Exalting Christ
Jesus' Humility and Exaltation
Matthew 13:1-9
The Message
A Harvest Story
13 1-3 At
about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach. In no
time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline, forcing him to get
into a boat. Using the boat as a pulpit, he addressed his congregation,
telling stories.
3-8 “What
do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed,
some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel;
it sprouted quickly but didn’t put down roots, so when the sun came up
it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it
was strangled by the weeds. Some fell on good earth, and produced a
harvest beyond his wildest dreams.9 “Are you listening to this? Really listening?
For Reflection
Yes, what do you make of this? Shall we agree that Christ is speaking of the word of God?
In that case the word of God in contemporary terms is not limited to the spoken or written word. It also includes the observations others make of Christian behavior. What one hears or interprets does not totally depend upon what the person observed intends. It depends upon what the observer intends. Some, like the birds, will try to remove the word from view. Some, like stones, just flatly refuse to recognize the truth about living. Some, like weeds, will have intentions contrary to a Christ-centered life and intentionally spin the observations to lead others away from God's intention for reconciliation through transformation. But some, like the seeds in fertile soil, will invite commitment to and renewed faith in God's promise.
Christ had realistic expectations for the results of his preaching. He knew not all would respond positively to His message. Like wise not all will respond to your transformation positively. Are you up to the challenge of being rejected because of your transformed self is different from your former self? Are you ready for your actions to be used against you because they do not conform to a culture-based standard? Are you ready for others to use the example of your actions to mislead others? Are you ready to listen, as fertile ground, when God challenges you to mature in your faith? Are you ready to provide Christian hospitality to all with out expectation of return?
In that case the word of God in contemporary terms is not limited to the spoken or written word. It also includes the observations others make of Christian behavior. What one hears or interprets does not totally depend upon what the person observed intends. It depends upon what the observer intends. Some, like the birds, will try to remove the word from view. Some, like stones, just flatly refuse to recognize the truth about living. Some, like weeds, will have intentions contrary to a Christ-centered life and intentionally spin the observations to lead others away from God's intention for reconciliation through transformation. But some, like the seeds in fertile soil, will invite commitment to and renewed faith in God's promise.
Christ had realistic expectations for the results of his preaching. He knew not all would respond positively to His message. Like wise not all will respond to your transformation positively. Are you up to the challenge of being rejected because of your transformed self is different from your former self? Are you ready for your actions to be used against you because they do not conform to a culture-based standard? Are you ready for others to use the example of your actions to mislead others? Are you ready to listen, as fertile ground, when God challenges you to mature in your faith? Are you ready to provide Christian hospitality to all with out expectation of return?
Pray
that
you will have the courage supported by God to face the consequences of a
transformed life in Christ. Pray that you will hone your interpretive
skills through disciplined study of your faith. Pray for God's wisdom to
lead you as you mature in grace.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please post comments here.