St. Matthew, Chapter 24, verse: 24a; False Christs!

 Our paragraph topic is: (The sign of the last day) Part 2.  

The last day is approaching, and we do not know when it will come.  Christ, however, is telling his disciples and those who will listen and believe what to look for, what to believe, what they will see as the last day approaches.  He wants to warn the people.  He wants them to know what to expect.  He wants them not to be caught off guard as the thief comes to rob and pillage the people of their lives.

The last day will come without warning to those who do not know.  It will come unexpectedly for those who have not paid attention to the signs.  It will come as a shock to those who have ignored in disbelief what was shouted from the rooftops that this day was coming.  But Christ warns, beware of the scams and the tricksters who will attempt to mislead.  For he says:  "For false christs and false prophets will arise."  

Be aware of what is coming at the end of days, he says.  Christ tells us that there will be imitators.  There will be false prophets.  There will be soothsayers and people speaking in tongues.  Beware of what you hear.  Beware of what you see and believe for the falsehoods will be masked as truths to mislead one to believe other than the truth.  One must question what is real and what is false based upon the spirit that is given us from Christ.

The end times will challenge us.  The end times question our faith, our hope, our belief in the one true God.  It will strengthen us or weaken us.  It will enlighten us or darken us.  It will add to us or take away from us that which we have not.  For the end times is the final battle for that which is given us by Christ, and it is through him that we will be able to survive it.   

He came that we would have life more abundantly.  And it is that life that he has given us the opportunity to have freely through his sacrifice.  The end times will challenge our knowledge of our life and determine if we will become stronger or weaker through that knowledge.  For knowing who we are in Christ helps us understand our true selves and that knowledge helps us withstand the challenges we may face.  Our life will grow and shine with that knowledge and reach full potential when we become fully aware of who we are in him.  We are one in him as he is one in the Father.  All praise and glory be to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 

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 23, verses: 39b; Blessed is He.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Lamentation over Jerusalem) Part 7.  

Christ ends his commentary to the Scribes and the Pharisees with a prophesy.  He wants them to know that he has told them before hand what will happen and how it will happen.  He has given them every opportunity to open their hearts and minds to the truth but they are unwilling to see the light.  They are blind to the wisdom that comes forth from who they see and perceive as being a commoner, a charlatan attempting to mislead the people and disturb the peace.

They live in fear.  They live in doubt.  They live in disbelief of their own religion.  They are the leaders responsible for leading the flock to God and they know him not.  Christ told them that he was leaving, they would not see him any more.  It would not be:  "Until you shall say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!' "

This was the prophesy that was to come.  This was the message that was to be spoken by those who would see the coming of the kingdom of heaven on the day of judgment.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord to save the people from damnation.  On that day the people will know the truth of his name.

On that day all knees will bend and heads will bow to the Lord of all creation.  For he will judge all, the living and the dead.  All things hidden will be revealed.  All things unknown will be known.  All that we have feared will be open to understanding, for we all will be able to see the truth that has been hidden since the beginning of time.  

We were not given the knowledge to understand, to comprehend all things.  This is the nature of who we are, the essence of our being.  Yet we have, as human beings, the capability to perceive and do great wonders within our realm of existence.  God has given us the ability to love, to hate, to feel, to know, to see, to understand, to perceive, conceive, to believe beyond ourselves that which we do not know but can imagine.  We are the lowly creations without full knowledge, but we have the ability to understand on a limited basis what we know.  And it is that knowledge that allows us to conceive and believe in our God and his love for us.

We are the children of the Creator.  He has life and has shared his life eternal with us that we may know him in our limited capacity.   To grasp a small portion of his love for us is so powerful that it will fill to capacity every cell in our mind, body and soul.  We can not contain the truth of it.  But it is there for us to receive if we choose to seek it, if we choose to find it, if we choose to know a small portion of the passion of Christ in God.  Seek him and ask to know his 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 20, verse:34c, The ability to see.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The blind men at Jericho) Part 11.

We finish this paragraph on a happy note.  The two blind men sat by the roadside begging for their existence.  They could not see.  They had no means of support.  Their life and their livelihood depended upon the generosity of those who passed by their station.  They lived in darkness.  They were without hope and believed only in what they could get from those who passed by.

Some were generous.  Some were meager.  Some gave nothing.  And others cursed them for their plight.  But this was all they knew how to do to provide for themselves.  And then the word came their way.  The people spoke of his miracles.  The people spoke the word of all that he had done for others.  He healed the sick, opened the ears of the deaf, made the lame walk and cast out devils.  He even raised the dead.  And suddenly their hearts leapt for joy.  Suddenly there was hope.  Suddenly they had dreams of being able to see and they believed in the words that they heard.

