Matthew 25

Matthew 25

This chapter contains a couple of parables and then a warning about the final judgment.

I’ve heard a number of sermons about the ten virgins where preachers likened the oil to the Holy Spirit and then gave some convoluted explanation about the meaning of it. However, I think the lesson is clearly stated in verse 13: “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.” We do not know when Jesus is coming, but we should keep watch. It could be anytime.

The parable of the ten virgins and the parable of the three servants are both illustrations of the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus has a lot to say about the Kingdom of Heaven. In fact, John the Baptist even talked about the Kingdom of Heaven; see Matthew 3:1-2 which says, “In those days, John the Baptist came, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.’”

In the Beatitudes (Matthew 5 and 6), Jesus speaks often of the kingdom of heaven, e.g., “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” and “Blessed are those who who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” and “Seek ye first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.”

It seems that one could spend months studying the Kingdom of Heaven.

To summarize, though, at the final judgment, the Lord will be separating the sheep from the goats. The sheep will inherit the Kingdom “prepared for you from the creation of the world” and the goats will be cast into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.

Tomorrow, we’ll read Matthew 26 and Mark 14.

Be Careful

A good reminder with the holiday, giving season ahead.

THINK BEFORE YOU DONATE

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
  BEFORE YOU MAKE CONTRIBUTIONS:

As you open your pockets to do a good thing

and make yourself feel good,
please keep the following facts in mind:
----------------------------

The American Red Cross
President and CEO Marsha J. Evans'

salary for the year was $651,957 plus expenses

MARCH OF DIMES
It is called the March of Dimes because

only a dime for every 1 dollar is given to the needy.


The United Way
President Brian Gallagher

receives a $375,000 base salary along with numerous expense benefits.

UNICEF
CEO Caryl M. Stern receives

$1,200,000 per year (100k per month) plus all expenses including a ROLLS ROYCE.

Less than 5 cents of your donated dollar goes to the cause.

GOODWILL
CEO and owner Mark Curran profits $2.3 million a year.
Goodwill is a very catchy name for his business.

You donate to his business and then he sells the items for PROFIT.
He pays nothing for his products and pays his workers minimum wage! Nice Guy.
$0.00 goes to help anyone! Stop giving to this man.

----------------------------

Instead, give it to ANY OF THE FOLLOWING

GO "GREEN" AND
  PUT YOUR MONEY

WHERE IT WILL
  DO SOME GOOD:

The Salvation Army
Commissioner, Todd Bassett receives a small salary of only

$13,000 per year (plus housing) for managing this $2 billion dollar organization.

96 percent of donated dollars go to the cause.

The American Legion
National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.
Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Veterans of Foreign Wars
National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.

Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!

The Disabled American Veterans
National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.
Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Military Order of Purple Hearts
National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.
Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!

The Vietnam Veterans Association
National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.

Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!

Make a Wish: For children's last wishes.

100% goes to funding trips or special wishes for a dying child.

St. Jude Research Hospital

100% goes towards funding and helping Children with Cancer who have no insurance and can
not afford to pay.

Ronald McDonald Houses

All monies go to running the houses for parents who have critical Children in the hospital.

100% goes to housing, and feeding the families.

Lions Club International

100% OF DONATIONS GO TO HELP THE BLIND, BUY HEARING AIDES, SUPPORT MEDICAL MISSIONS AROUND THE WORLD.  THEIR LATEST UNDERTAKING

IS MEASLES VACCINATIONS (ONLY $1.00 PER SHOT).
Please share this with everyone you can.

Until next time…

Matthew 24 and The Election

Matthew 24

Today’s reading is Matthew’s recount of what we read yesterday in Mark 13. Did you notice that Jesus warns them to beware of false Messiahs. When will Jesus come? He gives us some clues:

· It will not happen until “after the anguish of those days”

· After “the sun will be darkene3d,

· After “the moon will give no light”

· After “the stars will fall from the sky”

· After “the powers in the heavens will be shaken”

· Then “at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens”

· “There will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth

Finally, “they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory and he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world – from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven”

Pastor John Hagee has been preaching a three-part series on The Four Blood Moons. If you are interested in the end times, you might want to check out his first two sermons; he’ll be preaching the third and last one this Sunday. You can find these sermons at www.getv.org.

Tomorrow, we’ll read Matthew 25.

The Election

I guess anyone who knows me probably realizes I was extremely disappointed in the outcome of yesterday’s election. I think we probably won’t recognize our country by the next presidential election. I hope everyone is prepared for a rocky ride. If we don’t consider anything other than our $16 trillion debt, we can see we’re headed for trouble. Add to that the new taxes due to hit the country and the sequestration on January first. Never forget, though, that God is in control and none of this has come as a surprise to him.

