Pilgrims and Strangers – 10 February 2022, Anno Domini

D

EARLY beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; 12 Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.  (1 Peter 2:11-12)

 

H

ONOUR all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.  (1 Peter 2:17)

 

 

            Truly, the Christian is a pilgrim and a stranger in this wilderness world of sin and darkness. You may ask, In what ways are we like unto pilgrims and strangers? In many ways, however, below I have listed some characteristics that identify the Christian as a pilgrim and a stranger in the world.

 

            A pilgrim travels lightly since he is not intending to make a permanent settlement in this world. He carries with him only the necessities of life that enable him to continue his journey. There are no cities, attractions, or worldly venues that appeal to his taste. He seeks the better Kingdom of God. To the Christian pilgrim, all the world is a wilderness and a habitation of confusion and darkness. By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.  (Heb 11:7-10)

 

            The pilgrim searches out the land beyond the distant horizon and even bears the promises of that land in his heart and soul. His vision is far-looking well beyond the paltry offerings of a lost world. These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.  (Heb 11:13-16)

 

            The pilgrim is forever a stranger and a vagabond to the world. He is viewed with distrust, suspicion, and contempt. He is far too different from the ways of the world to fit in with even the world's best-behaved culprits. He is like the gypsy who roams the nations but is never able to rest long at one place. Not only does the modest apparel of the Christian clash with the scanty and silken rags of the world, but his manner of living makes all the world very uncomfortable. It arouses a sense of contemptuous guilt in the heart of those whose eternal home will be the world. Like the Rich man, their inheritance is the grave and Hell, while Lazarus is given an angelic escort to the bosom of Abraham.

 

            The Christian has only one overriding fear – the fear of bringing shame and dishonor upon the Name of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.  (1 Peter 2:17) That fear is not the cringing fear of those who are of the world who, in every way, attempt tp shun the Name of the Lord to forego their dread of the coming judgment. Fear has its purpose for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Instead of denying that fear, as does the world, the Elect are driven by the compulsion of the Holy Ghost to learn to fear God as an obedient child fears disappointing its earthly father, but more. That fear changes from a mortal fear to a loving fear at the last. We do not fear fiery judgment to come, but our failures to honor, worship, and reverence Him who is our Maker and Savior.

 

            The final destiny of all the wicked is the world which will end with fervent heat, sufficient to melt even the nuclear elements, but not the living souls of the wicked therein. But ours is the Ark of Christ whose Door God the Father will close at His coming discretion. If we have made our way through that Door (which is also Christ) at the last Trump, then shall our days of pilgrimage end, and our hardships as strangers in a strange land come to an end – for we are Home at last.

As lively stones – 9 February 2022, Anno Domini

 

W

HEREFORE laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, 2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 4 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, 5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. 7 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, 8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. 9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: 10 Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.      (1 Peter 2:1-10)

 

               To whom was Paul addressing this message? 1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.  (1 Peter 1:1-2) 

 

            Are you a stranger to God? Well, yes, you were until the Holy Spirit beckoned you to the Throne of Grace and Mercy just as He had done for those of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. The Gentile nations were populated by what the Jews referred to as ‘strangers’ – not entitled to the tender mercies of God. But God used Paul to change that misunderstanding and false equation. In our text today, these same people are referred to as newborn babes of the faith and as ‘LIVELY STONES.’ The normal property of the stone is that of an inorganic state – lifeless, but God can command the rocks to cry out – and so He does these former strangers. 

 

            How came these ‘strangers’ to be the Elect of God? By way of the foreknowledge THROUGH the sanctification of the Holy Spirit of God. These were not the authors of their own salvation, it was God. It was not even their acts of righteousness after salvation that was of worth, The Holy Spirit moved in them through sanctification and obedience by means of the sprinkling of the blood of Christ. This presents a very different scenario of the means of salvation we often hear today – it was, in summary, altogether an act of the grace of God.

 

            What does the reference to ‘lively stones’ mean? It is all wrapped up in the nature and properties of Christ as the Rock of our Salvation. Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. (1 Cor 10:1-4) There are too many of our brethren in the reformed faith to cling to the false notion the Church was founded on the Apostle Peter – not so! 