And Christ came their way.  He walked the road that they sat upon begging for their daily bread.  And they heard his coming.  They heard the crowds shouting his name.  They cried out for his help.  Even as everyone pushed them aside they continued to cry out for his help.  And he heard their cries over all the others.  He heard their sorrow, their pain, their hope, and their belief that he could help them.  And he touched their eyes:  and at once they received their sight, and followed him. 

They were touched by Christ and received their sight.  He made them whole.  He gave them new hope and new faith and a new life to live.  Their hearts were filled with joy that they could now see the world as it was.  Their hearts rejoiced that they no longer lived in darkness.  Their hearts rejoiced that they were released from their prison and could finally be independent and provide for themselves.  Imagine the transformation that took place in their lives to go from darkness to light, to go from being dependent to independence, to go from being blind to now being able to see the world in its true form and beauty.  This was the gift that Christ gave to these two blind men.

We live in a world today that is filled with the things that we are given to see.  We have access to instant everything that consume our attention and occupy our time.  We can text, skype, talk, Instagram, Tweet, Google, Facebook, be Linkedin, use all sorts of new technology to make our lives better and more convenient.  We can even binge watch TV to idle the time away until our brains are fried.  But can we see the truth where all this leads us?  Where are we going? What are we doing with our lives?  What is the meaning of why we are here?  Is this all that there is to life?

Christ opened the eyes of the two blind men.  He transformed their lives in an instant.  And they followed him.  What would you do if your eyes were opened that you could truly see where you were going, where you could see what your purpose was in life, where you could understand who you are?  I saw but I did not see.  I knew but I did not know.  I understood but I did not have knowledge.  And then Christ touched me and opened my eyes.  He gave me new purpose and new life.  Now I know who I am in him.  Now I see clearly the world around me.  Now I have knowledge that comes from him and not from the world around me.  Now I have knowledge that comes from the Lord.  Come!  Receive your sight from the Lord and you too will be transformed.  You too will know the truth of who you are in him.  You too will see the light of life that is within you.  Come!  Cry out to the Lord and he will come, touch you and transform you into a new being, a being of light and life eternal.

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 20, verse:34b, Touched by Compassion.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The Blind men of Jericho) Part 10. 

Christ asked them what would they have him do for them.  They wanted more than anything else to have their sight.  They wanted to experience all that they had heard, all that they had smelt, all that they had tasted without their eyes.  And they wanted more than anything else to be able to not be beggars.  They wanted independence where they could provide for themselves.  They wanted to see.

All their lives they lived in darkness.  They sat by the roadside and begged for their living not being able to provide for themselves.  All their lives they were dependent upon what ever the passersby gave them, be it a penny or not, a crust of bread or not, a rebuff, a curse, a kick or not.  They were dependent upon the mood of the passerby.  They had no choice.  They were like children who were not loved, children without parents, children lost.  But Christ was there.  He came by their road.  He heard their cries.  He was moved with compassion for his lost children.  And he:  "Touched their eyes." 

Many times we are like the two blind men, lost in the world, trying to find our way.  We get caught up in the whirlwinds of life not knowing where we are going, being blown by the whims of the wind that comes our way.  Our friends, our relatives, the media, where we live all provide the environment that move us one way or the other.  We are led and influenced by what comes our way and like the two blind men, we follow where we are led.

Some may say that they are in control of their lives.  Some may believe that they are independent of the winds that surround them.  They believe that their lives are together and do not worry like those less fortunate then themselves.  How blind are they?  Do they have direction?  Do they have purpose?  Do they have the knowledge that comes from within?  Christ touched the eyes of the two blind men, but even more he touched their souls.  He opened their hearts that they might know that they were not lost even though they were blind.  He let them know that they were loved and cherished by their Father in heaven.

Have you been touched by his compassion?  Do you know his love?  Have you felt the truth of who you are in him?  His love will change you.  His touch will give you life.  His compassion will change your life forever and you will know who you are in him.  The world we live in, is death.  The world he lives in, is life.  Come!  Know the life that is within you and you too will be free.

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 20, verse:27, The First Disciple.

Our paragraph topic is: (Humility according to Christ's example) Part 6.

He had told them many things along their journey over the past three years.  He showed them miracles.  He taught them of the kingdom of heaven.  He spoke to them about his father and the love that he has for them and for all mankind.  He did many things while he walked among and with them on this journey that they were making. 

