St. Matthew, Chapter 21, verses: 46a; Fear and Desire.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Application of the parable) Part 8.  

And so they that were within, understood the meaning and application of the parables of Christ.  He had finally reached within them and given them the Word.  They heard it and understood it.  And they were angered.  This was not what they wanted.  The Word broke through the barrier and was heard.  That which had made them blind, that which had made them deaf, that which had deceived them, did not want them to understand but the word got through.

And when the word reached them, the immediate defense was anger and frustration and call for action.  They wanted to hurt him.  They wanted to seize him and beat him for his words.  But they could not.  And though they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the people.  

The influence of fear and desire play a great part in our lives today.  We desire to be rich.  We desire to have wealth and popularity, as we see in the media.  We want to be stars, followed by all the public.  Yet we can not, unless we break the boundaries of the laws and seek to be in the news any way we can.  Flash lights and cameras are what we seek.  News paper coverage makes our hearts desire as we read and recount the deeds that we accomplished.  Robbery, murder, unbelievable stunts that bring attention to our bravery or foolishness, are the desires that make the adrenaline rush and the heart beat faster.  We desire fame, we desire fortune.

For most fear holds us back.  Fear is our deterrent.  Fear of failure, fear of injury, fear of criticism, fear if punishment, fear of embarrassment, are all the emotions that keep most of us from doing things that we would neglect later.  Yet the influence of desire and fear are duel emotions that play a part in our lives and it is the influence of one or the other that drives us to act or do the things that we do in our lives.  It takes courage to go against the grain, to go against the flow, to not follow the crowd.  We are social animals and require others in our lives.  We must have others of like mind to support our own beliefs and desires.  

We all want to get to heaven yet no one wants to die, no one wants to make the transition from physical to spiritual.  We are afraid.  So we put off consideration of what may come.  We put it in the back of our mind fearing to think of it until we ourselves are faced with the consequences or we see the consequences of others.  We are afraid of death.  Yet death is but a door leading to the riches and the wealth promised to us by the one who has come and gone before us.  Heaven is real.  God is real.  His love is overflowing.  The Spirit will guide.  The Spirit will lead us along the way.  He is our social guide our leader as we walk the path of life.  Fear not.  Rejoice in that which awaits you at the end your journey here on earth.  For we go to a far far better place than we inhabit now. 

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: 7b, No Man to hire.

Our paragraph topic is: (Parable of the laborers in the vineyard) Part 9.  

Our story continues.  Christ is telling his disciples about the house-holder who has property and needs help to harvest the crop.  He has gone to the market several times during the day and found workers standing around with no work.  Even at the last hour of the day he has gone and found workers without work.  He is puzzled as to why they are still standing around without work and he asks them why.  They tell him that they are still waiting because no man has come to hire them.  They are still waiting at the last hour hoping that someone will come to hire them that they may work.

Our story is one of simple theme.  It is meant to bring home principles that even the simple man can understand.  Every man wants to work to earn wages that he may provide for himself and family.  It is the nature of man.  Idleness is not in man's nature.  He needs something to do to occupy his time.  In past times man worked on the land, planting, growing, and harvesting his food.  He built his home, cared for his livestock, and provided warmth to his home.  He hunted for his food in the forest and sought companionship for himself with a mate.  This is the nature of man, the nature of his need to be productive.  So when they hoped for work in the market place, the house-holder, "He said to them, 'Go you also into the vineyard.' " 

So the house-holder wants all that seek work to find work.  He wants all who hope to not be idle to have work.  The house-holder has need of harvesters and seeks to hire all who want to work.  This is what we can draw from this parable so far.  For we have only talked about working and finding workers who hope to work.  There are those who seek to work and there are those who seek to be idle.  There are those who hope for employment and those who do not.  And then there are those who are work motivated and need no man to hire them but are themselves self hired.  They are the ones who know that there is a harvest and that there is need for workers.

