St. Matthew, Chapter 22, verse: 12; The Guest is questioned.

Our paragraph topic is:  (One guest is cast out) Part 2.  

The party had started and the king was ready to make his entrance to see all the guest.  He was excited that he finally had the celebration that he wanted for his son and the bride.  So he entered the feast and viewed the guest as they were celebrating and feasting.  Finally he came upon one guest that was not properly dressed for the occasion and inquired how he came to enter.

"And he said to him, ' Friend, how didst thou come in here without a wedding garment?' But he was speechless."  

It is interesting to note that all were invited to attend the wedding feast.  All were told that they were attending a wedding feast and all knew that the proper attire would be a wedding garment for this occasion.  But this guest decided to come without a wedding garment.  It was as though he decided to dishonor the host by coming without one.  

The king wanted all to remember this happy occasion.  He wanted all to talk about this event to everyone they saw.  He wanted the word to spread of the wedding feast that took place so that people would know of this special event.  The king did not want this event to be scarred by talk of one who came without a wedding garment, one who came in disrespect of the king and the bride and the groom.  This was a happy occasion, a joyous occasion, one to remember for many years to come and not one to be talked about with scandal.

So Christ is telling this parable to the people that they will understand how the kingdom of heaven works similar to this wedding feast given by the king.  God our Father wants all to come to the wedding feast.  He invites the good and the bad, but all must come with the proper attire and not in disrespect of his graciousness.  Come one come all let us celebrate the union of the Christ and the Church here on earth for the sacrifice has been made, the price has been paid, and the union of the two will now take place in this grand celebration.


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 22, verse: 10b; They gathered all both good and bad.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The king's anger) Part 6.  

Christ continues to tell this parable about the king and the wedding feast as he compares it to the kingdom of heaven.  He relates this parable to the people because he wants them to understand the mindset of the king and his determination to have a wedding feast and the determination of his father in heaven to have a celebration with his son and his bride, the church here on earth.

Invitations were sent out to those who were special but they did not come.  They did not understand and did not want to be a part of this special occasion.  So he sent his servants out to the crossroads and gathered all:  "Both good and bad; and the marriage feast was filled with guests."   

This was an important occasion.  It was a happy occasion, an event to remember, for the bride would be forever united with the groom and nothing would separate them.  This was the message that Christ wanted the people to hear, to understand and comprehend.  It was an important occasion for all to celebrate.  It was an important event for all to remember and to pass down to their children so that they would also remember even though they were not there but their parents were there.

It was a joyous occasion, one to remember for a lifetime.  There was dancing and singing, and music, and laughter, and wine and food, and happy people.  People were dressed in their festive clothing to commemorate the occasion.  There were drinks to go round for all to have.  There was festive music to dance by and all were happy on this joyous event.  This was not a club party nor a house party but a grand ballroom party held in a great hall, the king's great hall.  And he knew how to throw a great party.

So we see today that Christ relates to us that there will be a great celebration to commemorate the coming together of the bride and the groom.  God our Father will celebrate this great occasion and will invite all to come and participate.  All will be invited to come and see the union of the two.  All will be invited to come to the ceremony that will take place that will unite the church on earth with Christ in heaven and to be a part of this great celebration.

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 22, verse: 7a; The King's anger.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The king's anger) Part 1.  

We continue the parable of the kingdom of heaven that Christ is relaying to the people so that they can have some understanding.  He tells the story in terms that the people can relate to because they have a king.  And often their king has celebrations that the entire population of that town knows about because he sends out messengers throughout the town to proclaim to the people the news of the celebration.  In this parable the king sends out messengers a second time because no one came when he sent the first message to those invited. 

The king was happy.  He wanted to celebrate with his subjects the marriage of his son and the new bride.  But no one came upon sending out the second messengers.  In fact he learned that his messengers had been beaten and killed.  "But when the king heard of it, he was angry." 

