St. Matthew, Chapter 22, verse: 21a; Caesar.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Tribute to Caesar) Part 9.  

They had crafted their question with precision so that every word would weigh upon a given response.  Was it lawful to give tribute to Caesar?  Christ was not concerned with local politics.  He was not steeped in regional or national politics.  His was the concern of his father, the kingdom of heaven.  His concern was the politics of the universe and the whole human race not that of the local, regional, or national leader.  Yet the Herodians sought to test him with this question on tribute.

He knew not Caesar.  He knew not the local coinage.  He only knew that which his Father had given him to know and see and do.  He had a mission and a purpose given him by his heavenly father and there were those who sought to impede his progress.  There were those who sought to trap him.  But they were not successful.  He knew about their scheme, their plan and he went along with what they were doing.  So he asked them for the coin of tribute and he asked who's image and inscription it was upon the coin.  They said to him, "Caesar's." 

They were in his world and he was in theirs.  They did not know him but he knew them from eternity.  He saw them but they did not see nor hear him.  They were blind, deaf, and dumb to the word.  So he played their game, answered their questions, and gave them what they thought that they wanted to hear.  His was the universe, theirs was the grain of sand on the earth.  His was the augh and majesty of the Father, theirs was the pain and death of the flesh.  They knew not nor sought not.

Who do we know today?  Do we know our Father?  Do we know Christ the redeemer?  Do we know the life he has given us?  Do we know the light of life that is within each of us?  Can we get in touch with the living energy that is ours for eternity?  Or are we only here for today and gone tomorrow to the darkness?  What do we see when we close our eyes?  Is it darkness or is it the light of life?

Christ is with us if we only seek to find him.  He will come if we call him.  He will provide if we ask for his help.  He will protect us if we know him and believe in him.  He is the living Son of the Father.  He is the Son of Man.  He is the Son of God our Father, the creator of the universe.  And he is the origin of the love that we seek to fill our needs.  For nothing on this earth can satisfy the need that is within us except that which comes from God.  He awaits your call.  He will rejoice at your voice.  He will reward you with riches if you only believe in him and seek his wisdom and knowledge.  God loves.  God is!

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:21a, A Mother's Hope.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The mother of James and John) Part 3.  

James and John, sons of Zebedee, were followers of Christ.  They rejoiced in him.  They believed in him, for he was the Messiah.  John the Baptist told them that he was the one that they should follow even when they were his disciples.  They believed in John the Baptist and knew that he was a prophet but when he told them that they should follow Christ they rejoiced.

It was a special time for them.  They knew of their history as Jews.  They knew of their tradition.  They knew that God had guided Israel and protected them throughout history for they were a chosen people.  And they knew of the prophesy that the Messiah would come and walk among them.  So they were ecstatic that they had found him and they had the opportunity to live in his presence. 

They told their relatives.  They told their friends.  They told their brothers and sisters and their parents.  They told everyone that they knew about the Christ they followed.  And because of their zeal, and their belief and their hopes, their mother saw the change in them.  She was their mother.  She provided for them.  She raised them, cared for them, protected them and loved them from birth.  And she, more than anyone else, wanted to make sure that they were taken care of.  So she went to Christ.  She desired to know herself that her children would be provided for, taken care of, and that they would have some place in the new kingdom with Christ.  When she came to him,  He said to her, "What dost thou want?"

What do you want?  This is a question that we can ask ourselves, "What do we want?"  What is it that we want.  What is it that we want today?  What is it that we want tomorrow?  As though we had a genie that would grant us our every wish, what is it that we want.  There are many things that come to mind that would answer this question.  We could say money.  We could say power.  We could say fame, or fortune, or riches, or health, or any number of things.  But the real question is what do we really want in our lives. 

We live day to day, going about our daily routines.  We work, we play, we socialize with our friends.  We shop, we cook, we eat, we sleep, we do things to entertain ourselves on a daily basis, but what is it that we really want in this life.  Do we really know the answer to this question?  Do we really know what we want?  Do we really know what would make us happy?

We are presented with ideas of what others do, or have, or want and we think that this is what we want also.  We rejoice over the possibility of how we would feel if our wish was answered, if we won the lottery, or won a car, or won some money.  And the joy of winning would make us happy for a while.  But will this sustain us for life?  Will this joy be with us for eternity?  Will we be happy when we get what we want? 

Each morning we wake up in search of what we want.  Our every thought, our every action, our every belief moves us in the direction of our wants and our desires.  There is something inside that needs fulfilling, something inside that drives us to do what we do.  Christ told us that our Father knows our every need, our every desire.  He told us not to worry about tomorrow because tomorrow has enough worry in itself.  But the Father knows us, provides for us, protects us from harm.  And the Father fulfills us.  For it is with him and through him that we find what we want.  It is in his love that we are complete and desire nothing more.  Through his love our hearts desire is found.  Through his love we long no more.  Through his love we are finished and can rest in peace knowing that he loves us.  What do you want?  I want to be with my Father, my creator, my Lord and savior Jesus Christ.  For through him and with him I want nothing else. 

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.