St. Matthew, Chapter 24, verse: 11a; False Prophets.

 Our paragraph topic is: (He tells them of trials and hard times to come) Part 7.  

I am trying to imagine the stories that Christ is telling his disciples about the hardships and trials they will face in the coming months and years.  What would I think if I were there in his presence listening to the words coming from God himself through Christ to me.  After all Christ was the Word of God, the two were one being.  Would I become fearful?  Would I be afraid?  Would I not want to be a disciple anymore?  Yet this was my creator, my savior, my Lord, the one who has all the answers to my needs, the one who gives life eternal.  Why should I not believe in him and his protection if he is telling me all these things in advance so that I will know what will happen?

He is my rock, the foundation of all my faith.  I am blessed that I have been chosen to be here in his presence listening to his words.  I should have no fear, no doubt, no anxiety.  He has given me the tools I need to overcome the trials and tribulations I will face.  He has promised that he will be with me always.  He has assured me that he will send another to help and guide me along the path of life to overcome any and all obstacles.  This is why he is telling his disciples: "And many false prophets will arise." 

How will we know them when they come?  How will we be able to determine who is false and who is real?  Will there be miracles to show the difference?  Or will there be fake magic to confuse and mislead?  What tools do we have to help us make the decision who to follow or who not to follow?

Today we have many churches of many different denominations.  It seems that everyone wants to have a church or to preach the gospel to the people.  Christ told his disciples that when persecutions begin that many will fall away and hatred will abound.  Some will see opportunity to take up the mantel and proclaim themselves as prophets of God.  And today we must be careful to discern in our hearts who are the real prophets and who are the false prophets.  Beware of what you hear and what you see.  Do not allow yourself to become involved with that which is not a part of the good that is within you.  For that which is good will be turned to evil.

Christ came to show us the way to the truth and the light.  He came to open the door so that all who desire to know the truth have a way to find it through faith if they desire within their hearts to seek it.  There is an advocate that will come and be with you to guide you along the way to the truth of who you are within.  Open the door and let the light shine in.  Do not let the false prophets of today confuse or mislead you.  You have an advocate.  You have a connection to someone who loves and knows you.  Seek him and he will find you.  Ask for him and he will answer.  Knock at his door and he will open and greet you with open arms of love.  God is your father and your God of love. 

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 21, verse:21a; Unwavering Faith.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Power of faith) Part 2. 

The disciples saw the fig tree wither before their eyes.  They could not believe what they saw.  They were in unbelief.  They heard Christ speak the words.  They knew that he was the Messiah and that he performed great miracles, but they did not understand how this had happened.  They wanted to know.  They wanted to understand, but their minds and their hearts were not open to this.

This was their instruction.  This was their lesson.  This was their homework so that they would be able to transform themselves, their hearts and their minds, to the will of God.  Christ wanted them to know.  He wanted them to learn.  He wanted them to see that what just happened they will also be able to do.  But Jesus answered and said to them, "Amen I say to you, if you have faith and do not waver, not only will you do what I have done to the fig tree." 

We have seen great feats and wonders in our time.  One can think of the great monuments left for us to marvel and to contemplate.  The great Pyramids, the Eiffel Tower, The Washington Monument, the Hover Dam, and many other great wonders of man.  Our desire is to see them for ourselves, to be in their presence and to ponder how they were built and constructed.  We can be amazed at these man made feats of wonder and even want to be a part of their history. 

Even in our time we are amazed and aahed by entertainers who perform feats of wonder beyond our comprehension.  We pay to go see these tricks of magic knowing that that is what they are, slight of hand and mind performances.  But few have seen a tree wither before their eyes.  Even more, few have heard of someone telling a tree to wither and it obeys.  How do we wrap our minds around such a feat?  How do we begin to understand the how and the wherefore of such a feat?  This was the lesson that Christ was giving his disciples and even to us today.

We have the capacity to believe.  We have the capacity to understand.  We have the capacity to do that which Christ has given us to do.  The key is in our capacity to believe, our capacity to know, our capacity to trust that it will be done, and in our capacity to not waver in that belief, in that knowledge, in that trust.  Not only will you do what I have done to the fig tree if you do not waver, if you believe, if you know within yourself, it will happen.

What do you want today?  Do you want money?  Do you want fame?  Do you want power?  What is it that your heart desires more than anything else in this world that will satisfy you and fulfil your deepest desires?  Careful for what you desire, for material desires are fleeting and do not satisfy.  Spiritual desires are eternal.  I want peace within myself to know that I will not stress or worry for what will happen tomorrow or what has happened in the past.  I want forgiveness from all my past sins.  I want a true feeling of that which has been promised.  I want to be with Jesus Christ in heaven because I know that he is the only one that can satisfy all my needs and fulfil the hunger within me.  What do you want?  Unwavering Faith. 

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.