23, verses: 18b; Swearing by the gifts.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Their distorted religion) Part 7.  

He called them blind guides, fools, they did not know what they were doing.  They believed in themselves.  They believed that they had the authority to know, the authority to declare, the authority to be right in their decisions.  But Christ called them fools, blind guides that did not know where they were going.  

They called themselves leading the people.  They called themselves religious leaders, yet Christ said that their religion was distorted, made up, not true, contrived.  They were blind and could not see the truth in their own beliefs that they taught the people.  They told the people that if they swear by the alter it is nothing: "But whoever swears by the gift that is upon it, he is bound."

Christ called them hypocrites, fools, blind guides, because they walked in the dark not knowing where they were going and they led the people in that same darkness.  But these were the Pharisees and the Scribes, the rulers of the day.  They were the ones that walked the streets who enforced the rules of the Law to the people.  They saw to it that the people kept the Law or they paid the fines for breaking it.

And then out of the blue came this stranger that no one knew called Christ who taught the people a different way to live, a different way to love, a different way to know their God in heaven.  He walked with them, talked with them, eat with them, drank with them, danced with them, did all the things that a normal person would do even though he was the Son of God.  He heard their cries and their sorrows, and the moans, and the groans of those who were suffering from affliction and he cured them all.  He opened the eyes, and the mouths, and the ears, and healed the wounds of the lepers and raised the dead that all would know that he was sent from the Father from above.

And they still would not believe.  They still hated him.  They still could not see the truth of who he was.  What do you do with a person who faced with all the evidence but still will not accept the truth?  You can not force them to change.  You can not beat the change into them.  What do you do?  You can only love them for who they are and accept that they are not able to change.  God is a god of love.  He loves the good and the bad.  He makes the sun shine and the rain fall on both until that day comes when his judgment takes place.  Where will you be?

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 23, verses: 15b; Sons of Hell

Our paragraph topic is:  (Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees) Part 9.  

How do you reach a lost soul?  How can you show them the error of their ways?  How is it possible to shock them back to a sense of justice that they might be able to see the mistakes that they made?  We all are human.  We all make mistakes.  We all are subject to the influences of evil.  In the time when Christ came, evil was rampant.  Evil was with men.  Evil was within the hearts of men and they had forgotten the God of their forefathers.

And this is why Christ called out the leaders, the Scribes and the Pharisees.  They were the ones who set the rules.  They were the ones who enforced the laws.  They were the ones who taught the people how to follow the laws of their forefathers, because they had the books written by the prophets.  They could enforce the laws the way that they saw fit and understood.  Christ called the hypocrites.  He told them:  "Because you traverse sea and land to make one convert; and when he has become one, you make him twofold more a son of hell than yourselves."

He called them hypocrites.  They were masquerading as religious men but underneath the masks they were creating evil in the hearts of men.  They were creating sons of hell, doing the work of the devil, not the work of God.  

 How appropriate is this message for us today.  We go out and evangelize to bring others into the church so that they may be saved.  The church is something new for them in that there are guidelines that we live by to help us follow the life that God wants us to live.  These may be difficult for a new comer to follow or even comprehend if they see others who do not follow the same guidelines.

God our father gave us basic commands to follow to keep us away from harm, out of the way of evil.  He loves us and does not want us to be harmed, just as we love our own children.  We would tell our own children not to put their hands in the fire because it will burn them.  God wants to do the same for us.  We can not base our experience upon that which we see others do.  It is up to each one of us though, to seek a personal relationship with our Father so that we know in our hearts what his will is for us.  His love for us is the key.

Christ is our Lord and Savior.  It is through his passion that we were reborn into a new life.  He came down from his thrown in heaven to be with us, to walk with us and talk with us to leave a legacy that we might know that he is with us.  It is through him and with him that we have a spokesperson to the Father. He knows our faults and failures.  He knows our pains and our sorrows.  He knows our hopes and our fears.  He is with us and in us, if we open ourselves to him through the Holy Spirit.  His love is endless.  His love is boundless.  His love is fulfilling.  He is the be all and the end all of all our needs.  To be with him is to be at rest for all eternity.  

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 23, verses: 15a; Woe!

Our paragraph topic is:  (Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees) Part 8.  

Jesus was bold.  He was outspoken.  Only the prophets and those who were crazy spoke to the Pharisees this way.  No one would dare speak out loud to them in public for all to hear.  Yet Jesus did.  He spared no words and did not hold his tongue.  He wanted all to hear what he had to say of the Scribes and the Pharisees.  He wanted all to know of their wrongs.

They did not believe.  They did not see.  They did not understand that the kingdom of heaven was at their doorstep.  The Scribes and the Pharisees only heard the words of a man calling them out to the public, something no one dared do to their honor.  But Christ did.  He said to them: "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"

In this paragraph he calls them hypocrites three times.  He tells the disciples what they did and how they did it so that all will know their sins.  He gives them three times to repent of their ways.  Yet they do not.  They can not hear.  They can not see.  They can not understand what is happening before them.  They are deaf in their hearing.  They are blind in their seeing and their understand has been taken away.

Where are we today?  Are we in the same boat?  Can we hear the calling?  Can we see the miracles before us?  Can we understand the things that are happening around us that give us the opportunities to repent of our ways?  We have a choice.  God is merciful.  He is loving and forgiving.  He is patient in his mercy and wants all to have the chance to receive his love.  The choice is ours if we can only hear, if we can only see, is we can only understand the gift that is given to us. 

 I am so thankful that I heard.  I am so thankful that I was able to see.  I am so thankful that I was able to understand the gift that I have received, that I am here today to write to you about it.  Seek it and you shall find it.  Knock on the door and it shall be opened to you.  Know that you have a heavenly Father who loves you and who will come to you and embrace you with his love.  I am a witness. 