For surely it was their journey.  It was their walk.  It was their training,  For Christ knew of his path.  He knew of his journey.  He knew the time and place and sacrifice and pain and suffering that he would face.  But the disciples were in training for their own walk, their own path, their own journey which would take place after Christ returned home to his father.  So he had to prepare them.  He had to plant the seeds that would grow into full blown leaders and teachers, and ministers of the church that he would leave behind.  And the disciples had to understand what would make them great, what would make them first among all.  So he told them:  "And whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave."

And there it was in plain words for all to understand.  Desire to be first and you desire to be a slave.  Desire to be great and you desire to be a servant.  These were his words to his disciples who were passionate to be great, to be the best.  Yet his words posed a problem for them.  His words did not make since to them because no one wanted to be a slave.  No one wanted to be a servant.  In their time, slaves were the lowest and servants had no power, no prestige or privilege.  And they wanted to be known.

Yet Christ gave them his example.  He gave them the parameters by which they could measure their greatness, their position among each other.  Be a slave.  Be a servant to all.  A slave implied ownership.  A slave implied a lack of freedom.  A slave implied obedience, and those were the qualities that they did not posses nor did they desire to possess. 

Looking back from our vantage point of today, can we imitate the example that Christ left?  Can we become slaves?  Can we be completely obedient?  The temptation is great to do otherwise.  The culture that we live in today compels us to be anything but obedient to the example that Christ gave to us.  We are compelled to be first.  We are compelled to be great.  We are compelled to do whatever it takes to get ahead, to reap the rewards, to come out on top.  We are compelled to show the world that we have made it. 

How we dress, speak, eat, walk, and talk, all express who we are and who we want to become.  Our minds are constantly filled with the ideas and thoughts that drive us to want to be great, to be first, to be on top.  And for those who do not or can not fulfill their passion then the fall from the lofty heights of their passion leaves scars in their lives.  We become broken people who failed to reach the top.  Yet despite all that is given us, all that we see and hear to demonstrate that we are failures, we are great in his eye.  We are loved in his eyes.  We are protected and provided for under his arms.  If we just turn to him and accept that we are his children, we become great. 

 God is our Father.  He is the Creator.  He is the one who provides and protects.  We are winners in his eyes.  We are his children and he has given each and every one of us all that our hearts desire.  Come!  Open your minds and open your hearts and see that which you are since the beginning of time.  You will know the truth that is within you.  You will know the truth that no one or nothing in this world can take from you.  The life of Christ dwells within you and his love awaits your awakening.  You have a new life, a wonderful and glorious life ahead.  Come!  Start yours today.

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 20, verse:25b, Authority over the Gentiles.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Humility according to Christ's example) Part 3.

The disciples have expressed their anger and their frustration at James and John.  They want to sit with Christ also.  They want to be at his right and at his left also.  They want to be first also and that is the problem.  James and John did not express these wants, these desires.  Their mother came forth and spoke to Christ about what she wanted for them.  She came forth and spoke what was in their hearts.

What she did not realize was that her words opened the door to the hearts of the disciples.  Her words exposed them to anger.  He words exposed them to injustice.  Her words exposed them to jealousy.  And Christ had to speak to their hearts to help them understand what they were doing.  He had to speak to the jealousy, and their anger and their heartfelt injustice.  So he gave them an example.  He told them of the lords of the Gentiles.  He told them of their practices.  He told them how they would become like the Gentiles, how the rulers of the Gentiles lorded their power over them.  "And their great men exercise authority over them." 

They wanted to be great.  They wanted to be known throughout the land.  They wanted to be like the lords and rulers of their time.  This was the example that they knew.  This was what they saw in their time.  The rulers would parade through the streets with their guards and their attendants.  They would receive privileges everywhere they went.  The people would give them special recognition and this was what they thought that they would become being disciples of Christ.

Yet Christ wanted to give them a different image.  He wanted to give them a different understanding of who they were and who they would become through him.  For he was a lord.  He was a king.  He was the ruler of all the world.  Yet he did not come to be a king.  He did not come to be a lord, a ruler.  He gave up all his royal trappings to become like an ordinary man.  He gave up his crown and his glory and his majesty to become the pauper among us.  And this was the example that he wanted his disciples to understand.

For without the power and without the glory, one does not assume a position of greatness.  Without the majesty and the privilege one does not become haughty,  and aloof and assume an attitude of being special.  And without the attitude of feeling special the heart is closed to jealousy, and anger, and injustice.  For Christ came to right the injustices of the world, he came to act as a sacrifice for the injustices.  He came that the punishment may be lifted.  He came that what was lost may now be restored.  He came that his love for man would be established for all eternity.