 

So, what does Christ mean in this verse? I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matt 16:18) The Greek word for Peter is the masculine ‘Petros’ meaning a fragment of rock or stone. The word for the Rock upon which Christ will build His Church is the feminine form ‘Petras.’ Petras means great, or massive, rock. This latter term refers to Christ. Peter is a ‘petros,’ or fragment from that greater Rock (petras).  Peter would not be the stone of fragment upon which the Church was founded, but the ‘executor of the estate on earth’ along with the other Apostles thereof. Christ was the solid foundation Rock. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matt 16:19)

 

I hope the reader will be able to observe how each of us, as well, must be stones or fragments from that great Rock which is Christ. Even the fragment bears the same properties, consistency, and nature as the stone from which it is graven. We are like Christ because we are, so to speak, ‘chips off the old block.’

 

The first ‘strangers’ of our account were previously simply lifeless stones dead in trespasses and sins – inorganic and inert matter; but now, by virtue of the quickening of the Holy Ghost, these became stones with a living spirit – the kind of spirit that never dies. They are lively! May we each hear God’s Voice aright through His Holy Word as did spoke to David: The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me. (2 Sam 23:3)

Be Ye Holy, for I am Holy – 8 February 2022, Anno Domini

 

W

HEREFORE gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: 15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: 18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. 22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. (1 Peter 1:13-25)

 

               One of the opening sentences of Evening Prayer in the traditional Book of Common Prayer quotes Psalm 96:9: O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness; let the whole earth stand in awe of him.  One distinguishing characteristic of worship in most reformed churches is their adherence to principles of worship that revere and praise Almighty God apart from the man-centered entertainment of many modern churches. The worship forms of the Reformation Church of England are an example. The forms, prayers, and lectionary readings are passed down from the Ancient Church of the early Church fathers. 

 

            The great Reformers, many of whom were burned at the stake for refusing to compromise on the Word of God, restored biblical worship principles during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to the English Church, that worship form is established in the Book of Common Prayer. The clergy must adhere strictly to that form provided else the service is invalid. Man-centered forms of worship in word, hymns, and prayer is not allowed. 

 

            The purpose of prayer and worship is not to glorify man, or to call attention to his attractions, but to praise God and worship Him in the beauty of holiness. This practice is consistent throughout Holy Scripture.

 

            When Moses encountered the Burning Bush at Horeb, the Presence of the Lord made the ground thereof HOLY! And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.  (Ex 3:2-5)

 

            All ground on which the Lord’s Presence is realized is Holy and our conformity to holiness is imperative. The Reformers inveighed against those forms and practices that contradicted biblical truth. They placed the Word of God above every imagination of man. 

 

            If we will be the Elect of God, we must quit ourselves with holiness for the child bears the marks of the Father. Being the adopted children of the Father who is Holy, our characters must reflect that same holiness. The four beasts of Revelation cried out in Heaven both day and night: Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.  (Rev 4:8) The three repetitions of HOLY reflect the tripartite nature of the Godhead. God the Father is Holy; God the Son is Holy; and God the Holy Ghost is Holy. Moreover, He exists in three dimensions of time, space, and matter as we studied in an earlier devotion. Lord God Almighty which WAS (past); and IS (present); and is to COME (future). This represents the fulness of the Triune Godhead and every member is Holy. 

 

            If we are truly One with our Lord Jesus Christ, we will be One with all others in Him. If we are One in the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall be One with the Father for our Lord is One with the Father – and that Oneness consists in Holy living recognizing the attributes of His Sovereignty over His people, His purity, His righteousness, His steadfast love, and His unrelenting mercies. This is holiness under a Holy God. It is beautiful in its effulgent light, its pristine Waters, and its Heavenly Bread with which we are nourished. 

 

            Do we demonstrate these attributes of holiness in our worship, in our prayers, in our praise, and in our daily living?

