We finish our paragraph topic: (Obstacles to virtue) Part 5.
Christ continues to warn us about the Obstacles to Virtue with more examples of what we must do. In this final part of his sermon, he tells us that there will be those who will say to him at the judgement: 'Lord, Lord,'. They will also explain how they worked miracles in his name, how they prophesied in his name, and how they cast out devils in his name. Even with this defense Christ will say: I will declare to them, 'I never knew you.
Does Christ know me? How do I make myself acquainted with Christ such that I am sure that he knows me? Can I preach the word thereby getting him to know me? Can I perform miracles in his name and get his attention that way? Do I prophesy to believers thereby showing my wisdom of his truths? Does my ability to cast out devils show that I know him? Through my ability to heal the sick, will that make me known to him? What can I do to know Christ and to get him to know me? So he is giving us a warning of what not to say or do when that day comes. He is telling us, here is the test and here is the key to the test. Now, go out and and do not do these things. Now, go out and do not come to me at the end times with these words. For the final test to the question, will I enter the kingdom of heaven, is: "Does Christ know me or do I know him?"
In previous sermons Christ has given us example after example of what we can do so that our father sees what we do and will reward us. He has told us to not do our good deeds before men that they will see what we do and honor us. We are to do them when men are not looking so that our heavenly father sees and will reward us. He has said that we should pray in secret, that we should give alms so that no one else knows. He has told us to fast in such a way that we do not appear to our fellow man that we are fasting. For if we fast in private then our heavenly father will see and reward us. He has told us to not be anxious about tomorrow and what we should eat or the clothes we will wear. Our heavenly father know what we need and will provide. He has told us to ask, to seek, and to knock and all will be provided to us. We are to build up our treasures in heaven and not on this earth for by doing so our hearts will be in heaven and not on earth. All these things Christ has given us so that we will be noticed by God and he will know us. It is our intentions and our heart through which he will know us and not by what we will do in his name.
The final grade given by Christ will determine if we enter the kingdom of heaven. He will say to us, if he does not know us: "Depart from me, you workers of iniquity!’ For if we work to prophesy, to cast out devil, to work miracles in his name but do not know him, he will not know us. He will curse us as workers of evil. He will cast us out. He will remove us from the kingdom of heaven. For we did works for our own intentions and not through the knowledge of him.
There is power in the name of Christ. Through it many miracles can happen. Through it men and women can have the power to appear great on this earth. We must be aware of what we do. We must recognize that through Christ comes good works. Through Christ comes love, faith, trust, charity, forgiveness, peace. Through man comes, injustice, hatred, anger, lust, envy, doubt, fear, selfishness.
Without Christ our works are hollow. But with him our works take on the true purpose with which they were meant to create. It is only through a knowledge of Christ that we are able to reach a level of works that brings glory to God. It is only through Christ that the works that we do are completed, not for our benefit and edification but for the benefit and glory of God. He is our joy, our hope, our love, our salvation, and our peace. It is through the knowledge of him that we are transformed from death to life and become a new beings. It is through that knowledge and understanding that are hearts are transformed and we become one with him through the Holy Spirit. Then, when that day comes, we will know him as he knows us because our hearts are with him and not in the earth.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Sunday, January 9, 2011
St Matthew, Chapter 7, verses:21, The Sermon on the Mount.
We continue our paragraph topic: (Obstacles to virtue) Part 4.
In this verse Christ gives a warning to everyone. He tells us that many will say to him in their defense: 'Lord, Lord. ' But some of those who make this statement will not enter the kingdom of heaven. So this statement is the dividing rule for those who enter the kingdom of heaven and those who do not. It is the key to the test that some must take at judgement. It is an opportunity for us to be prepared now, before that day comes. It is the key to overcoming the obstacles to virtue. For Christ says that: "He who does the will of my Father in heaven shall enter the kingdom of heaven." So we separate into two groups, those who say to Christ, "Lord, Lord" and they do the will of God; and those who say, "Lord, Lord" and they do not do the will of God. What then is the will of God that we must do?
Christ has given us many things in previous sermon that we can do to perform the will of God. He has told us about the Beatitudes, the poor in spirit, the meek, those who suffer persecution for justice sake, the merciful, the clean of heart, the peacemakers, and they who suffer persecution, reproach, and false accusations for his name sake. He has further given us other explanations that help us to understand the type of person that we must become. He has told us about our basic nature which is similar to the salt of the earth. He compared us to the light of a lamp that shines for all. He has told us about the Laws that were handed down to Moses. He has told us about being angry and the importance of resolving disputes. He has told us about lust and how starts in our hearts. He has given us all of these sermons to provide God's will for us and how he wants us to live.
