St. Matthew, Chapter 24, verse: 21b; Great Tribulation from the beginning.

 Our paragraph topic is: (The destruction of Jerusalem) Part 9.  

Who do you believe?  What do you believe?  Would you become fearful of the prediction of destruction that you were hearing from this prophet?  Would you not know what to do, where to go, who to trust, who to seek for answers?  Christ was foretelling the destructing of Jerusalem with such horrific detail that anyone would be fearful.  Was this a trick or was this real?  His words had been real before, why not now.  What were they to do with this dire prediction?

Pray, he told them.  Pray that this destruction does not take place in winter.  Pray, that this devastation does not take place on the Sabbath.  For if that will be the case then, he says great tribulation:  "Such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor will be."

Such were the spoken words of Jesus Christ.  Destruction like that which has never been seen or heard of before since the beginning of time will take place if this takes place on the sabbath or in the winter.  God made it rain for forty days and forty nights and destroyed all mankind except Noah and his family.  Christ says that that destruction is nothing compared to what will take place when Jerusalem is destroyed.  Pray, he tells them, pray, that this does not take place.  Pray, that you are spared this devastation, this destruction.

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: 21b; Caesar's things.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Tribute to Caesar) Part 10.  

And now we come to the meat of the issue.  They wanted to know what Christ thought of the tribute to Caesar and he told them.  He gave them what they wanted to hear.  He knew that they wanted to trap him in his own words so he gave them words that they could not use to trap him and words that would not contradict his teachings.

Caesar was the face on the coin of tribute and the inscription.  They wanted to know if it was lawful to give tribute to Caesar as he was the national leader of the Roman Empire.  Christ told them:  Then he said to them, "Render, therefore, to Caesar the things that are Caesar's."  

They wanted to know so he told them what they wanted to know.  What they did not know was that Caesar belonged to God and not to Caesar.  God created him, raised him, gave him power, allowed him to do the things that he did in order to fulfill his plans.  So Caesar was a part of God's long range plan and not the other way around.  When the time came for the Son of Man to walk the earth and to submit himself as a sacrifice for the sins of mankind all would be in place according to the long range plans of God.  Everything came to fruition.

There is a saying that God smiles at us each day that we wake up and plan our days and what we want to do with our lives.  We believe that we are in charge and that we make things happen according to our own will.  He gave us free will and we can make our own decisions as to what we want to do each day.  This is what gives him smiles. 

We set our course down the road of life not knowing what lies ahead or what paths we take.  We are in charge.  We have rosy dreams of what we are going to make of our lives and how we are going to make it big in life.  We are going to have this happy life ahead of ourselves.  And when the roadblocks come and the letdowns and setbacks come we become broken and scared.  Our dreams fly out the window and we settle for something much less.  And this is the part where our morals and values are compromised and changed.  

We are born rich.  Our dreams are already fulfilled.  We are who we want to be already.  That is what is given to us from birth.  But we must accept who we are and not compromise with what the world has to offer.  Christ came to give back what was loss to us from the beginning.  Our treasure awaits us in heaven.  We are a humble people, a loving people.  We are a forgiving people, a merciful people like our Father.  This is our realization.  This is our hope, our dream, our love, our desire, to be like him who came to live among us, to show us how to live.  There is nothing here on earth that can satisfy the hunger that is within us.  Only he can fulfill that need.  And the joy and peace that comes from his presences is so overwhelming that once you have had that a tiny experience of it, you will want for nothing else.  

Come then and seek that which is yours, freely given at no cost.  His love awaits you.  The door to his palace is open and the angels are preparing a feast in your honor.  Let us celebrate and rejoice to your awakening.

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:21b, A Mother's Command.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The mother of James and John) Part 4.  

It is strange that the mother of James and John plays a part in the Gospels.  James and John were prominent apostles.  But here in St. Matthew we find a whole paragraph devoted to their mother.  Her name is not given.  She is not described, but only as their mother.  There must be something more in this paragraph than meets the eye.  There must be some other message in this paragraph that demands discerning other than its mere meaning.

She came to Christ with this one intent.  She knew him to be the Messiah and she worshiped him.  But on her mind was the outcome for her two sons.  They must have talked about Christ in her presence.  They must have spoken of the things that he said and the things that he did.  They must have raised her curiosity and peeked her interest.  Even so they must have talked about their place with him without asking directly.  But their mother had no such qualms.  She had no other desires.  She only wanted to assure herself of their place in his kingdom.  So she said to him: "Command that these my two sons may sit, one at thy right hand and one at thy left hand, in thy kingdom."

And so this was her command to the Messiah.  Assure that my sons will be recognized in your kingdom.  Assure that they will be prominent figures near you and that they will be at your side at all times.  Why would she do this?  Why would she be so bold as to command the Lord and Savior to favor her sons?  Was she thinking for them or was she thinking of herself?  Did she want the recognition for herself that others would know that those were her sons that sat at the right and left hand of Jesus?  What were her reasons, what were her motives? 

We can only guess as to the why and wherefores of her actions.  Compared to what we see today of mothers and fathers who push their own agendas for their children, we can maybe understand the whys and wherefores.  Today many parents train their children and put them out before the public that they may succeed.  They support them and work with them that they may achieve great success in this world.  Parents start from the day of birth seeing great things happening for their children. 

They want them to be great doctors and lawyers, or politicians and governors.  They put them in training programs so that they can build on their physical abilities and excel in sports and athletic endeavors.  They pick and choose the best schools and best programs for their children so that they have all the requirements for success, all the while neglecting the wants and needs of the child.  After all the parents know best what it takes to succeed in this world, having first hand knowledge of their own successes and failures. 

So what must have been in the mind of the mother of the sons of Zebedee?  Did she and her husband plan for their success?  Did they train their sons in the ways to success in those days?  Were they to become high priests or to become elders or even to become a Pharisee?  For these were the models of success for the people of Israel in those days.  And when it was discovered that the Messiah had come what must have been their joy to be able to recognize and follow his teachings.

Today we do not have miracles.  We do not see the raising of the dead, the lame walking, the blind seeing, or the deaf hearing.  Today we only have the words left to us by the witnesses as passed down through time.  Are those words real?  Are those testimonies believable?  Do the words from the time of Christ have meaning to us in this modern time?  The mother of James and John wanted her sons to play a part in the future of the kingdom of Christ.  Do we want our children to have that same chance?  Do we want our children to know about him?  Do we want our children to believe in his words?  Do we want our children to have a foundation in the truth of what was established some two thousand years ago?  It all starts with ourselves.  Do we believe?  Do we know?  Do we understand the meaning and significance of the teachings of Christ?  The choices we make will carry forward to our children and our grand children and to all our generations to follow.  Command that your children sit at his right hand and his left in the kingdom of heaven and you will know that you have prepared them to be successful for tomorrow. 

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.