St. Matthew, Chapter 21, verses: 33-34; The Householder.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Parable of the vine-dressers) Part 1. 

Christ is still speaking to the chief priest, the elders and the scribes.  They came to him seeking to know of his authority to teach the people.  They were indignant.  They were angry.  They were unbelieving.  He wanted to heal them.  He wanted to open their eyes.  He wanted to bring them from the darkness into the light.  He spoke to them directly but they could not and would not open themselves up to understanding.  So now he tells them of a parable. 

"Hear another parable. There was a man, a householder, who planted a vineyard, and put a hedge about it, and dug a wine vat in it, and built a tower; then he let it out to vine-dressers,
and went abroad.  But when the fruit season drew near, he sent his servants to the vine-dressers to receive his fruits."

Now this is a simple parable that tells of a home owner, a land owner who built a vineyard on his property.  He traveled abroad and while away he leased his property to workers who were supposed to take care of it while he was away.  Think of it this way, you own a house and decide to fix it up to rent out to a tenant.  You do a great job of repairs on your property so that the new tenant will enjoy it.  You spend a good sum of money to complete the repairs so that the house will have a good market value when finished.  You have taken every precaution to select a good tenant who will pay on time and will take care of that which you value so much.

This is how the parable begins.  It wants to tell itself so that the chief priest, the elders, and the scribes can completely understand its meaning.  They have heretofore declined to be opened, to hear the words, to let the light come in.  But Christ continues to provide opportunities for them to see, to understand, to be healed.

The same is true today.  We are given opportunity after opportunity to be open, to understand, to have the truth come to us that we may be healed.  It took some time for me to understand, to be open.  I had to be beaten down to the point of depression, to the point of despair.  In my state of submission, evil came to me and whispered to me to end it all.  It wanted me to give up, to believe that there was no redemption for me, no forgiveness for the sin that I had continually committed. 

Through all this Christ held my hand.  He did not let go of me.  He continued to walk with me no matter where I went.  And it came the time for me to listen to his voice, to be open, to follow his words that I might be healed.  And so it was.  I came to understand.  I came to know.  I asked for forgiveness.  I begged to repent.  I wept for all the sins in my life that I had committed.  And I turned away from the abyss and turned back to him. 

You can too.  This is my gift to all who will listen, to all who will hear, to all who will be open to understand who they are in the eyes of Christ who died that we may have life again.  We are precious in his eyes and he will not let go of his precious children.  Come!  Speak to your heavenly Father.  Tell him your pain.  Open up to him with your sorrows and he will fill you with the joy of heaven.  You are his creation, his love.  He will hear you.  Patience is the key.

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:17; Leaving Them.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Anger of the Jewish leaders) Part 5. 

He taught in the temple.  He cured the sick in the temple.  He was praised in the temple.  And the chief priest and the scribes were indignant in the temple.  They saw and could not believe.  They heard and could not know.  They felt the praise and their response was anger and jealousy and fear.  They were the leaders.  They were the Law.  They were the ones that the people feared and looked up to.  But Christ came and brought change.  He came and was different.  He came and the people turned to him and not to the leaders.

The leaders came to him to ask what he was doing.  Did he not know that even the children were giving praise to him?  Did he not know the effect that he was having on the poor, the blind, the lame, all the people?  For they all came to be cured.  They all came to hear.  They all came to be touched by his presence.  But the leaders did not see, they did not know, they did not feel presence of his grace.  And he tired of their indignance.  And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and he stayed there.

He could have stayed.  He could have continued to speak with them in an attempt to open their eyes.  He could have continued to show them the miracles that he performed.  But they were blind.  They were filled with their own importance.  They were already under the influence of  the evil that was within them and could not change.  So he left.  He went away.  He did not want to continue to be in their presence for it was offensive. 

Often times, even today, we may find ourselves in situations that are not tenable.  We may find ourselves in situations with others where we are presenting our point of view and trying to sway others.  But in some instances the others cannot see, they cannot understand, they refuse to hear what we are saying.  This continued back and forth opens the door to anger and frustration that may escalate to aggressive behavior or violence.  This is not our intention.  It may be better to leave, to walk away, to cut off the argument and not go any further.  For continuing to engage opens the door to violence and this is where reason leaves and anger comes in.  And with that anger comes evil.

Christ came to teach us how to love one another.  He came to help us to understand who we are in the eyes of God our Father.  He came that we may have new life instead of death.  Death came into the world long ago with Adam.  But Christ conquered death.  He came that we would have peace in our minds and our hearts, not hatred and anger and jealousy, and envy.  He came that we would be able to see and know that we are loved in this world.  We are not alone.  We are not lost.  We are not forgotten. 

We are not poor but rich is the love and grace of God our Father.  He is the one who created the moon and the stars and the earth and all that is within.  He is the one who gave us life out of the goodness of his love.  He is the one that will gift to us the riches of the universe if we come to know him and open our hearts to his will.  Come join us.  Leave the old behind and take on the new.  Forget the chaos that you knew and know the peace and joy of the kingdom of heaven.  Throw off the darkness of death and take up the light of Christ.  You will know the truth of who you are in 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.