THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF CHRISTIANITY

Mat. 22:37-39 ... "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And a second is like it:  You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

      When any religion, philosophy, or course of action is studied, the question is soon asked about its fundamental principle or guiding concept.  If there is any order, cohesion, and discernible progress involved, then there will be some motivating force at the center to develop that order, weld all the parts into a cohesive action, and produce the forward movement.  People who study religions, philosophies, and movements in the human sphere look very closely for the fundamental principles, for unless one can identify and understand them, he cannot rationally explain the whole system. 

      The religion which God has given us certainly has basic principles that give order, cohesion, and vital energy to it.  Fortunately, God has not left it to men in their own perception to discover and explain them.  Were this the case, there is little doubt that there would be considerable disagreement about the identity of the principles.  In fact, some even refute the ones that are divinely revealed and postulate others in contempt of God's declaration.  But what is written is written, and men of faith will accept it as truth.  In the text above, Jesus reveals the fundamental principle of the religion handed down to us from God.  It can be expressed in a single four-letter word:  LOVE.

      Not any kind of love, but love in its purest and holiest form.  It is the love that flows from the heart of God through His Son Jesus unto people who are redeemed by the blood of His atonement.  From these Christians it is supposed to flow outward unto all other people throughout the world.  It is not the love based in carnal senses which are easily inflamed by lust and then quickly extinguished by sensual gratification.  Nor is it the love based in human emotions that ebbs and flows with one's moods.  It is the essential love grounded in the soul and stabilized by direct linkage to the immutable God who is its Source.

      Jesus said the entire Mosaic Law depends on the basic principle of love.  So does the new law of the Gospel, (I Cor. 13).  The person who submits himself to the Christian religion must adopt love as the controlling force in his life.  This love must be directed first and most powerfully toward God in response to His superior love toward us.  We are taught that "we love [God] because He first loved us," (I Jno. 4:19).  Our loving God will be manifested in obedience to His will, (Jno. 14:15), in genuine expressions of gratitude for His goodness, in worship to Him in spirit and in truth on a regular basis, and in imitation of His character.

      Whoever submits himself to the Christian religion must also follow the rule of loving other people as much he loves himself.  This includes loving those who are not lovable, who do not deserve your love, and who may even be your enemies.  This love will demonstrate itself in doing what is in the best interest of the other person.  This may even include discipline, which may not at the time be recognized as the operation of love, (Heb. 12:5-11).  To monitor our love for others to assure its equality to love for self, we have been given by Jesus a rule that may be considered a corollary to the fundamental principle of love:  "Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them," (Mat. 7:12).  How can you know the way to love others as you love yourself?  Just consider how you wish to be treated, as well as the spirit in which that treatment is given.  Then render that very treatment in that kind of spirit to others.  By such love we will identify ourselves to the world as the children of God far more convincingly than by anything else we might say or do, (I Jno. 4:7-8).

THE PRAYER OF FAITH

Mat. 21:22 ... "Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith."

      One of the greatest privileges of being a Christian is access to God in prayer.  Being a child of God is a unique relationship in which He as Father turns His attention toward you and opens His ears to what you are saying.  This is truly a great blessing, and the more you consider it, the greater it appears.  On the human level it is difficult to bridge the barriers that separate the common person from a dignitary, so that conversation with such an individual is usually next to impossible.  All who read this article have access to a telephone.  Just try calling the President of the United States, or the Queen of England, or the Secretary General of the United Nations, or the Pope in the Vatican.  The chance is next to nothing that you would be connected with any of them.  But if you are a Christian, a child of God, I assure you that the line to God is open right now via prayer.  You will not be put on hold, or told to call back, or offered an apology that His high station excludes commoners from an audience with Him.  God will hear you, even though He is exalted infinitely above every president, prime minister, king, queen, or human potentate.

      All people have needs that must be met.  Some of them are general and ordinary, while others are specific and very personal.  We do not worry about the needs we can meet ourselves, but we all experience anxiety about those which we are unable to meet.  If you lose your job and have no way to provide for your family, do not expect the President to help you if you make a personal appeal to him. If you find that you have life threatening cancer, it will do no good to call upon some king or prime minister for help.  Aside from the fact that they would take little, if any, note of your call, they could not relieve their own condition if they themselves become gravely ill.  When death takes a loved one, do not bother to look toward any human dignitary for comfort and consolation.