Two Sisters of Bethany – 7 February 2022, Anno Domini

 

N

OW it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. 40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. 41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: 42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.  (Luke 10:38-42) 

 

            In the modern church, there seems to be a lot of make-work and much ado about nothing. In some, the color of the carpet or drapes could lead to a church split sooner than a dispute over biblical truth. That is unfortunate and cast an appalling shadow over the testimony of the church. Individual church members often carve out their own little strongholds of responsibility and resent anyone coming who may be more qualified to fill those duties. 

 

            Mary and Martha, two sisters of Bethany, serve as a good example of misplaced emphasis in the church. But let me say at the beginning that both were dedicated friends to the Lord – it is only true that one bore a greater portion of attention to Christ than the other, while the other focused more wholly on service and what she perceived as necessary preparations to honor Him.

 

            Martha was work-oriented, and certainly, there was no dishonor in Martha’s efforts to prepare suitable meals and accommodation for the Lord. But Mary, on the other hand, focused more completely on all that the Lord spoke. She was ever found at the feet of Jesus hanging on to every word and syllable. It was Mary of Bethany who anointed the feet of Jesus with expensive ointment and wiped them with her hair. This was His anointing for the Passion He would soon suffer on the cross. In our text today, we again see Mary at the feet of Jesus while Martha worried herself in the preparation of the meal. Which was more important?

 

            When the brother of the two women, Lazarus, lay dead in his tomb, it was Mary who came running and again fell at the feet of Jesus though filled with sorrow and remorse for her brother. Martha had more calmly carried on with practical inquiries concerning the Lord’s delay in coming. 

 

            Now, on the occasion cited in the text, Jesus came to visit the home of His friends, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Martha was busy preparing the meal while her sister, Mary, sat at the feet of Jesus listening intently to His teaching. Martha, however, considered her busy efforts in contrast to the relaxed position of Mary at the feet of Jesus. She became frustrated and felt it to be unfair that she must labor while her sister sat at the feet of the Lord. There was likely even a certain amount of jealousy involved. Martha brought her complaint to Jesus. 

 

            Jesus tenderly, but firmly, responded, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. Sometimes we of the Church today are too mindful of many things to the detriment of our focus on Christ and Him crucified! There will always be moments for attention to the lesser things in life – even meal preparation; but while Christ is in the House at worship time, or in the daily by-ways of life, we must concentrate on Him and His Word to the exclusion of every other minor consideration.

 

            An old friend of mine, Bishop Garth Neel of Canada, once gave a sermon at St. Peter’s that had a profound impact on my mind, and probably many others, too. He began by making this point which has been emblazoned on my memory. He said The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing. Well, that was so simple that even I could grasp it. So could a child. But Martha had not kept the main thing – the Bread of Heaven – the main thing but, instead, thought the bread she was preparing was of more urgent concern.

 

            We worry about the building maintenance of the church, we want to make it grow where Christ may not intend it so, we want to furnish it with the most modern facilities. We may even worry that it is not as fine and glorious as the church down the road. In so doing, we omit the weightier things – the concerns of the soul. We will do well to heed the Words of our Lord:

 

T

HEN shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.   (Matt 25:34-40)

The Titanic Church – 6 February 2022, Anno Domini

S

UCH as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron; 11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High: 12 Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help. 13 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. 15 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder.  (Psalm 107:10-16)

 

T

HEY that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; 24 These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. 25 For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. 26 They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. 27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end. 28 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. 29 He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. 30 Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven. (Psalm 107:23-30)

 

            The Holy Scriptures provide abundant space to the mysteries and similes the ocean seas and her dangers. The Sea is the largest cemetery of the dead known to man. Just as many will be surprised to see who is admitted to Heaven on the last day, so, too, will many be shocked to see who is cast into the depths of the gaping abyss on that day.

 

            The Church is much like that ship of the soul. Like great sea-going vessels of the past, there are many different sizes, types, and descriptions of the Church. The True Church is singular in nature meaning all of its various organs are of the same Mind with Christ. But there do exist churches (so-called) that deviate from the Word and Will of God in their living, in their testimony, and in their twisted doctrine that is at odds with Scripture itself.