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 23, verses: 14a; Woe to you.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees) Part 5.  

Christ continues to scold the Scribes and the Pharisees about their behavior.  He calls them hypocrites in public for all to hear which is not good.  The Scribes and the Pharisees are respected and honored and to call them hypocrites in public is bad.  

Christ did not do this out of hate.  He did not do this out of jealousy.  He loved his people.  He did this because he wanted to save the Scribes and the Pharisees.  He wanted to open their eyes.  He wanted them to see the truth of what they were doing to themselves and to the people.  But they were so blinded that they could not see, they could not hear his love for them, they could not understand the truth of what he was doing for them.  Therefore, he said to them:  " Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"

What would you do for someone that you loved that you knew was going in the wrong direction?  Would you try to help them see what they were doing?  Would you do everything in you means to open their eyes to the truth?  What methods would you take to help them understand?  God our father tried to make us understand but we were wayward children driven by the lust of our flesh.  So he almost destroyed the human race.  But he decided to start over with a chosen few.

He gave us free will to choose.  And Christ gave us the choice of new life or death.  His passion and love for the good that he saw in us allowed him to withstand the test of pain and suffering for all mankind.  Not for one or two or three but for all men, all women, all children on this earth.  

We live and die that we might show that we are worthy to have the choice of life with him in heaven.  This is our entire purpose in life.  Recognize the choice.  Remember the choice.  Live the choice in Christ.

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 23, verses: 13a; The Hypocrites.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees) Part 1.   

Christ spoke to the Scribes and the Pharisees in an attempt to get them to understand their plight.  He wants to heal them.  He wants to open their eyes.  He wants to give them the opportunity to turn from their wicked ways.  But they are too far gone.  They are too blind to see.  Their sight, their hearing, and their understanding has been taken away.

So now he scolds them.  He calls them out to the public by a name that all would see.  No one has spoken to them this way.  No one has ridiculed them in the public eye the way that Christ spoke to them.  No one berated them, belittled them, undermined their authority.  Yet Christ did.  He told them:  "But woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!"  

The Scribes and Pharisees were furious.  They wanted to retaliate.  They were enraged.  For if anyone else called them by this name they would have had them arrested and beaten.  But the people considered Christ a prophet.  They praised him for what he gave to the people.  He brought peace, and joy, and understanding of the true nature of the God who loved them.  They would riot before they allowed anyone to harm him.  But it was not his time to suffer.

What lesson can we learn from the plight of the Scribes and the Pharisees?  Are we hypocrites today, preaching to others the life of piety but living a life of sin?  What is our role today with regards to the responsibility to carry the message of peace and love to others.  

God is our Father.  He created us in his image and likeness, not as physical beings but as spiritual beings.  He is love and his love is for all things that he brought forth to life.  Yet there are other forces in the universe that would turn us away from his love, that would have us do evil.  Our Father gave us the commandments to live by.  He placed them in our hearts and minds to guide our lives.  For those who believe, he gives the spirit of his love to guide us in our daily lives.  He gave us his son to take away our sins that we might be justified.  And he gives us a high priest who sits at his right hand to plead for us in our transgressions.

We are loved.  We are protected.  We are provided for.  We are forgiven.  May our God and Father have mercy on the souls of those who seek his forgiveness.  Amen.  

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 23, verses: 5a; To be seen.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Hypocrisy of the Scribes and Pharisees) Part 4.  
We are talking about the Scribes and the Pharisees.  They are the leadership class in the time of Christ.  They are the educated and learned.  The ordinary people do not have books to read.  They do not got to schools to learn how to write.  The ordinary people labor in the fields and build for the kings and the ruling class to earn a living for themselves.  But for those who are fortunate enough, they go to schools and to the synagogue to learn to read and write and become educated.

The Scribes and the Pharisees are educated and learned; they are seen as different from ordinary people.  They dress differently, they talk differently, they consider themselves above the common man because of their training.  Christ tells the crowd:  "In fact, all their works they do in order to be seen by men."

Christ wants the disciples and the common people to see the Scribes and the Pharisees as they are.  He wants to pull the blinders from the peoples' eyes so they can see the true nature of the Scribes and the Pharisees.  Most people would look up to them because of their position.  But Christ wants them to see what lies underneath the clothing, underneath the masks of the Scribes and the Pharisees.  He wants them to understand who and what they revere as their leaders.

Is this an example for us today to look at our leaders, those that we look up to as examples of who we want to become?  Is this what Christ wants us to see?  Do we want our actions to be guided by what we do to be seen?  Are we hypocrites?  We are given examples daily of those persons that we wish we could become, the rich and the famous.  We see constantly on TV hear on the radio, in publications all those celebrities that we would like to know and meet.  Are they similar to the Scribes and the Pharisees that Christ talks about?

The Bible is a book of life.  It has many lessons that we can learn from.  There are real life examples that we can apply today to our lives as to how to live.  Who are we?  What are we?  Seven billion people on this planet, living in this time and space.  What do we have that can bring us joy and peace?  What do we have that can give us pause to the fast pace of life today?  

Two thousand years into the future Christ stands as the rock of all times.  He teaches, he speaks to us, he comes to us in our time of need.  If you do not know him, seek him out.  If you do not know him call his name.  If you do not know him, he knows you.  He sees you everyday that you live.  He knows your needs and your wants.  He hears your sighs and your cries.  He feels your pain and understands your sufferings.  He calls to you but you do not listen.  

Come!  He waits for you.  Come!  He wants you.  Come!  He will protect you and provide for you all the days of your life.  He is the Son of the living God.  He sits at his side.  He will speak to his father about you and ask him to help you in your time of need.  You are precious in his eyes.  His love for you is more than any love you have known.  Open your heart.  Let him in and he will come and be with 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.