      The Christian, however, has an all powerful Father in heaven whose ears are tuned to the calls of His children on earth in their varied conditions of life.  The text of this article are the very words of Jesus, who assures His disciples that God will hear and answer our cries for help when we utter them in faith.  God will answer the appeal of the one who has lost his job and cannot provide for his dependents.  God will listen to the call of the one whose life is threatened with illness and will send comfort and consolation in full measure.  Whatever the need, whatever the request, He will consider it and respond in the way best suited to fit the situation.

      The one qualification that Jesus attaches is faith.  He says, "Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith."  Many prayers receive no reply because they are offered with an element of doubt.  People often approach prayer with the attitude, "Well, I've tried a lot of things, so I guess I ought to try prayer also to see if it will work."  This kind of thinking dooms the prayer to impotence even as it is being spoken.  People ought to think, "Now I will carry this matter to God in prayer.  He will surely hear and respond in the way that is best, whether I think it is or not."  There must be no doubt in the heart as you pray, or your petition will be dismissed.

      It must be recognized that there is a hidden assumption in Jesus' statement about prayer.  It is revealed later in the New Testament as follows, "You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions," (Jas. 4:3).  If the object of one's request involves the gratification of carnal desire and the lust for pleasure, God will reject it, even if it is asked in faith.  Our requests must have merit that transcends the vulgar "desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions," (I Jno. 2:15) that dominate so much in our appetites, affections, plans and ambitions.

FIRST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN

Mat. 20:27 ... "Whoever would be first among you must be your slave."

      There was a man from Maury County, Tennessee, who served during the entirety of the Civil War in Co. H of the 1st Tennessee Infantry in Confederate service.  As he looked back over his experience many years later, Sam Watkins made this revealing comment, "I always shot at privates.  It was they that did the shooting and killing, and if I could kill or wound a private, why, my chances were so much the better.  I always looked upon officers as harmless personages."

      However one may feel about the grisly business of war with its burden upon the front line soldier to shoot at the enemy in close combat, one must still admit that Pvt. Watkins recognized something of basic importance.  Ultimately in an army it is the common soldier, the ordinary rifleman, who gets the job done and wins the victory.  Although honor and glory are heaped upon the general who plans and directs the battle, it is the united effort of thousands of basic soldiers who bring success.  If those men fail, the general also fails, no matter how ingenious his plan.

      There seems to be a primal urge in certain people to be first in an organization so that their voice will carry weight and their position command respect.  To be the object of praise, admiration, and even fear, is often considered to be the pinnacle of achievement.  People thus covet the role of leader, commander, president, governor, or king.  The desire to have people serve them in their high position is one of the greatest attractions in holding it.  At the top one feels relieved of the mundane tasks that are ugly, fatiguing, and sometimes humiliating.

      It was in this attitude that the apostles James and John came before Jesus with their mother as advocate to make the audacious request that He grant the two highest positions in His kingdom to them.  Not only was this request presumptuous, but it also disregarded the place of Jesus' other apostles.  It is therefore not surprising that "when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers," (v.24).  The scramble to be first in something nearly always provokes jealousy and competition in others who hold the same ambition and think they are better fit to achieve it.  To prevent this from happening among his disciples and fracturing their unity, Jesus called them aside and taught them the lesson of true greatness.

      He told them, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.  It shall not be so among you.  But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave," (vs. 25-27).  Then He pointed to Himself as their example:  "Even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many," (v.28).  The pathway to true greatness and honor in the Lord's kingdom lies in the way of rendering basic service in the Lord's name.  Jesus could have come among the rich, but He came among the poor.  He could have lounged in regal splendor while others did the menial tasks, but He chose instead to walk the dusty roads, sail the stormy sea, touch the unclean leper, weep with those who wept, and incur the hatred of those who opposed the establishment of His kingdom.  As Jesus' disciples today, we should be concerned about truly serving as many people as we can in Jesus' name.  We must resist the temptation to get in front to lead, leaving the "dirty work" to those behind who must be content to follow.  In truth, only Jesus is first in the church.  All the rest of us must follow behind Him, and it is we who must humbly serve.

WHAT DO I STILL LACK?

Mat. 19:20-21 ... "The young man said to Him, 'All these I have kept.  What do I still lack?'  Jesus said to him, 'If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and, come, follow Me.'"