We are here today to be witnesses to the love and the mercy and the forgiveness of our God and Father.  We are here today to testify to his love.  We are here today to become living examples of the life that is within each of us that others may see and know that they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.  For he came and gave that we would have life.  He came and walked among us that we would know the truth.  He came and gave us an example, a history, and a path to follow that would lead us to him.  He came to demonstrate his passion for us that would last throughout all eternity.  It is that passion that carries us.  It is that passion that guides us.  It is that passion that leads us to him each day.  And it is that passion that is available for all to know, to see, to feel, to become a part of their lives today.  His love is there for the asking.  His love is there for those who seek it.  His love is there for all to receive it even if they do not know him.  All you have to do is open the door to your heart and let him in.   

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 20, verse:23a, The Drink.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The mother of James and John) Part 8. 

They wanted fame and fortune.  They wanted to sit at his side.  They wanted to have power and prestige.  They wanted to be at the head of the table and not at the end.  But, they did not know the price they would have to pay for their wants.  These were they wishes of James and John as expressed by their mother.  She spoke what they would not speak.  She came forth and worshipped even as they could not worship.  She brought forth what others only thought about, what would be their rewards for following in the footsteps of the Lord.

They loved him surely.  They walked with him for years.  They watched him work unbelievable miracles.  They listened to his words with care.  They, like no other living today, had the opportunity to see with their own eyes and experience with their own beings the living Christ. 

He came down from heaven.  He walked the earth.  He lived amongst the people.  He taught them of the Father and gave them his principles and practices.  And then he died.  He suffered, he was punished as no man has ever been punished.  And he was hung on a cross for sins that he did not commit.  They did not know the whole picture at the time they asked to sit at his side.  But they would follow in his sacrifice.  And:  He said to them, "Of my cup you shall indeed drink." 

Here is something that we can ask ourselves today, "Can we drink of his cup?"  Can we take even a sip, a whiff or even a smell of the cup that he drank from?  It was a tall cup, a cup filled with issues, a cup filled with pain, suffering, unselfish love, grace, tenderness, patience, knowledge, faith, trust, and a deep seated passion in the redemption of mankind, a passion that required his life.  Are we worthy of the love that he has for us?  Do we know the value of the sacrifice that was made for us?  Can we not see, can we not understand, can we not know the beauty of who we are in his eyes? 

We live in a world, a realm, where we are provided with all that our hearts desire.  In order to have all, we must strive.  We must work, we must achieve, we must educate ourselves, overcome obstacles, revise who we are in order to conform to the common mole.  We must give up who we are, sacrifice that which is natural to us, change how we think and feel, how we know, and how we believe, in order to achieve all.  And in the process of all this, we become something else, somethin other than who we are.  We become something that the world has created.  We do all this that we might succeed, that we might be on top.

Will we drink of his cup or shall we drink of the cup the world has given us.  Both will change us.  Both require a decision.  We live in the world but we are spiritual.  The world gives us food, gives us protection, allows us to grow, it gives us love, educates us, gives us the opportunity to provide for ourselves, and demands us to conform to its norms.  But when we come of age and decide which road we want to take, we make a choice.  Sometimes the choice is easy, natural, given to us from birth.  At other times we come to re-evaluate the choice in order to continue. 

Our Father walks with us at each choice we make.  We can let go of the world and turn back to him.  We can change the decision that we make.  We can understand that there is something more, something greater, something that gives us peace and joy and love in our lives.  There is something that is within us that is not of this world but of the spirit and life given us by our Father.  It is that spirit that will guide us along right path that leads to him.  The choice is ours to make.  Do we drink of his cup? 

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 19, verse: 22b, The commandments: Having great possessions.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The rich young man speaks to Jesus) Part 16.

And now we come to the culmination of this paragraph topic, the rich man speaks to Jesus.  He came because he wanted to know.  He had conquered all the experiences of his time, having the freedom to do as he pleased.  Yet within all that he had accomplished he still desired something more.  He had a hunger within.  He had a hole that needed to be filled.  He had yet to find anything in this world that could fill it.  He had riches.  He had opportunity.  He had freedom to do all that his wealth allowed.  Yet he did not have the fulfillment that enlightenment brought.

He sought Christ because he heard the word.  He sought Christ because the word opened the door to his heart and stirred something within him.  He sought Christ because that which was within pointed him in the direction of Christ to get the answers.  And when he found Christ he was given answers.  Keep the commandments he was told.  That he did, but that was not enough to fill the hunger.  If he wanted to be perfect he was given other tasks to complete.  Sell what he had.  Give to the poor and have treasure in heaven.  And then, to reach that perfection, come and follow Christ to fill the hunger within.  When he heard the words he was filled with sorrow and sadness.  "He went away sad, for he had great possessions."