The people of the town can relate to an angry king because they have seen and lived through times when their own king is angry.  They know the consequences of his anger.  And this is an idea that Christ wants the people to know about when they think of the kingdom of heaven.  They killed and destroyed the king's messengers which is something that you did not do in those times. 

Can we relate today to this parable in the same way as the people in the time of Christ?  What would happen today if the word of God was destroyed?  What would God do?  Christ came that we would know of the Father.  He left us with the Church that we would have places to go, places of sanctuary.  And he proclaimed that the kingdom of hell shall not prevail against it. 

So we see today that even though there are instances of evil taking over portions of the church, in total the church still prevails and God watches over that which is his.  For if the church would fall God would become very angry and would seek his vengeance upon those who would seek to destroy that which Christ built.  We have a loving God, a God of peace.  But we also have a God that will anger against those that would seek to destroy that which is his.  Be happy.  Be thankful that wrongs committed against those who seek the righteousness of his word will rouse the anger of our God .  For he is judge and jury, and vengeance is his alone.

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 16, verse:23, The Future of the Church: Evil is rebuked.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Passion and resurrection foretold) Part 3.  

And so it was that evil stepped in to make an effort to change the will of God.  For Christ had willed that he would establish his church here on this rock and the gates of hell would not prevail against it.  But the gates of hell, Satan, and all his minions were upset.  They knew what this would mean.  They knew that if the church found its footing on this rock then their time here would be limited.  And they did not want that to happen.  So they began their attack to try and prevent the church from taking hold.  And their attack started with the first member, 
Simon Peter.

Peter was afraid.  He was fearful of the outcome of Christ's journey to Jerusalem.  Peter loved Jesus and he did not want to see him suffer and die.  But the fear that gripped Peter was only a doorway for evil to come in.  And so the door was opened and evil came and took possession of Peter.  It came and moved Peter.  It came and influenced Peter to take Christ aside.  Peter did not know.  He did not understand why.  He only knew his fear and that he believed that he had to act.  But Christ knew the cause of Peter's action.  Christ saw the evil that had moved him to action.  And Christ spoke directly to that evil, Satan.  He turned and said to Peter, " Get behind me, satan, thou art a scandal to me; for thou dost not mind the things of God, but those of men."  

Christ rebuked Satan in Peter.  For Satan had made an effort to change the course of history by influencing Simon Peter.  And Christ knowing that he was under the influence of evil, rebuked it and cast it out that Simon Peter may know the truth of his influence.  And this is our example today, of how to cast out evil that comes to influence us to go against the will of God.  This is our strength to fight the temptations that we face on a daily basis; rebuke the evil in the name of Jesus Christ.  Begone from me evil, for you are a scandal to Christ and to me!  For evil cannot work without an evildoer.  Evil cannot murder, defame, create scandal, lust, commit adultery, slander, or do all sorts of deeds without an evildoer.  So evil seeks to influence and then to create action in the person it influences. 

Do we accept the influence of evil as our behavior in the world?  We are affected by it.  We see it everyday.  We live with it in our society.  We are entertained by it in the media.  We absorb it in our everyday lives because it is in the air we breathe and the food we eat, and the cars we drive and the sound we hear, and our every moment of life.  And we accept it.  Or do we??  It is our norm or life.  But Christ rebuked it and we should also.  For evil wants to turns us away from God.  Evil wants to blind us from the truth of who we are.  Evil wants us to accept the norm of our everyday lives and believe that it is OK, it is fun, it is exciting.  Is it acceptable and must it be rebuked?  How then, can we rebuke something that we are not aware, exists.  

We first must awaken to the sounds, the sights, the taste, the smell of evil.  We must become aware of what we face.  Evil would have us sleeping but we must be awake, eyes fully open, ears fully sensitive to the sounds of evil, and hearts closed to the addiction that it places upon us.  For without this awareness we are lost in the trap of this world.  And it is not until we face the crossroads and have to decide or until death knocks upon our door that we become aware of our state of our mind and heart.  Our hearts go out for those who do not have a choice, where death steals their life and death destroys their opportunity to have eternal happiness with Christ.  For Christ came that we may have life and have it more abundantly.  So open your eyes, and ears and your heart to the will of Christ.  A path has been set before you that you can follow.  Christ awaits you and the Holy Spirit welcomes 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 16, verse: 22, The Future of the Church: the first member wavers.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Passion and resurrection foretold) Part 2.   