      One day there came unto Jesus a man who was young and rich (Luke adds that he was also a ruler) with a question for Jesus:  "What good deed must I do to have eternal life?"  He was to be commended for being interested in how to obtain eternal life, for that ought to be the greatest ambition of everyone.  Jesus directed him to keep the law from God that prevailed during that period of time, the Law of Moses.  He specifically quoted five of the Ten Commandments, as well as this decree, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," (Lev. 19:18).  God had provided this law for the guidance of the people of Israel and intended to grant eternal life to those who were faithful and obedient to keep it.

      The young man made a good impression on Jesus, for we are told that "Jesus, looking at him, loved him," (Mk. 10:21).  He evidently found integrity, sincerity, and spiritual potential in him as He looked into the depths of the young man's soul.  So when he answered, "All these I have kept from my youth," Jesus did not refute him.  Doubtlessly, he had been reared by orthodox Jewish parents who had been careful to instruct him to observe the Law.  They had trained their son in the way that he should go, and in the early stage of his adult life he had not departed from it, (Pro. 22:6).  In spite of all this, however, he felt unsure in his heart.  There was a gnawing feeling that there was a deficiency, something of which he was falling short.  He was again to be commended, since he differed so much from the self-righteous Jews who were most confident in how well they kept the Law and convinced that God's favor rested fully upon them.

      Jesus very readily saw the thing that the young man lacked, and surprisingly it was something that most people cannot understand to be a deficiency.  What he lacked was paradoxically having too much!  (Or, very simply, he lacked the spirit of generosity.)  So Jesus told him, "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor."  Matthew then notes that "he had great possessions."  It is evident that his wealth interposed between himself and God.  The only way to clear the channel to God, who alone can grant eternal life (v.26), was to rid himself of his wealth through philanthropic donations.  His affections, trust, and ambitions were centered upon that wealth, not upon God who awards eternal life only to those who love Him first, trust Him above all, and burn with the ambition to accomplish His will.

      This event is tragic, because it is reported that "when the young man heard this he went away sorrowful," (v.22).  In the final analysis he valued his possessions more than he did eternal life.  Here we may relate his case to our selves.  It is indeed possible that there is something between each of us and God that is more important to us than pleasing God and receiving His gift of eternal life.  For some it could be the love of material things, though they are not particularly wealthy.  For others it could be the desire to gratify sinful urges.  In the case of many it could be an overwhelming ambition to excel in a career or profession so that no time is left to serve God.  For not a few it could be a constitutional tendency toward arrogance, aggressiveness, intolerance, or pride.  For still others it could be a bad habit like gossiping, using bad language, dishonesty, or stealing.  This encounter in Jesus' ministry is designed to persuade us to ferret out anything in our lives that intervenes between us and God with His gift of eternal life.  It is the ultimate human tragedy to forfeit that supreme gift for something that pleases us only during our brief earthy existence.

THE CHALLENGE TO FORGIVE

Mat. 18:21-22 ... "Then Peter came up and said to Him, 'Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  As many as seven times?'  Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.'"

      The Pharisaic interpretation of the Mosaic Law was ultra-conservative, and imposed a style of observance upon the people that was, in most cases, far more restrictive than God ever intended it to be.  Of the Pharisees Jesus said, "They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger," (Mat. 23:4).  Jesus often ran afoul of Pharisaic scrutiny, not because He ever transgressed the Law, but because He transgressed their over extensions of it.  In His teaching He instructed His disciples to look through some of those restrictions to see the liberty God had designed for them.

      The Pharisees taught that three was the limit to the times one was obligated to forgive an offender.  This was, however, their own interpretation and not the essence of the Law itself.  Peter's vision had been elevated by Jesus enough to perceive something of the liberty in God's will for man.  So he posed his question about one's duty to forgive in terms of that perception.  He probably thought that to double the Pharisaic limit and then add one for good measure would attain to God's will.

      Jesus may have surprised Peter when He took that "liberal" seven and multiplied it by seventy to show what God's will on forgiveness truly is.  The essential idea is the absence of any limit!  We are not to keep ledgers on each other with a column entitled OFFENSES paralleled by another entitled FORGIVEN.  Also, there is to be no similar page ruled for three entries, or seven, or even four hundred ninety.  Jesus laid down the guiding principle when He said, 'So also My heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart," (Mat. 18:35).  God's forgiveness of sinners is infinite, or else we would have used up our allotments long ago.  Which of us transgresses God's will so little that we feel slight need to beg His mercy when we ask His forgiveness?  To the contrary, each of us knows we sin many times every day and are always in need of God's mercy to pardon us again and again, often for the same offense.