 

            The sea transport used by the disciples on the Sea of Galilee meant be hard-pressed to meet the standards of a modern-day sea-going vessel. These were small sailboats made of timber that would rarely accommodate more than twelve to fifteen passengers. But these were dependable because they were the essence of simplicity – just as preaching should be to the Church. God’s Word is simple enough for a child to grasp. The challenge is in the application of its meaning to our daily lives. 

 

            Today, an order of Churchianity has arisen which boasts of size over truth. Many modern churches even conduct ‘market research' to discover what manner of preaching or entertainment will appeal to the unchurched in order to get them in for the fleecing.

 

            As I have written in previous devotions, a ship is made for the water. It anchors in secure harbors for loading goods and passengers for transport across vast reaches of the sea. That is the function for what it is made. It is guided by navigation systems that are nearly fool-proof. In ancient times, it was the stars. Later, the magnetic compass. Today, navigation aids include gyros and GPS system navigation. But the latter is not really more accurate than the celestial navigation of old unless the stars are hidden by an overcast.

 

            The safe harbors of the Church are its base of operations in a stationary church setting where logistics and training can be provided. Its ocean seas are the great multitudes of nations, tongues, and people to which its missionaries may be sent – even to the family next door. It is not a revenue collection site though many sacrifice their treasure to provide a means for its mission.

 

            There was a great ship called the RMS Titanic of the last century. It was touted as unsinkable and the largest passenger liner ever built. It was the pride of the merchant class of mariners. The Titanic carried a manifested passenger list of 2,224 men, women, and children. Departing Southampton on 12 April 1912, the Titanic (remember- unsinkable) struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic near the midnight hour on 14 April and sank at 2:20 A.M. on 15 April 1912 less than two hours from the strike.  Only 710 passengers (less than a third) survived. The others road the great vessel to the depths of the ocean bed as she broke apart and foundered.

 

            There are many so-called mega-churches today that boast of their accomplishments in wealth, prestige, and membership. Hopefully, more than one-third of the adherents of these mega-churches will survive the coming fires of the last day. I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.    (Rev 3:15-17)

AOC Sunday Report - Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany

 

Happy Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany!

The AOC Sunday Report is RIGHT HERE!

There are great sermons from Bishops Jerry and Roy, as well as Revs Jack and Bryan.  If you are interested, Jack's sermon is available on video RIGHT HERE.

There are always a lot of people who need your prayer, today is not the exception.  Please start with Tricia, Shamu, Jim, Laurie and Lori, do not forget the four young members of Bishop Jerry's home parish who have contracted Covid, work out from there.

There is a super week ahead, EPIC actually, but you will not find it without the secret key the Holy Ghost will give you.

Have a wonderful week.

Godspeed.

Hap

Church of the Faithful Centurion

Descanso, California

United States of America

Sermon Notes - Fifth Sunday after The Epiphany - Which Brotherhood? - 6 February 2022, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

The Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany.

The Collect.

 

O

 LORD, we beseech thee to keep thy Church and household continually in thy true religion; that they who do lean only upon the hope of thy heavenly grace may evermore be defended by thy mighty power; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

 

The Gospel

(Matt 13:24-30)

 

A

NOTHER parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: 25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. 26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 28  He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I wll say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. 

 

       We find that there are eight parables in the 13^th chapter of Matthew. Though most of these parables relate directly to the Kingdom of Heaven, this parable is a mix of the Kingdom and of the World. Around the end of the 19^th century, there began to be propagated a great lie by politicians and their cohorts in religion that there existed a great brotherhood that embraced all men upon the earth.  The Brotherhood of Man and the Fatherhood of God – was the popular slogan behind this insidiously false claim. We are not “all God’s chillun’”! There are two, only, families upon the earth – the Children of God, or the Children of the Devil. We all belong to one or the other of these two families. While it is true that God created all living, He does not force His privileged parentage on any.  The results of this lie have been a justification for every excess in governments to collectivize their economies and societies and to enforce the mediocrity of Communistically inclined policies upon their populations. The concept forces all – good and evil – into the lowest common denominator of value as human beings.

