St. Matthew, Chapter 23, verses: 16c; Swearing by the Gold.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Their distorted religion) Part 3.  

They were worldly in their beliefs.  They valued gold and silver and incents and jewels and all kinds of precious things.  Their eyes and minds were filled with the ways of the flesh and not the spirit of the Lord.  The prophets came to warn them of their transgressions but they did not listen.  The words spoken to their forefathers did not reach them.  For it had been years since the Lord had spoken to them.

The leadership of the people had lost their way.  They had become blinded by the ways of the world as did the Israelites in desert when they fashioned calves of gold to worship as their god.  Their minds were still set on the glitter of gold as having a value greater than anything on earth or in heaven.  This is why they said that: "But whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound."

They were fixated on gold.  They placed it at a higher value than anything else.  And they believed that if one swears by this higher value then one is bound by that value because if one breaks that bond then one would have to pay that bond in gold.  And yet not many had such a value in gold to pay.  

Yet who was to determine if that bond was broken?  Who was to judge if that bond was a just bond or a false bond, one that could be easily broken?  If the bond is broken do we fear paying the price in gold?  What would be the consequences if not paid?  Would it be jail, or a beating, or lashing, or death, or servitude?  What would be the ultimate price that one would pay for breaking a bond of gold?

What would be the price of breaking a bond with God?  Can we swear by him that we will be bound to do what we say we are to do?  Are we confident in ourselves that we can commit to do what we say that we are bound to do?  Is that something that we can swear by?  Is that something that we can keep?  

We are really between a rock and a hard place.  On the one hand we have a god who does not want us to transgress and on the other we have evil that does.  Our Father knows that we will be influenced by the evil that is in the world.  He is willing to forgive our transgressions if we understand that we have done wrong and ask for his help and forgiveness.  We are not perfect beings.  We are subject to make mistakes.  He is perfect and is willing to forgive our mistakes and love us still because he knows that there is evil in the world.  

Christ saw the good and the bad in all mankind and he was willing to sacrifice his life that we might have the chance for a new life.  His passion for mankind is so great that it transcended the pain and suffering that he endured to save us.  Now we each have a decision to make about our lives.  That choice is ours to make.  Open your heart.  Find the true soul of who you are  within.  Christ is waiting for your call.  He will come knocking at the door of your heart.  Will you open it 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 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: 16c; The person of men.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Tribute to Caesar) Part 3.  

The Herodians continue with their set up.  Their premise was to lead the conversation by beginning with a preset foundation upon which to build a trap for Christ.  They made conditions.  They made assumptions.  They made initial conditions upon which they believed that Christ would accept so that they could come back and use those same assumptions to tear him down.

He was a man of God who taught the truth.  He did not care for the any man.  He was truthful in his speech and words.  And he did not care who heard or did not hear what he said about them.  One of their premise:   "And that thou carest naught for any man; for thou dost not regard the person of men."  

You see these were the initial steps that they used to set the foundation to trap Christ.  They believed that they were smart and wise and cunning.  They believed that they knew who this Christ was.  So they had conceived a plan to trap him and to deceive him in his own words.  They had no idea who they were dealing with, who they were standing before, who they were speaking with.  All knowledge and wisdom was with him.  All things hidden were revealed to him.  And all that was under the influence of evil was open to him.  Nothing was hidden, nothing was covered up.  He knew all.

Yet here were the wise of the wise before him seeking to show that their wisdom was greater.  Here were the knowledge of the knowledgeable seeking to show that they knew more than he who held all knowledge in the palm of his hand, he who created the wisdom of the universe before they were even conceived in the mind of God.  Yet their arrogance brought them before him with the grain of knowledge that they possessed in an attempt to show how limited they were in their understanding of the master of knowledge.  Yet he was humble.  He was merciful.  He was loving in his judgement of them.

For they were his children and he was their Lord and Savior.  He knew them before they were conceived, before they were born into this realm.  He loved them because they were his own.  He forgave them of their ignorance because he knew that they did not know, they did not understand, they were influenced by others who would deceive them and lead them astray.  But such is the love of Christ.  Such is the love of the one who forgives and forgets.  Such is the love of the one who sees the good in what he has created and wants all to come to him of his/her own free will. 

Let it be known that the choice is ours to make.  Let it be known that the world we live in today seeks to turn us away from that which was freely given to us and paid for at a high price, the price of death.  The choice is yours.  Choose wisely, if you have wisdom.  If not then ask and it shall be given, seek and you shall find, knock and the doors shall be open unto you, and you shall 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 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.