      The person who finds it hard (or impossible!) to forgive another is to be pitied.  Jesus shows us just how pitiable in the parable of the servant who would not forgive, (Mat. 18:23-24).  His master forgave him an astronomical sum of money which he owed, but the servant in turn refused to forgive a fellow servant even a mere pittance.  When this was reported to the master, he called in this hardhearted servant and condemned him to the "tormentors."  The parable teaches that if God forgives us of sins against Him that are black and shameful, we must forgive each other of offenses that do not compare to our sins against God.  We show the extent to which the Spirit of Christ has penetrated our lives and transformed us when we find it within us to forgive an offender "from (our) heart."

      One further word:  True forgiveness requires the dismissal of the offense from the mind.  When missionaries first preached among the natives of Labrador, they were hindered by the lack of a word in their language for "forgive."  Finally, they constructed a word by compounding Labradorian terms that meant "not-able-to-think-about-it-any-more" as their word "forgive."  You have not forgiven someone of a trespass if you bring it back up in one conversation after another to show people "what an awful thing that person once did to me."  Although you may not be able literally to forget the offense, you can lock it away securely in the hidden recesses of your mind and treat its perpetrator as though he had never done it.  Is not this what we desire from God?

PAYING THE TEMPLE TAX

Mat. 17:27 ... "However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel.  Take that and give it to them for Me and for yourself."

      The operation of the temple in Jerusalem was exceedingly expensive, and the Law provided that it was the duty of every Jewish male to help pay for it.  Therefore it was stipulated that every male over the age of twenty had to pay an annual tax of half a shekel for this purpose, (Exo. 30:13).  This was in the Jewish monetary system.  In the Greek system prevailing in Jesus' day the coin equivalent to the half-shekel was the didrachma.  When Jesus reached Capernaum on this particular occasion, those who were collecting the tax asked Peter if Jesus would pay it.  They probably hoped that He would refuse so that they would have grounds for bringing charges against Him.  

      Peter really did not know whether Jesus would pay the tax or not, but in his characteristic impetuosity he blurted out on the spot that He would.  When he came into the house where Jesus was, Jesus asked him, "From whom do the kings of the earth take toll or tax?  From their sons or from others?"  When Peter correctly answered, "From others," Jesus said, "Then the sons are free."  Tribute was charged of people entering the country, not from those who were its own citizens living within.  The native people were free from the tax.

      Jesus' point was that, since the tax was for the support of the temple, which was the house of God, He Himself, as the Son of God, was free from its imposition.  Jesus did not contest the legitimacy of the tax, nor the duty of Jewish men to pay it.  He only pointed out (evidently to Peter privately) that it did not apply to Him.  Then He gave Peter directions about how to obtain the money necessary for the tax, not only for himself, but for Peter also.  His reason for paying when He did not owe was "not to give offense to them."

      In this case Jesus set an example for His disciples in all ages to observe and follow.  There are times when it happens that our "rights" are challenged.  We assess the situation and come to the conclusion that we should be permitted either to do something or (as in Jesus' case here) be exempted from doing it.  We are then faced with a very important decision:  either claim the right and tenaciously defend it, or forfeit the right and cope with the situation involved.  Your choice should depend on the temperament of the people involved.  If your exercise of the right will not offend them, then you may claim it.  But if doing so will offend them and cause a conflict, it is better to deny yourself of that right.

      It must be understood in this context that "right" means privilege rather than duty.  A privilege may either be used or denied, but a Christian cannot make a choice between doing his duty or not doing it.  To choose not to do one's Christian duty in order to avoid offending others would be sin.  It was not Jesus' duty to pay the tax, or He would have paid it without a word.  It was His right (i.e., His privilege) not to pay it, but He chose to forfeit that right rather than offend those whose understanding was too shallow to grasp the reality involved.  In this choice our Lord has set for His American disciples a splendid example for making decisions in similar situations to avoid giving offense and thus live among unregenerate associates as "wise as serpents and innocent as doves," (Mat. 10:16).   Going this "second mile" in human affairs may well result in making a better impression for the glory of our Lord.

DENYING SELF TO FOLLOW JESUS

Mat. 16:24 ... "Then Jesus told His disciples, 'If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow Me'."

      Jesus wants us to be His disciples, but we can gain that privilege only by the terms that He prescribes.  That is the point He is clearly making in this statement.  And yet, it is common for people to want to become Christians by setting the terms for discipleship themselves.  They tell Jesus, in attitude if not in words, "I will be Your follower, but You must let me ... ."  Then they state their reservation -- the practice, habit, trait, association, or whatever -- that they intend to carry from their worldly life into Christianity with them.  "I will be a Christian, Lord, but You must let me dress as I please."  Or, "I will be a Christian, Lord, but do not make me give up this specific kind of entertainment."  Or, "I will be a Christian, Lord, but I must be allowed to schedule the use of my time to meet my own needs." 