Until next week…

Mark 13 and Election Day, 2012

Mark 13

When the disciples pointed out to Jesus the magnificence of the Temple buildings, they must have been astounded when he told them that those great buildings would be completely demolished, that not one stone would be left on another. Josephus reported that some of those stones were nearly 70 feet long and 12 feet high. The Temple took 46 years to build and was adorned with a number of wonderful items. In A.D. 70, about forty years from Jesus’ prophecy, the destruction of the Temple took place.
Some of the disciples (Peter, James, John, and Andrew) must have had this on their minds when Jesus met with them privately. Because they asked when it would happen and what sign he would show them that these things were about to be fulfilled.
They ask Jesus:
· When the destruction of the Temple will happen
· What sign will tell them these things are about to be fulfilled
Who wouldn’t want to know when something of such importance was to happen? Jesus gives them a number of signs to watch for, but also comfort.
I always thought this referred to the rapture, but now I think it referred to exactly what they asked about: when the Temple would be destroyed.
I have heard a number of preachers talking about how the Good News must be preached to all nations, but according to Paul in Colossians 1:23, which had already happened before the destruction of the Temple. And the abomination of desolation standing where he should not be probably refers to the Romans entering the Temple.
So often, though, prophecies will refer both to near future events and events that occur much later. Perhaps this is one of those places. I leave you to draw your own conclusions. I just know that Jesus is coming for us at some point in the future and if we are already dead, we will be raised incorruptible. If we are still alive we will join the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Tomorrow, we’ll read Matthew 24.

Election Day, 2012

Today, is the day we elect our government officials at all levels. Hope you voted. I voted absentee ballot here in Florida. I’m glad I didn’t have to stand in the voting booth since we had 11 Amendments on the ballot.
May God have mercy on and bless America.
Until next time…

Matthew 23 and Luke 20 - 21

Seven times in Matthew 23 (verses 13, 15, 16, 23, 25, 27, and 29), Jesus uses the phrase “What sorrow awaits you.” In most of these statements, he’s directing these words to “teachers of the religious law and … Pharisees.” For Jesus to repeat this condemnation seven times shows how important it was to him.

Six times Jesus calls the teachers of the religious law and the Pharisees hypocrites. Five times he refers to them as blind. He calls them snakes and sons of vipers. He gives specific examples for why he refers to them as such.

Where did he find fault with them?

• They shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces
• They won’t go in themselves and don’t let others enter either
• They cross land and see to make one convert and then turn theat person into twice the child of hell they themselves are
• They say it means nothing to swear by God’s Temple, but that it’s binding to swear by the gold in the Temple
• They say that to swear by the altar is not binding, but to swear by the gifts on the altar is
• They are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from their herb gardens and ignore the more important aspects of the law – justice, mercy and faith.
• They strain their water so they won’t accidentally swallow a gnat and yet they swallow a camel
• They are careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but leave the inside dirty
• They are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside and filled with impurity on the inside
• They look righteous, but inwardly their hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness
• They build tombs for the prophets their ancestors destroyed.

Following this we see the yearning of Jesus’ heart to gather Jerusalem’s children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but they won’t let him.

Tomorrow, we’ll read Mark 13.

Until next time…

Matthew 22 and Mark 12

In today’s reading, we see those rascally Pharisees trying to trap Jesus by any means they can, including bring Herod’s supporters to do their dirty work. But Jesus was on to them.

Of course, they use a common technique – trying to flatter him so they can trap him. They told him:

· Teacher, we know how honest you are

· You teach the way of God truthfully

· You are impartial and don’t play favorites

They tried to butter him up and then asked him the trick question: “Now tell us what you think about this: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

Our Lord Jesus knew their evil motives, called them hypocrites, asked them why they were trying to trap him, and asked them to show him the coin used for the tax.

The coin they handed him was a Roman coin. He asked them whose picture and title was stamped on the coin. He got right to the heart of the matter and told them to give to Caesar what was Caesar’s and to God what was God’s.

They went away amazed.

No sooner were the Pharisees done trying to trap Jesus than the Sadducees showed up. These guys didn’t believe in the resurrection from the dead and tried to trick Jesus, asking him whose wife a woman would be if married to seven brothers, one after another as the previous one died.

Again, Jesus goes right to the heart of the matter and tells them they don’t know the Scriptures and neither do they know the power of God. He straightens them out, telling them that when the dead rise, they won’t be marrying or being given in marriage. People will be like the angels in heaven. He then tells them God told Moses He was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob so he is the God of the living, not the dead.