Simon Peter was the first member of the Church.  Simon Peter was given the knowledge of Christ's origin.  Simon Peter was given the revelation.  And Simon Peter was under attack by evil because evil wanted to prevent the church from taking hold here on this rock, this earth.  For Christ had willed that his church would be established and that the gates of hell would not prevail against it.  Yet the gates of hell and evil itself would make every effort to tear it down, to undermine it's efforts, to bring scandal, to discredit the the true nature of its creator, and to do anything it can to turn man against Christ.

Christ was the teacher.  It was his mission to teach his disciples.  He had to give them the wisdom to withstand what was coming before them.  He had to provide them with the understanding to see the truth of what would happen to him.  He had to show them how all was predestined and written about him before he came to earth.  And he had to prepare them for the future of their mission after his mission was complete.  They did not know.  They did not yet understand.  They did not fully comprehend the teachings that he gave them but they would take them to heart. 

And the first member of the church, Simon Peter, was under attack.  He heard what was being said.  He felt the agony of what would happen.  He knew the truth of the consequences of the forthcoming storm and he was afraid.  He was under attack and his heart was opened to allow fear to come in.  And with that fear came evil.  For evil took possession of him.  Evil controlled him and made him fear.  And evil moved him to action.   And Peter taking him aside, began to chide him, saying, "Far be it from thee,O Lord; this will never happen to thee."

Peter was the first member of the church and today there are many.  The church is in us.  The church is beside us.  The church is through us and with us in our daily lives.  But are we with the church?  Are we true members of the church?  Do we belong to the church as the church belongs to us?  We perform our weekly duties by going to Sunday service.  We pray.  We perform our ritual and prescribed duties, but does that make us true members?  For we live in a world that turns us away from the church.  We live in a world that would have us not believe in the truth of the church.  We work, sleep, cry, love, play, and have all our waking hours in a place that would turn us away from the kingdom of heaven. 

Simon Peter was under attack and he took Christ aside and told him that it would not happen.  He told Christ that he could not believe that these things would happen to him.  Yet he did not know that he was at war with the world.  Peter did not understand then, that evil was around him and influenced him to act.  The times since then and the times now have not changed.  The church is at war.  We the members of the church are at war with evil and the war starts with each of us individually.  How we think, how we act, how we believe, how we work, how we play, how we love, how we see, and most of all how we open our hearts are subject to the war we wage with evil. 

For it is through the heart that evil finds passage.  It is in the heart that evil wants to reside.  It is with the heart that evil wants to possess that it may create evildoers for its work.  Guard your heart from the tricks and traps of the world, for they are many and subtle.  Close the door of your heart to those things that would compels you to love.  And protect your heart with the truth that comes from and through Christ, our savior.  For with him and through him and by him, we are transformed into the children that our father created.  We are the light of the world and the light from the Holy Spirit should resides in us.  Do you know?  Can you see?  Christ told us how to be certain.  Open the door of your heart and invite him in.  He will come and reside with you.  Follow the path set before you and know the truth of who you are 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 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 16, verse: 21, The Future of the Church: The Foretelling

Our paragraph topic is:  (Passion and resurrection foretold) Part 1.   

And so it was that the church was established in Christ Jesus.  And Simon Peter became the first member of the church here on earth.  For it was in him and through him and of him that the word was spread throughout the earth by the will of Christ Jesus and the love of God the Father.  Two thousand years the church has withstood the wars and deaths and crimes and evil in the world and still stands today.  It has been battered and beaten and torn from within and still survives as Christ willed it during his here mission on earth.  