      It is commonly accepted in certain areas of life that we must yield ourselves to conform to specific required norms.  For example, when someone joins the army, he must dress and groom himself by military standards.  Likewise, he has to accept the regimentation of behavior, mandatory scheduling of his time, and orders about where he will be stationed and the job he must do.  One who joins the army does so with clear understanding about such conformity, and so he resigns himself to the mold into which he is cast.  Thus Paul reminded his younger assistant, "No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him," (II Tim. 2:4).  

      Although people understand what is required when one enters a worldly army, they find it difficult to believe similar conditions must be accepted when one enters the spiritual army of Jesus.  They think they can become Christian soldiers on their own terms, assume immediate command as an officer, and determine the nature of their conduct and service for themselves.  However, this self-determination is not permitted by Jesus, and those who dare exercise it anyway are deceived and proceeding into a zone of spiritual danger.  Jesus declares that "if anyone would come after Me," he must meet three essential criteria.

      First, he must deny himself.  He has to accept it that he will surrender his will to the will of his commander, who is Christ.  He must build the same attitude that Jesus Himself expressed to God when He said, "Not as I will, but as You will," (Mat. 26:39).  The person with the attitude, "Well, no matter if the Bible requires this, I am going to do something else!," is not yet ready to be Jesus' disciple.  In the army this is called insubordination and is punishable by court martial.  The Lord will similarly deal with such insubordinate attitudes among those who wear His name.

      Second, a disciple of Jesus must take up his cross.  The cross is a symbol of suffering.  Jesus suffered considerably -- from physical pain, from humiliation, and from being separated from His Father while He hung on the cross for our sins. He requires us, in turn, to endure some suffering for His sake.  We must suffer loss of time, personal ease and comfort, and worldly involvements, along with the abuse of an irreligious society, to help promote His kingdom in the world.  So Christians are ordered to "share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ," (II Tim. 2:3).  One who thinks he can be a Christian and enjoy the best of two worlds is one who is not taking up his cross.

      Third, a disciple of Jesus must follow His instructions to follow Me.  This means he must follow Jesus Himself rather than someone's construction, or interpretation, of Jesus.  Jesus' instructions to His disciples are not cryptic, but clear enough to be generally understood.  It only involves reading the New Testament regularly and carefully with an open mind.  The true message will come through to the reader well enough that he can follow his Master and please Him.  Orders from everyone else must be disregarded, (Jno. 10:4-5).

THE PERIL OF HUMAN TRADITION

Mat. 15:3 ... "Why do you break the commandments of God for the sake of your tradition?"

      The conflict between the commandment of God and the tradition of men is as old as human existence on earth.  In the earliest records of the relationship between God and men we find that people had already developed traditions which they regarded before and above the commandments given by God for the regulation of their lives.  To a large degree the entire Old Testament can be interpreted in terms of this struggle.  The New Testament then gives abundant testimony to the continuation of it as the commandments of God assumed the form of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

      The tradition of men begins when human preference is substituted for something that God has instructed men to do.  When the next generation reinforces the practice of the substitution by adopting and perpetuating it, it gains strength and begins to command respect.  When several generations have thus embraced the substitution, it becomes so honored by time that it is held sacred and is exalted above even the very word of God.

      In the Mosaic Law (Exo. 21:17) God commanded that children should honor their father and mother.  According to Jesus' application of this requirement (Mat. 15:5-6) it meant that children must provide for their parents' needs when old age made them unable to care for themselves.  Other aspects of this Divine instruction reveal that God wills children to speak to their parents in a way that is always respectful, polite, and kind, (Lev. 20:9, Dty. 27:16, Pro. 20:20 and 30:17).  But between the time these directions were given and Jesus' comments about them, the Jewish people found it expedient to make substitutions for them.  They decided that by dedicating their possessions to God, (a formal ritual that involved the actual offering of only a token part of them), it placed off-limits all the rest from use by anyone else, including their parents.  Thus they were excused from sharing their goods with needy parents.  In talking about this maneuver with their fathers and mothers, it seems they were using speech that was harsh and disrespectful.

