God's Word on That

Category: General

General thoughts and ponderings

  • Diving into Matthew 13

    Here we find seven parables of the kingdom meant for the crowd, not just for Jesus’ disciples. A parable is a figure of speech in which a moral or spiritual truth is illustrated by an analogy drawn from everyday experiences. It takes from one familiar aspect of life whose truth can be applied to another aspect. They present truths about the kingdom in this present day. Parables make a single point vs. an allegory where every detail has a symbolic meaning.

    Finding the light in Matthew – the old and the new.

    They are called “mysteries” because they were not revealed in the O.T., and they are revealed by Christ Jesus only to those who are properly related to the kingdom. “Mystery” is used because Jesus presents the direction the kingdom is going to take in the interval between the rejection of the King and when He, the King, comes to set up His kingdom. This segment of history was never revealed in O.T. times.

    The nature of the parable is to involve the listener in the story so they discern the meaning for themselves (2 Samuel 12:1-7). Jesus explained these two parables probably to give His disciples encouragement when their teachings were not listened to, and to know that the harvest would still be great if they but persevered.

    The first is a parable about the soils. Note the soils over the sower: the sower doesn’t’ change. The soil cannot till itself, but can allow itself to be changed. The soil that has no room for root depicts those who fall away the moment that belonging to God costs them something. But note, that even the good soil still needs watering and tilling and weeding and rotating. We all have to pay some price, just so we can allow God to change the soil we turn out to be. We don’t get to choose the seed, only the soil we can be. The good-soil people meditate on God’s Word until it brings understanding, showing them their shortcomings and weaknesses. So they cultivate the good fruit that shows they are growing (Luke 8:15).

    The parable of the tares shows us that evil mixes into the good even in our churches. Jesus doesn’t want us to prematurely uproot all the weeds we see, lest we damage the tender roots of good seed. This tells me to not try to rid my mind of bad thoughts before I can act on good thoughts. I should step out and act on the good as soon as I can, and leave the bad to Jesus and His angles. Over time the weeds will get choked out, and we will bear more fruit.

    The parables of the mustard seed and the yeast in the dough tells me the gospel starts from a small amount and builds — I may not even know how, but it builds. The Spirit is already at work in the world. The unseen power of God will work and can be trusted to produce a crop. I just have to do my part to water and till.

    The hidden treasure and the pearl of great value shows the discipline I must submit to, but the supreme value of the find! The hidden treasure is like those who stumble on kingdom knowledge by accident. The pearl is like those who actually seek something of value and find the kingdom in their searching. No price is too great to pay. The net of tremendous catch informs me that no matter how it is found, only those worthy of the Great Catch are those who are gathered into the kingdom. Also of note is that I cannot separate good from bad while I preach and teach. God will do that part later.

    We all live with demands for patience and zeal. We are tempted to rush in and pull up evil by the roots wherever we see it, but this may destroy fragile goodness trying to grow. Not only that, but we miss the plank if we go after specks (Matthew 7:3). Let us be lenient with ourselves and those around us.

    Jesus’ final words of Matthew 13 state: “Every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.” The Amplified Bible adds the phrase “the fresh as well as the familiar”. This statement has always plagued me; my understanding cannot grasp it.

    Matthew Henry’s commentary states it displays a good householder with fruits of last year’s growth and this year’s gathering, abundance and variety, for the entertainment of his friends. I tend to like that explanation. But J. Vernon McGee says this is a personal verse, especially for those of us who teach and preach the Word of God. “But it is my business to bring forth old things; but I do hope to bring forth a few new things also.” This is my stumbling block. Do I trust myself in bringing forth new things? If I can bring forth “fresh” things along with the familiar, I consider myself lucky indeed.

  • Easter – Our Time to Celebrate

    Christmas is a wonderful time of year. It is a month-long celebration! Not many acknowledge the Christian reason behind the celebrations, that the Lord came into a human body to show off God’s love for those who inhabit the earth. But those who do acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Savior actually enjoy the season with tremendous fervor.

    Easter for some reason hasn’t gotten the same recognition, or the same festive feel. People acknowledge the Day, but not even as a whole week much less a month of celebrating. Perhaps it is because Christmas has been renamed by so many — Kwanza, Hanukah, Winter Solstice… Everybody can find something to celebrate at that time of year.

    But Easter is different. It varies with the timing of things, sometimes in April, sometimes in March, sometimes before Passover, sometimes after, maybe coinciding with the start of spring… Yet everybody that says “Easter” knows what it stands for. The word Christmas can mean a thousand different things to many different peoples, even to each individual person.

    Easter only has one meaning: The resurrection of God’s Son, the King of the Redeemed, the Only True Witness of God’s love to the universe. Oh sure, the devil has attempted to cover over this event with Easter egg hunts and cute little bunnies. But as a friend told me, it’s not about the bunny but about the lamb. So in my heart I celebrate the Lamb with a smile every time someone displays a bunny.