 

       Perhaps our susceptibility to deception is a result of a failure to fortify our souls with the wisdom and knowledge that comes directly from God’s Word. In the reading of many letters home from soldiers of the American Revolutionary War and War Between the States, I have observed that there is often greater faith and mastery in the Holy Scriptures evidenced in those letters than that demonstrated by most modern theologians and ministers of mainline churches. Have we forgotten what one thing will assure the destruction of God’s people? Allow me to rekindle your fires of remembrance: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. (Hosea 4:6) Another factor may be that our ears have grown dull of hearing the Word of God through selective filtration of things Godly. Jesus concludes the previous parable with this mysterious command: Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. (Matt 13:9) 

 

     There is an auditory disability called auditory verbal agnosia, also known as Pure Word Deafness, that is caused by bilateral damage to the posterior superior temporal lobes. Well, there is a corresponding disability of the inner ear of the heart which has disregarded God’s full counsel with such frequency that the Voice of God can no longer be heard by that heart. That heart, calloused by repetitive sin and rejection of righteousness, has grown dull: Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron. (1 Tim 4:1-2)

 

       So, the setting that Jesus confronts is a multitude of hearts that have been subject to fables and endless genealogies of the Pharisees and Sadducees that have stunted their understanding and removed any reference point for grasping these marvelous truths of Christ that are so completely extrinsic to their primitive minds.

 

       24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: We see a slightly different venue and application in this parable of a Sower and that of the prior Sower and four different soils. The Sower is still the Lord Jesus Christ, the field represent the world, and the good seed here represents the children of the kingdom. He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; (Matt 13:37-38) 

 

       25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. It is perfectly normal for men to rest and sleep after their labors. Such rest does not make them remiss of their duties before God or man. The point seems that, despite the best efforts of righteous people, evil is bound to come from that same source it came in the Garden at Eden – the Devil himself. He works best during the hours of darkness and his seed are seeds of ruin and death. These seed sowed by the Devil are the children of the devil. …..but the tares are the children of the wicked one. (Matt 13:38b) The one who sows these bad seed is the Devil: The enemy that sowed them is the devil…. (Matthew 13:39a)

 

       26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?  What do men expect of the seeds they plant? I suggest that they expect the same nature of plant to grow therefrom as the seed planted. The good seed produced good fruit. The bad seed produced bad fruit (tares). The tares are the children of the wicked one, who are filled with his spirit, live according to his principles, and are under his control. They are not a degenerate form of virtue, but as distinct as virtue and vice. They often resemble the good till the fruit begins to appear, but they are as different as wheat and tares, as thistles and roses. We are the Lord’s servants (not simply the ordained ministry, but all believers). Do we sometimes wonder why our best efforts and Godly projects are mixed with emotions of greed, jealousy, and vanity in church? The devil does not restrict his children to the gaming tables, bars, prisons, and bordellos of the city – he also sends them to church as purveyors of every indecency. Though all men bear the seeds of wickedness in their hearts, the mastermind of all wickedness is Satan. He coordinates his plans and activities with a brilliance that is beyond the mind of man to understand.  But God’s Holy Spirit is a defollient against every parasitic weed, and plants, in its place,Trees of Righteousness and Virtue.

 

      28  He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. Who did Jesus say did this evil? An enemy! Satan is the enemy of your soul. He seeks no other joy than to ruin your hope and destroy your soul through every means of deception available in his arsenal of dirty tricks. It is discomforting to know that he NEVER takes vacation! We would like to clean house of the traitors, but Christ reserves that duty to Himself lest we err in our judgment. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

 

       30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. Good and evil will exist side by side until the end of the world, then comes the harvest. The reapers will be sent into the four quarters of the earth to gather, first, the tares. These shall be shackled and cast into the fires. Then comes the gathering of the wheat (good seed) which is gathered into His barn (Kingdom).

 

T

HE harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. (Matt 13:39c-43)

 

       Have you heard and understood? The only proof that learning has occurred is by way of a change in behavior. Is your hearing keen to God’s Word, and does your living stand the earnest of your hearing?