So what is being said, in this particular sermon, is that, if you do the will of God then you will enter the kingdom of heaven without having to plead and demonstrate all the things that you did with your life while on this earth. I ask myself what is God's will for me? What I receive is to love everyone as I love myself. How do I love myself? I want the best for me, and God has shown me what he has for me in heaven. This gift that God has given to me is so great that I think that everyone should have it. It is so wonderful a gift that if anyone knew about it, they would want to have it also. So the will of God for me is to tell anyone and everyone about the gift that God has for them. I cannot instruct them on how they should live their lives. I cannot give them solutions on what the Bible says to handle trials and tribulations that they will face on a daily basis. I am not a counselor to listen to their problems about work, or marriage, or relationships, or children. I am only a compass pointing to true north, a compass that wants to point to God.
Once a person reaches his destination by following the compass, by following the Shepard, by listening to the word, then it is up to God and the Holy Spirit to lead them, to guide them on a daily basis. It is up to Christ to send the Holy Spirit to dwell within them. It is up to the Holy Spirit to teach them daily how to live their lives. It is up to the Holy Spirit to protect them, to guide them, to feed them, to shelter them, to counsel them, to encourage them and to demonstrate God's love for them. This is God's will for me. Lord, Lord, am I doing the will of your Father in heaven? I humbly ask you Father, teach me your will that I may enter the kingdom of heaven!
In this verse Christ gives a warning to everyone. He tells us that many will say to him in their defense: 'Lord, Lord. ' But some of those who make this statement will not enter the kingdom of heaven. So this statement is the dividing rule for those who enter the kingdom of heaven and those who do not. It is the key to the test that some must take at judgement. It is an opportunity for us to be prepared now, before that day comes. It is the key to overcoming the obstacles to virtue. For Christ says that: "He who does the will of my Father in heaven shall enter the kingdom of heaven." So we separate into two groups, those who say to Christ, "Lord, Lord" and they do the will of God; and those who say, "Lord, Lord" and they do not do the will of God. What then is the will of God that we must do?
Christ has given us many things in previous sermon that we can do to perform the will of God. He has told us about the Beatitudes, the poor in spirit, the meek, those who suffer persecution for justice sake, the merciful, the clean of heart, the peacemakers, and they who suffer persecution, reproach, and false accusations for his name sake. He has further given us other explanations that help us to understand the type of person that we must become. He has told us about our basic nature which is similar to the salt of the earth. He compared us to the light of a lamp that shines for all. He has told us about the Laws that were handed down to Moses. He has told us about being angry and the importance of resolving disputes. He has told us about lust and how starts in our hearts. He has given us all of these sermons to provide God's will for us and how he wants us to live.
So what is being said, in this particular sermon, is that, if you do the will of God then you will enter the kingdom of heaven without having to plead and demonstrate all the things that you did with your life while on this earth. I ask myself what is God's will for me? What I receive is to love everyone as I love myself. How do I love myself? I want the best for me, and God has shown me what he has for me in heaven. This gift that God has given to me is so great that I think that everyone should have it. It is so wonderful a gift that if anyone knew about it, they would want to have it also. So the will of God for me is to tell anyone and everyone about the gift that God has for them. I cannot instruct them on how they should live their lives. I cannot give them solutions on what the Bible says to handle trials and tribulations that they will face on a daily basis. I am not a counselor to listen to their problems about work, or marriage, or relationships, or children. I am only a compass pointing to true north, a compass that wants to point to God.
Once a person reaches his destination by following the compass, by following the Shepard, by listening to the word, then it is up to God and the Holy Spirit to lead them, to guide them on a daily basis. It is up to Christ to send the Holy Spirit to dwell within them. It is up to the Holy Spirit to teach them daily how to live their lives. It is up to the Holy Spirit to protect them, to guide them, to feed them, to shelter them, to counsel them, to encourage them and to demonstrate God's love for them. This is God's will for me. Lord, Lord, am I doing the will of your Father in heaven? I humbly ask you Father, teach me your will that I may enter the kingdom of heaven!
Saturday, January 8, 2011
St Matthew, Chapter 7, verses: 16 - 20. The Sermon on the Mount.
We continue with the paragraph topic: (Obstacles to virtue) Part 3.
Christ continues his sermon by talking about fruit. He tells us that by their fruit we will know them. He does not tell us what fruit we are looking for, pair, apple, fig, banana, orange, whatever. He simple tells us that we will know them by their fruit. He asks us: "Do men gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles?" He is telling us that we should not expect to find fruit that nourishes our bodies from thorns or thistles. They do not grow on that type of plant. He is telling us that we should not expect to gather the good fruit of life from thorns for we cannot eat them. Thorns are not good for our spiritual or physical bodies. We should not expect to find figs on the brier patch bush because they do not grow from the thistles plant. What we should expect to find on thorny and thistle plants are things that are bad for us, things that can harm us, things that will cause us pain.