Do you know about the harvest?  Are you one of the harvesters or just an idler?  There is work to be done.  There is need for workers.  The rewards are great.  The benefits are plentiful.  Do you have the skills?  Are you willing to work?  There are many positions that are in need of filling.  All you need is an open heart and a desire to be counseled.  It does not matter the day or the time, the need is ever present.  It does not matter if you are young or old, rich or poor, black or white, Asian or Latino.  All are called to be witnesses to the harvest that is in need of workers.

What does it take?  It only takes your willingness to follow Christ and your willingness to be a witness to his love.  Everyday you may be called upon to let him in.  Everyday you may be called upon to show his love.  Everyday you may be called upon to lend a hand, to give a word, to spare a dime, to give some food, to see beyond what may be apparent externally but to see what is internal that belongs to him.  For we are all created in his image.  We are all spiritual beings and not physical.  And within the external body is the spirit and life of God our Father.  And that is what we are called to love, to see, to believe, to know that we are all alike. 

We are not Black, or White, or Jew, or Gentile, or Asian, or Latino or any race, or color or religion.  We are all spiritual beings created in his image and given life, a second chance, through the love and sacrifice of Christ Jesus our Savior.  So if we can reflect what is within us outward, others can see and experience that which is within us.  Then we become workers for the vineyard, attracting others and showing them the way to eternal life given us by Christ our savior through God our Father.  For he is the one true ever living God.  And he is our creator and our Father, and our provider, and our protector.  Open the door to your heart and let him in.  Seek that which is within you and know the truth of who you are in him.  The light of life will shine forth and others will see that which is within you.  Be the worker!

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: 24, Difficulty for a rich man entering into the Kingdomof heaven.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The danger of riches) Part 2. 

With difficulty will a rich man enter into the kingdom of heaven is what Christ told his disciples.  He spoke words of wisdom to them.  He spoke words of knowledge.  He spoke words above and beyond their comprehension.  But he wanted them to understand the truths of the kingdom of heaven.  He wanted them to know the rules and the mysteries of that place which we all ascribe to attain.  For he lives in heaven and it is the place where we want to be with him.

Yet he spoke these words to the rich young man as he left upon hearing the words of truth.  The young man wanted to know what he had to do to enter the kingdom of heaven.  He had a desire to be with Christ for all eternity.  And in order to achieve this goal he had to rid himself of all that would hold him back.  He had to rid himself of all those earthly possessions that he had acquired, those things that had a hold on him.  For as Christ told his disciples:  "And further I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven." 

And this was the wisdom of the kingdom of heaven that Christ wanted his disciples to know.  He presented to them an impossible example to help them understand the difficulty with which a rich man will have entering the kingdom of heaven.  One can only imagine a large, hump back camel attempting to pass through a small sowing needle.  To our way of thinking this would seem impossible.  For a needle as we know it today is very, very small.  And a camel is very, very large.  The two do not seem to compare at all.  How would this be imaginable in anyone's mind?  But this was the example that Christ gave to his disciples to ponder, to understand.

This was the example that he gave to show how difficult it is for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven.  Riches demand holding onto.  Riches demand that they are kept.  Riches demand that they are protected, provided for, adored, glorified, and guarded least they are stolen.  They are not easily come by.  They require hard work and sacrifice.  They often times demand that we forgo our morals to acquire them.  And yet we can not take them with us.  We can hide them.  We can lock them up so that no one else may have them.  Or we can pass them on, so that others may possess them as we have.  But they can not be taken into the kingdom of heaven.

And this is the example that Christ wanted his disciples to understand.  The impossibility of a camel entering the eye of a needle is compared to a rich man entering the kingdom of heaven.  The two do not compute.  A camel would have to be reduced to the size of a pin head or the size of thread to be able to pass through the eye of a needle.  And likewise, a rich man would have to reduced to the size of a pauper to enter into the kingdom of heaven.  You see, what have we of earthly riches?  What have we of paper value, glass rocks that we value as precious or gold colored rocks or silver?  These things have no value in the kingdom.  They are already plentiful and in abundance, available to all.  Possessions of these things imparts no special significance.  They give no power, no prestige, no glory, no honor, no status in heaven.  For the gold in heaven is God's love and it is available to all.