Tomorrow, we’ll read Matthew 23 and Luke 20 - 21.

 

Until next time…

Mark 11 and John 12

Did you notice that not only did the priests want to kill Jesus, they also wanted to kill Lazarus. After all, many people deserted the priests and believed in Jesus because, after Jesus raised him from the dead, many people believed in Jesus because Lazarus came back to life. These priests were something else, weren’t they. They wanted to keep their power and Jesus threatened this. Besides, a lot of people deserted them because of Lazarus.

It’s amazing what people will go through to retain their power. They’ll lie, cheat, steal, and kill to keep it. But here were the priests, the very people who should have known better, willing to do anything to get rid of Jesus and Lazarus.

Tomorrow, we’ll read Matthew 22 and Mark 12.

Until next time…

Luke 18:15 – 19:48 and God in the Classroom

Luke 18:15 – 19:48

This passage refers to a story which every Sunday School student is familiar with, the story of Zacchaeus. I think kids relate to Zacchaeus because he was too short to see Jesus over the crowd. Most of them are probably shorter than Zacchaeus. They also like the idea that he climbed a tree so he could see. What kid doesn’t like to climb a tree?

Then, when Jesus goes by, he sees Zacchaeus and calls him by name. Jesus calls each of us by name. Do we listen to him and obey as Zacchaeus did.

Meeting Jesus changed Zacchaeus too. He was a tax collector – one who was despised by everyone. When Zacchaeus saw the Lord, he offered to give half of his wealth to the poor and give back four times as much as he cheated people on their taxes. I think you’ll agree that this was a changed man.

I just end with Jesus’ words to the crowd gathered at Zacchaeus’ house: “For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.

Tomorrow, we’ll read Mark 11 and John 12.

God in the Classroom

You might have seen this before, but it’s worth a second look.

Finally, The Truth on National TV!

Billy Graham's daughter was being interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this happen?" Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response.

She said "I believe that God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman that He is, I believe that He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand that He leave us alone?"

I know there's been a lot of emails going around in regards to 9/11/01, but this really makes you think. If you don't have time, at least skim through it, but the bottom line is something to think about.... in light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc.

Let's see, I think it started when Madeline Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body was found recently) complained she didn't want any prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then, someone said you better not read the Bible in school... the Bible that says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said, OK.

Then, Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide), and we said, an expert should know what he's talking about so we said OK.

Then, someone said teachers and principals better not discipline our children when they misbehave. And the school administrators said no faculty member in this school better touch a student when they misbehave because we don't want any bad publicity, and we surely don't want to be sued (There's a big difference between disciplining and touching, beating, smacking, humiliating, kicking, etc.) And we said, OK.

Then someone said, let's let our daughters have abortions if they want, and they won't even have to tell their parents. And we said, OK.

Then some school board member said, since boys will be boys and they're going to do it anyway, let's give our sons all the condoms they want, so they can have all the fun they desire, and we won't have to tell their parents they got them at school. And we said, OK.

Then some of our top elected officials said it doesn't matter what we do in private as long as we do our jobs. And agreeing with them, we said it doesn't matter to me what anyone, including the President, does in private as long as I have a job and the economy is good.

And then someone said let's print magazines with pictures of nude women and call it wholesome, down-to-earth appreciation for the beauty of the female body. And we said, OK.

And then someone else took that appreciation a step further and published pictures of nude children and then stepped further still by making them available on the internet. And we said OK, they're entitled to their free speech.

And then the entertainment industry said, let's make TV shows and movies that promote profanity, violence, and illicit sex. And let's record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder, suicide, and satanic themes. And we said it's just entertainment, it has no adverse effect, and nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go right ahead.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

"Dear God, Why didn't you save the little girl killed in her classroom?" Sincerely, Concerned Student... AND THE REPLY "Dear Concerned Student, I am not allowed in schools". Sincerely, God.

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says.

Funny how everyone wants to go to heaven provided they do not have to believe, think, say, or do anything the Bible says.

Funny how someone can say "I believe in God" but still follow Satan who, by the way, also "believes" in God. Funny how we are quick to judge but not to be judged. Funny how you can send a thousand 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.

Funny how the lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but the public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace. Funny how someone can be so fired up for worship once a week, but be invisible to their religion the rest of the week.

Are you laughing?

Funny how when you go to forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it to them. Funny how I can be more worried about what other people think of me than what God thinks of me.

Are you thinking?

Until next time…