We will know them by their fruit. Christ tells us that every good tree bears good fruit and every bad tree bears bad fruit. We will know them by their fruit. He says that a good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. We will know them by their fruit. He is telling us this because he is talking about obstacles to virtue. He has just told us about ravenous wolves in sheep's clothing. We will know them by their fruit. He is telling us this to warns of what our expectations should be when we know them for their fruit. The devil cannot produce good fruit. He can only produce bad fruit. The Holy Spirit cannot produce bad fruit, but only good fruit. So if we are aware of the fruit that is being produced, we can determine if we have a good tree or a bad tree. We can determine whether we should eat, absorb, digest, consume what is being produced.
Christ tells us that every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. What good is it? They are obstacles to virtue. We will find them on the road to life. We will need fruit to nourish ourselves, to strengthen ourselves, to provide for our physical and spiritual needs. We will find bad fruit popping up all over the road to life. They are like weeds, constantly needing to be trimmed, cut back. Look around you in this world. Do you see the good trees? Do you see the bad trees? Do you see the good fruit? Do you see the bad fruit? Which do you gather? Which do you seek to nourish yourself upon? A tree is a tree, is a tree. An apple tree cannot be a fig tree. A pair tree cannot be a banana tree. A pineapple cannot be a mango tree. They are what they are. And a thorn cannot nourish the soul with life, for a thorn meant to cause pain, to destroy, to take life. Obstacles to virtue.
We will know them by their fruit. It is not necessary to put neon lights on it so that all will see. It is only necessary that we know it for what it is, bad fruit from a bad tree. Look not to thorns and thistles for nourishment, but look to the good fruit that sustains us and provides life. Look to the word and the tree that it grows upon. Look to the word. Understand the word. Know the word for yourself, that you may know the good fruit that provides life everlasting. For only through the word will you find the nourishment to sustain life within you. Only through the word will the fruit of life flourish within you that others may eat from the good tree of life.
Christ continues his sermon by talking about fruit. He tells us that by their fruit we will know them. He does not tell us what fruit we are looking for, pair, apple, fig, banana, orange, whatever. He simple tells us that we will know them by their fruit. He asks us: "Do men gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles?" He is telling us that we should not expect to find fruit that nourishes our bodies from thorns or thistles. They do not grow on that type of plant. He is telling us that we should not expect to gather the good fruit of life from thorns for we cannot eat them. Thorns are not good for our spiritual or physical bodies. We should not expect to find figs on the brier patch bush because they do not grow from the thistles plant. What we should expect to find on thorny and thistle plants are things that are bad for us, things that can harm us, things that will cause us pain.
We will know them by their fruit. Christ tells us that every good tree bears good fruit and every bad tree bears bad fruit. We will know them by their fruit. He says that a good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. We will know them by their fruit. He is telling us this because he is talking about obstacles to virtue. He has just told us about ravenous wolves in sheep's clothing. We will know them by their fruit. He is telling us this to warns of what our expectations should be when we know them for their fruit. The devil cannot produce good fruit. He can only produce bad fruit. The Holy Spirit cannot produce bad fruit, but only good fruit. So if we are aware of the fruit that is being produced, we can determine if we have a good tree or a bad tree. We can determine whether we should eat, absorb, digest, consume what is being produced.
Christ tells us that every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. What good is it? They are obstacles to virtue. We will find them on the road to life. We will need fruit to nourish ourselves, to strengthen ourselves, to provide for our physical and spiritual needs. We will find bad fruit popping up all over the road to life. They are like weeds, constantly needing to be trimmed, cut back. Look around you in this world. Do you see the good trees? Do you see the bad trees? Do you see the good fruit? Do you see the bad fruit? Which do you gather? Which do you seek to nourish yourself upon? A tree is a tree, is a tree. An apple tree cannot be a fig tree. A pair tree cannot be a banana tree. A pineapple cannot be a mango tree. They are what they are. And a thorn cannot nourish the soul with life, for a thorn meant to cause pain, to destroy, to take life. Obstacles to virtue.
We will know them by their fruit. It is not necessary to put neon lights on it so that all will see. It is only necessary that we know it for what it is, bad fruit from a bad tree. Look not to thorns and thistles for nourishment, but look to the good fruit that sustains us and provides life. Look to the word and the tree that it grows upon. Look to the word. Understand the word. Know the word for yourself, that you may know the good fruit that provides life everlasting. For only through the word will you find the nourishment to sustain life within you. Only through the word will the fruit of life flourish within you that others may eat from the good tree of life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)