He had great possessions.  Much had he acquired in his lifetime even though he was a young man, he had great possessions.  Typical of what we aspire to have today is great possessions.  We want much riches, cars, beauty, good health, love, passion, power, beautiful homes, travel, fine clothes, fine wines, fine men or women in our lives.  All these are the things that we aspire to have today.  Is it wrong to want these things?  Is it wrong that we see and feel the desires of our hearts?  Is it wrong for us to want what is given to us to have?  After all we see these things presented to us everyday.  We are given to want these things because others have them and they tell us that we should want them also.

Great possessions are the things that are plugged into our brains daily.  Yet it is those same possessions that possess us.  It is the desire, the passion, the need, that drives us that consumes us, that possess us in our every waking thought and deed that lead us to the destination that we seek.  Some succeed in that goal.  Most do not.  What must we do to obtain that goal?  Or is that goal something that we truly want or desire?  Thousands of potential actors, singers, comedians, and performers grow up seeking to be the stars of today.  Yet only a handful succeed in reaching that goal.  And what are the consequences that are paid to obtain that goal?  What price do they pay to be number one? 

The rich young man had an opportunity.  He had an opportunity like nothing else that he had experienced in his life.  He had the opportunity to become a follower of Christ, to become a disciple.  Yet he had possessions.  He had great possessions.  And those possessions had a hold of him.  He could not find a way to let them go.  He was blinded by the glitz and glamour of death.  For all that is physical leads to death.  And all that is spiritual leads to life.  What is the dollar but ink on paper?  What is gold but a shimmering rock?  All that we are given to value in this world does not give life but death.  And there is nothing in this physical world that will give life except that which is life. 

Christ came that we would have life and have it more abundantly.  We are the life that he has given us if we only are able to see it, to feel it, to know it, to be it.  We are given death in the disguise of life, but life is within us and not from outside.  Life is the light that is within us.  It is the essence of that which Christ gave to us.  It is the light of life that results from the spirit within.  I am the spirit and not the physical.  I am the light within and not the body.  I am the life of the spirit and not the darkness of death.  For I know the truth of who I am in Christ and so can you.  I know the consolation of the Spirit and so can you.  I know the protection and the provision of the Father and so will you.  Come!  Know the truth of who you are in the spirit and see the life that is within 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 19, verse: 15, Christ touching the little ones.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Jesus blesses the children) Part 5.

Christ instructed his disciples not to hinder the little ones from coming to him, for he wanted to touch them.  He wanted to be with them, to see them, to feel their presences up close.  They were the newly born, the new life, the light of life fresh from the tree of life.  Christ knew them before they were born into the physical world.  He knew them from the tree of life as he knows all.  He knew them in heaven as they were still on the tree of life.

So he instructed his disciples to let them be.  He told them to come close.  He told them to come see him that they may see with their eyes the savior of the world.  Though they were still just children, they would remember the day that they met the Savior.  They would remember the day they saw him, the time that they felt him, the time that they were near to him in the flesh.  For his time was short.  His mission was almost complete, his journey coming to an end.  And when he had laid his hands on them, he departed that place.

The little ones come into this world without any knowledge or understanding.  They depend upon those that came before for wisdom and truth.  They take what is given to them and incorporate into themselves the knowledge of those around them.  And when the time comes, they may question the validity of what has been given to them.  Or they may accept what the world has offered them and seek to conform to the norms of the day.  But they came unblemished into the world.  They came without malice.  They came clean, new, fresh from the tree of life.

And then we laid hands on them.  And then we loved them.  We gave them the best of what we had.  We influenced them and turned them out into the world.  And the world took hold of them and molded them into the people that they became.  Yet deep within them there was still life.  Deep within there was still the light of Christ.  Deep within was the spark that came from God our Father who loves them, calling them from the world that they may know the truth of who they are.  Did they hear?  Did they see?  Did they understand what they felt was a deep need that could not be filled from the world? 

Christ came to give his life for the children, that they might have new life.  He came that all would have the opportunity to know that they are spiritual and not physical beings.  He came that we would all have new life in him.  But it is up to us to know it.  It is up to us to see it.  It is up to us to grasp the true meaning of our spiritual being.  For our life is in him and not in the world.  Our hope is through him and not in the sky.  Our dreams are fulfilled from him and not in the dreams of death in the world.  He laid hands on the little ones just as he lays his hands on each and everyone of us.  Reach out and take his hand.  Reach out and hold it.  Reach out and feel him.  And then, you will know the joy of your Father who loves you.  You will know the peace of your Lord who believes in you.  You will know the excitement of the Holy Spirit who will live with you until you make the transition into the kingdom of heaven.

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.