    My favorite verse in all of Luke’s Gospel: “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” Jesus is alive and well and living as Intercessor for our benefit. Because of this current role of His, He stays busy all the time. He may live in heaven now, but He stays busy with the things down here on earth. He’s constantly working to support His people and to gain more celebrants for His Father’s banquet table.

    He will rest soon — when He gets His kingdom. Then we can all rest and enjoy His presence and His smile, and each other too. As Amy Grant sang in her song: In a little while we’ll be with the Father. In a little while we’ll be home forever. In a little while…

  • Thank You, God

    I share with you what I found to be helpful in dealing with old hurts. This excerpt from Ruth Myers’ book, Thirty-One Days of Praise, says things better than I ever could.

    Thank You, my gracious and sovereign God, that You have been with me and carried me from the day of my birth until today (Isaiah 46:3, 9-10). That You have known my whole life, from beginning to end, since before I was born and that You wrote in Your book all the days that You ordained for me before one of them came to be (Psalm 139:16). You knew my whole life before I was even born.

    Thank You that in Your gracious plan to bless and use me, You’ve allowed me to go through hard times, through trials that many people go through in this fallen world (1 Corinthians 10:13; 1 Peter 5:9). How glad I am that You’re so good at reaching down and making something beautiful out of even the worst situations! How encouraged I am when I think how You did this for Joseph (Genesis 37)… how his brothers hated and abused and betrayed him, and how You worked these things out for blessings, both for Joseph and his family, and for countless others as well (Genesis 50:19-20).

    I praise You that the things that happened in my past, both enjoyable and painful, are raw materials for blessings, both in my life and in the lives of others (1 Thessalonians 5:18). So I thank You for the specific family (or lack of family) into which I was born and the opportunities You did or did not provide. And thank You for the things in my past that appear to be limitations, hindrances, bad breaks… the wounds of old hurts, the unmet emotional needs, the mistakes or neglect of other people — even their cruelty to me, their abuse.

    How comforting to know that in all my distresses You are distressed (Isaiah 63:9). And how I thank You, Lord Jesus, that on the cross You bore my griefs and carried my sorrows, as well as my sins (Isaiah 53:4)… that I can kneel at the cross and worship You as the One who took on Yourself all my pain and experienced it to the full. And how comforting to know that in the present, day by day, You feel with me any pain, confusion, inner bondage, or struggles that stem from my past. Thank You that all these seeming disadvantages are a backdrop for the special, unfolding plan You have in mind for me… and if my past still handicaps me, You are able to lead me to the kind of help I need.

    I’m so grateful that all my past circumstances were permitted by You to make me see my need for You and prepare my heart for Your Word (Deuteronomy 8:3)… to draw me to Yourself, and to work out Your good purposes for my life (Psalm 66:10-12). I rejoice that You are the Blessed Controller of all things (1 Timothy 6:15 Phillips)– You are now, You will be throughout the future, and You always were. All my days had Your touch of love and wisdom, whether or not I can yet fully see it.

    And Lord, I choose to look beyond my past and present troubles in this life — this temporary life — and fix my eyes on the unseen things that will last forever (2 Corinthians 4:17-18). I praise You for the eternal glory these things are piling up for me as I choose to trust You.

    (Ruth Myers, Thirty-One Days of Praise)

  • A New Year’s Resolution

    We stand at the beginning of another new year. We hear a lot about resolutions around this time. I think I will resolve to be open to the good I can find. I don’t always know exactly what is good for me, but if I look hard enough, I can usually find some good in whatever comes. Why not? Who am I hurting by doing that?

    Let God’s light shine

    It is easy to confuse joy or happiness with laughter, excitement or complacency. A simple statement greatly enhances a condition I find to be joyful: “This is nice.” I find I can make this statement at almost any time and in any place, and it reminds me to look at the good things around me. Joy is rooted in finding goodness and beauty in whatever is happening. As an emotion, I find it closely related to gratitude — a feeling that comes with looking at how good I’ve got it.

    I am called to remember the presence of God. I also need to remember that you and I won’t always see this as being the same thing. It’s easy to begin thinking that because God loves me everything is going to be all sweetness and light. It won’t. In the end everything will be okay, but in the meantime all sorts of things can happen.

    In Luke 2:22-35, Simeon looks at the little baby and can see God’s saving hand, He doesn’t demand to see exactly how Jesus is going to be the salvation for the world. He doesn’t question whether or not God is doing things right. He sees beyond appearances and just accepts. Dare to believe the possibility that God is with us and the details will be taken care of.

    We are in exile, in a wilderness of the enemy’s domain. We are not yet what we will be. We are just meant to try to do what we can with what we have at the time. I have to accept that I will make a lot of mistakes. So will everyone. Can I forgive them? Can I forgive myself?

    Each day I get twenty-four hours. How I handle that time is up to me, but I can only live in the time allotted. Worrying about tomorrow or the day after tomorrow can only serve to mess up (and waste) the time I have for today. We can dream about tomorrow, and we can remember yesterday. But God isn’t in those times. God is only with us now — He is a now God.

    [excerpts from Fr. Everding’s musings on Advent]