And now the final days were approaching.  Christ continually spoke to his disciples about his mission and his purpose.  He told them of the future.  He described to them what was coming.  He gave them the vision of what was to happen to him and how it would all end.  Yet they did not understand.  They did not know.  They did not fully comprehend that these things must take place to save mankind.  The disciples only saw the material.  They only lived in the flesh and not in the spirit.  For the time was approaching when the sacrifice must be given that man would be saved.  So Christ taught them of the things to come.   From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and Scribes and chief priests, and be put to death, and on the third day rise again.

This was the future of one so meek and mild.  This was the future of one so loving and understanding.  This was the future of one so forgiving and one so passionate about what must be done for mankind.  Death was waiting.  Torture and pain were at his doorstep.  Humiliation and dishonor, hatred and abuse, bloodshed and mutilation of such kind that no man could endure.  Yet knowing all this he willingly submitted.  Christ was the only begotten son of God, first, before all things were created.  He knew not pain.  He knew not suffering.  He knew not death.  And yet he gave up his heavenly crown, his kingly position, his place on the throne at the right hand of his father to become man that all mankind would not be condemned to death.

This was his mission.  This was his passion.  This was his purpose in becoming man and taking on human form.  God, the ultimate judge, pronounced that if Adam eat of the forbidden fruit that he would surely die.  That was the judgement.  That was the decision made by Adam.  And death came forth to rule over mankind until the judgement could be satisfied, placated, annulled.  And it could only be satisfied with the blood from one so pure and without sin.  And so Christ entered into his mission knowing the consequences of what was to take place. 

He gave of his life so willingly because the price had to be paid that man could have life and have life eternally.   So those who seek, those who desire, those who want to know, can find eternal life in Christ.  For through him and in him and with him comes forth spiritual life in man.  And those who do not seek, those who do not know, those who do not desire are of death and have not life eternal.  Come!  Follow the path set before you.  Seek the knowledge that brings eternal life and know the truth of who you are in Christ.  The spirit awaits your coming.    

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 16, verse: 19, The Rock: The Keys to the Kingodm of Heaven.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Peter's confession) Part 7.

And so the church was established on this earth.  His time was coming to an end.  His mission was being completed and his final sacrifice was about to be made.  Christ was the lamb, the perfect offering, the pure gift to amend the judgement made against man for his sins.  Death would be overcome and new life given to those who believed.  And the gates of hell would be opened to all those who waited so long for this time to come.  Now the final chapter must be written and it would be finished.  

Evil did not like what was happening.  Evil wanted to stop the process, to stop the establishment of the church, to prevent it from being established.  But Christ spoke and his will was done.  The gates of hell shall not prevail against it.  Try as they might evil had no say.  Yet evil still wants to prevail and so the powers of heaven were given to Peter as the symbol of the church.  The powers to maintain the church and assure that it would stand throughout all time.  And Christ said to him: "And I will give thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

And so it was and is still today.  The church has the keys of the kingdom of heaven as given it by Christ.  To bind on earth is also set in heaven and to loose on earth is the rule in heaven.  The keys of heaven were given to open doors and the keys to lock them and keep them shut.  To the church was given this power.  What is the church, who is the church?  Is it the physical building that we inhabit today?  Is this the church?  Or are the people the church?  Do the people have this power to bind and to loose if they are the church?

The soul of mankind is at stake here today.  Evil wants to possess mankind that it may rule over him to perform evil in the world.  For evil exists to influence man to do evil in the world.  Evil doers are the handy work of evil for they perform all sorts of evil in the world.  But without the evildoer evil does not have a slave to perform its will.  So it is, that man is possessed of evil and commits murders and other crimes.  We have only to witness the evil that is performed on the innocent today.  Justice is mine says the Lord and the scales of justice will be balanced. 

We are the church, not the buildings and structures that we worship in.  Christ has given us the choice to close the doors to evil or to open them.  The decision is ours individually and collectively.  And so is the justice or injustice that comes with our decisions.  Close the doors to evil or open them.  Close the doors of heaven or open them to your hearts.  That is the power which is given us, the church.  The gates of hell shall not prevail against our decision once it is made.  