We are children of God our Father.  His love is what fills us, what completes us.  His love makes us whole; without it we are empty.  Christ came to give us this message: our Father loves us.  Our Father loves us so much that he forgave us our sins and sent his only son to atone.  And with that atonement he gave us new life.  Our sins killed us.  Our sins destroyed the life that we had from the beginning.  And even today our sins take away the life that is freely given.  We have only to ask to receive it back.  We have only to seek to find again.  We have only to knock and the door will be opened to us to regain that life that we lost. 

The world does not want us to have that life.  The world does not want us to know.  The world wants us to forget and to continue to live in sin.  For those who want, the opportunity is theirs for the taking.  For those who seek the treasure is there for the finding.  And for those who want the love of the Father, his arms are open wide for you to receive his love only for the asking.  You will know the truth if you seek it.  You will see the life if you knock.  Your heart will know the peace when you open it to the love of the Father.  Come!  Receive the life that is yours for the asking.

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: 18d, The commandments: Thou shalt not steal.

Our paragraph topic is:(The rich young man speaks to Jesus ) Part 7. 

The rich young man asked Christ which commandments to follow.  Christ told him which ones to keep: Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not commit adultery.  The young man knew about the commandments but he wanted to know the truth from the one who had been proclaimed a teacher, a Rabbi, the Messiah.  For the word had come to him that there was one who performed miracles like no other.  The word spread that he was the one who had come to save mankind from the evil of the day.  And he wanted to know what he must do to obtain the kingdom of heaven.

Christ told him simply, keep the commandments.  He told him that these were the essentials to assure that he would obtain the kingdom.  Even though the young man knew of the commandments he was unsure of their importance in helping him open the door to the kingdom of heaven.  Christ wanted him to know all that is required so he gave him another commandment to follow.  And Jesus said, "Thou shalt not steal."

To steal: to take, without permission, that which does not belong to you.  It can take many forms but at its basis it means the same, to take.  We see something that we want, something that we desire, and we take it.  We steal.  We want, we take; we desire, we steal.  Christ tells us that we should not steal.  He tells us that we should not take that which is not ours, without permission.  Yet today we are programmed to want, we are programmed to desire that which we are not able to have.  We see the things, the objects of our desires everyday, every minute of our existence.  Some of those things are within our reach and some are not.  Some are things that we can attain in the future and some are things that we will never be able to have, through our own efforts, unless some fortune of luck passes our way.

Why do we steal?  Why do we have to have all that the world presents to us?  Why are our desires, our passions fed to encourage us to seek, to find ways to have what is not within our reach?  This is the way of the world.  This is what we are given from birth to death, a burning passion of worldly desires that drive us to achieve, to seek success, to have that which others have.  We follow the carrot on the stick, wanting to reach that goal of what has been given to us as a the measure of success.  And yet we are already successful in the eyes of God.  We do not have to take.  We do not have to steal.  We already have all that the world can offer us and more.  We are already given the riches of the kingdom only to give them away for the glitz and glamor that death offers in this world.

If we only knew who we are.  If we only understood the riches that is already ours.  If we could only see the truth of who we are in Christ, we would know the wealth that is ours, a wealth that nothing on this earth could compare.  Christ gave us new life.  He gave us abundance.  He gives us joy and peace, and happiness.  He gives us all, simply for the asking and only for believing in him.  He gives us the light of life that we may know and he gives us the consolation of the spirit to guide us.  And God our Father provides for us, keeps us from harm, protects us.  Yet we turn away from the Father and turn to the world for guidance, for love, for protection.  We turn to the world and away from God that we may have the things that are dying in the world, the things that are of no value.  We are already rich.  We are already kings.  We are already rulers, and priests, and ministers, and lords.  This is the heritage given us from the beginning.  Why throw away all that we already have so that we can steal that which is of no value?  Find your treasure that is within you and you will know the truth of who you are in Christ.  Then you will know that there is nothing in this world that you will want or desire that can compare to what you already have in Christ.  "Thou shalt not steal."  

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.