St. Matthew, Chapter 22, verses: 42b-43a; Whose son is the Christ?

Our paragraph topic is:  (The son of David) Part 3.  

They knew the answer to the question.  They knew their history and their ancestry, for Jesus was from the tribe of David and this was written for all to know.  But they did not know the meaning of this answer.  They were the scholars of the scriptures.  They had studied the books all their lives, but they had not made the connections.  Or maybe they had made the connections but refused to see the truth in them.

Christ was the son of David but he was also the son of God and that was also written.  They, the scholars, did not want to believe that this man was the Messiah.  They did not want to believe that the Christ would come from such a lowly means, that God would send his son in the place of a man with such low standing.  So when they answered: They said to him, "David’s."   Christ responded:  He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call him Lord."  

Here was the mind twister, the rattler, the thought that could give them the opportunity to see the truth and be opened.  Christ wanted them to see.  He wanted the Pharisees to understand the truth and be healed.  He had the opportunity to have them all together before him in a group so he posed the question that would make them all think at once.  It would give them the chance to think together, on the same level, to resolve a problem among themselves in his presence.

We are like the Pharisees.  God presents us with problems, issues, that will make us think about the consequences of our actions, of our lives.  He allows things to happen, either to us or for us that we may open our eyes and see who we are.  We are fragile.  We are human.  We are flesh and blood that can easily be destroyed, or injured, where our life is taken away in an instant.  Yet it is not that which is flesh and blood that is of value that we should treasure but that which is of the spirit that is permanent.  We live most of our lives not knowing it and yet it exist within us.  Most times it is not until we come close to loosing it that we realize that it is there.

We are given a choice how to live.  Christ gave us that choice through his love, through his passion.  Thank you Lord for your fulfilling love, for your overwhelming passion.  Thank you for your the sacrifice that you made for me and for mankind.  May we come to understand and know the truth of what you have given us.  Glory be to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

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, verses: 42a; Whose son is the Christ?

Our paragraph topic is:  (The son of David) Part 2.  

Now the tables are turned and Christ has the opportunity to test the Pharisees in their knowledge and wisdom.  He wants to save them.  He wants to heal them from their blindness.  He wants to open their eyes so that they may see the truth.  So he makes an attempt to purge their minds with a question that might lead them to understand the truth of the scriptures.
They are the Pharisees.  They are the leaders of the people, the scholars who have studied the scriptures all their lives.  They have learned from the masters of their time the inner meanings of the writings of their forefathers.  They should know the answers to these questions.  So Jesus questioned them:  saying "What do you think of the Christ? Whose son is he?" 

They knew the scriptures of the old testament.  They studied them everyday.  They knew the answer to the question.  Would their minds allow them to accept the answer?  Would the answer allow itself to be spoken?  It would contradict everything that they thought and believed.  Yet there it was in the scriptures, the answer that they had not put together with the facts of what was before them today.  Contradiction!  Confusion!  Anxiety!  Would they believe?  

God gave man free will to choose his own destiny.  He wanted to save all mankind at first but Adam failed and Satan deceived.  So the soul of man died for many years until Christ came to redeem mankind and give new life to those who would believe.  The decision is not made.  The decision is ours alone to make.  We must decide, individually, as a group.  Do we live or do we continue to die?  

God our Father loves us.  The proof is in his mercy.  The proof is in his love.  The proof is in the sacrifice of his only son.  

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, verses: 41; Jesus questions the Pharisees.

Our paragraph topic is:  (The son of David) Part 1.  

Christ was merciful.  He was kind.  He was gentle.  He was forgiving in that the Pharisees constantly tried him time and time again.  They came at him every way they could because they wanted to show that he was a fraud, a charlatan.  They could not allow themselves to be embarrassed before the people the way that Christ made them feel.  

But that was not the intention of Christ.  He wanted to open their eyes.  He wanted to heal them.  He wanted them to know him for who he really was and not for who they thought that he was.  He wanted to love them but they would not let him.  He taught the people and they were open to him but the Pharisees were not.  Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus questioned them.  

Before it had been that they had came to him with their questions seeking to find ways to trick him.  He played their game each time giving them the opportunity to understand the truth of who in him.  And each time they came away lacking the understanding but filled with anger and hatred that their plans had failed.  So this time Christ decided that he would turn the table and question them attempting to pull the truth out that they might see with their own eyes who stood before them.

Who stands before you today?  Do you walk by the ways of the world or do you walk by your faith?  Today your faith is challenged and hard pressed for direction.  Strick the shepherd and the sheep will scatter.  Where do you go?  Who do you follow?  What do you believe?  Do you still have the strong faith that you had yesterday?  Your church is under attack and is infected by a disease.  Christ said that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church but he did not say that it will not suffer attacks.

Evil exists in the world both inside and outside of the church.  Just like the human body has an immune system to fight diseases so the church body must have the same.  Our faith keeps us strong and it is that faith that we must nourish and protect.  Christ gave us a new life, a new beginning.  It is that newness within that we must protect and nourish.  We are the light of the world placed of a lamp stand for all the world to see.  Now is the time for our little lights to shine together for the world is watching.

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.