We live in a world possessed of evil.  We are on the battlefield everyday for the possession of our souls and yet we are asleep on the battlefield.  We live without awareness.  We eat, sleep, play, work, dream, desire, worship, toil, cry, moan, bleed, and die, dimly aware of the battle that we are engaged in.  And yet when evil raises it's ugly head our lives are shattered to pieces trying to make sense of why evil prevailed.  We are aliens in an unknown world and do not realize that we belong to Christ and not to this world.  Our home is in heaven and not on this earth.  Our joy and our happiness and our peace cannot be found on this rock but only with Christ.  And for those who choose to loose evil, their place is in hell with evil.  It often amazes me to see how we cling to this physical body, fearing death, and yet desire to go to heaven, unable to let go of the physical and accept the spiritual.  Come, you have the keys of the kingdom of heaven.  Open the door of your heart and let it in.  The Holy Spirit awaits your call, your request, your plea.  Follow the path and experience the treasure of your heart.

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 16, verse: 18, The Rock: The Church.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Peter's confession) Part 6.   

And to Simon was given the truth from heaven.  For not by his own understanding did he come to know the truth.  By the revelation of God the Father himself, did Simon come to know, did Simon come to speak, did Simon come to believe with certainty that Jesus was the Christ, Son of the Living God.  For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that mankind would be saved from destruction and damnation.  For Christ came to redeem man from the sin of Adam and to do something more.  He came to establish his kingdom here on earth, on this rock.

The disciples did not know.  They followed Jesus because they felt that there was something different about him.  They followed him because they saw the miracles that he performed.  They followed him because they believed that they would be a part of something greater than themselves and their own accomplishments.  They followed him because they saw for themselves what the crowds felt as he preached and taught a new way of life, different from that which was taught by the Pharisees and the Saducees.  They followed and the crowds followed because Christ was the light of the world.  But there was more. 

This was not just a one time thing; Christ came, he overcame, and he left.  Christ came to do more than just preach and teach.  He came to train and to establish.  He came to build and to create.  He came to dominate that no one and nothing would destroy what he was creating and building, the church.  And so he spoke, that his church would be created.  He commanded that it would be done.  He willed that the evil of hell would not overcome what he was creating.  And so it was and is today.   "And I say to thee, thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

And so it began some two thousand years ago that Christ established his church here on this rock.  Nowhere else did he come except to this rock the earth to build his church that would last down through the ages and for eternity.  He will come again to judge, to separate the goats and the sheep, the wheat from the tare, the good from the evil.  Only the father knows the date and the time.  Only the father will be the judge.  Only the father will call an end to all things as we know it.  We all have heard the predictions.  We all have been warned as to the final outcome.  Are we prepared to meet our maker?  Are we ready to meet death, right now?

The gates of hell shall not prevail against the church.  The gates of hell shall not overcome the power of what Christ began.  The gates of hell shall not destroy what Christ created for you and for me.  He gave us a place to grow.  He gave us a place to thrive.  He gave us fertile soil to be nurtured in, a place to be fruitful.  He gave us the seed that is planted within us.  He gave us new life that we may live.  He gives us joy, the knowledge that he is with us.  He gives us protection from the dangers of the world and the evil that awaits us.  He gives us love that guides us and fills us with the knowledge that he is the one sent down from heaven by our Father and our God.  We have a living God who is alive and not dead.  We have a living God that will come to our aid if we open our hearts to him.  We have a living God in the church that is with us, in the church that is in us, in the church that is a part of us.   

Come!  Open your hearts to the love of Christ and accept the church that you are a part of.  Receive the Holy Spirit that you may know the truth of who you are in Christ.  I have and I know who I am in Christ.  I see me everyday in him.  I know me everyday in him.  And the Holy Spirit abides with me.  Follow the path set before you and you too will know the truth of who you are.

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!