      Their wily strategy was opposing one part of the Law to another, which really amounted to substituting human for Divine will.  And because it had been initiated many generations before and had gained the sanctity of longevity and general acceptance, it had become an entrenched tradition in Jewish life.  But when Jesus declared, "For the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God," (Mat. 15:6), He opposed it for what it was, a presumptuous departure from the way God had ordained them to go.  Their practice had nullified God's law among them.  Living apart from God's law in their own tradition, they were unwittingly living apart from His favor.  This reality is stated by Paul when he told the Jews in Rome, "Both Jews and Greeks are under sin," (Rom. 3:9).

      We must always examine and reexamine our practices, procedures, customs and methods lest it be that we are substituting our own preferences and nullifying the will of God.  Likewise,we must scrutinize everything to detect any instance where we might be perpetuating a tradition that makes God's will come to nothing.  A man who who had served more than forty years as a preacher told me frankly, "I know that infant baptism has no Scriptural basis, but it is such a beautiful custom that I continue to perform it."  This is the attitude we must avoid.  In the day we give account to God all human traditions will be discounted.  Only the word of God will stand to justify or condemn our souls before God.  Those who have conducted their lives by the traditions of men will suffer eternal exclusion from His grace.  No one can determine his own path to salvation; any way marked out by man leads only to the wrong destination.  Indeed, we must obey God rather than men, (Acts 5:29).

DO NOT FEAR

Mat. 14:27 ... "Immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, 'Take heart; it is I.  Do not be afraid."

      Jesus made the preceding statement in the context of the following event.  All day long he had been teaching a great multitude and concluded by miraculously feeding them all with a few loaves of bread and two fish.  After dismissing them to their homes, He then instructed His disciples to cross the Sea of Galilee in a boat while He went up on a mountain to pray alone.  After a while a contrary wind arose that stirred up waves and made it extremely difficult for the boat to make progress.  So Jesus descended the mountain and walked out across the water toward the boat.  When the men spotted Him, the text says "they were terrified, and said, 'It is a ghost!'  and they cried out in fear," (v.26).  It was then, to relieve their stress and fear, that Jesus called out to them, "Take heart; it is I.  Do not be afraid."

      Fear is an emotion common to mankind.  Everyone experiences fear at some time, for there is something that each person is afraid of.  There are even special, debilitating fears (phobias) that have classified names:  acrophobia (fear of height), agoraphobia (fear of open spaces), claustrophobia (fear of tight places), hemaphobia (fear of blood), arachniphobia (fear of spiders), xenophobia (fear of strangers), and a great many more.  Some fears afflict great numbers of people, such as the fear of failure, the fear of losing one's job or income, the fear of growing old and weak, the fear of being alone, the fear of being left out of something important, and the fear of contracting some terrible disease.  We live in a world where dangers of all kinds surround us continually, so that it is easy to let fear build up within us and rob us of happiness and peace of mind.

      Some fears are constructive, because they help to steer us along the right paths of life.  The student who fears failure may devote himself to diligent study.  The child who fears playing in the street will not be killed by a passing car or truck.  The worker who fears injury will carefully observe safety rules and wear protective devices in areas of danger. 

      Many other fears are destructive, because they hinder us from making the best use of our time and energy.  A young man who fears the inability to reach a goal may choose not to try for it and miss a successful career in medicine, business, or research.  A young woman who fears the role of being a good wife and mother may never marry.  A businessman who fears the risk in a venture may never establish a strong, flourishing company.  A person who fears an audience may never display his talents to their pleasure and appreciation.  Such fears as these, and they are legion, are like chains we wrap around us, lock securely, and throw away the key.  We cut ourselves off from a great deal of happiness, fulfillment, and worthy achievement because of fears which shackle us.

      The wonderful thing about having Jesus in your life as a real, abiding Presence is that He can relieve you of these fears and set you free from their captivity.  Having ready access to His unlimited power enables you to cope with the terrible fear until you can master it and eliminate it from your system.  What Paul said of himself can as well be said by any devoted disciple of Jesus, "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me," (Php. 4:13).  Jesus offers His disciples all the strength they need to overcome any fear.  And there is more!  Just to know that the Spirit of Jesus is always with you causes fear to seem less fearful.  Has He not promised each of His followers,"Behold, I am with you always," (Mat. 28:20).  A child is not afraid in the presence of his father, and as the children of God we need not be burdened by fear when we trust that He is near.      

TEACHING IN PARABLES

Mat. 13:13 ... "This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand."

      In this chapter Matthew records a series of seven parables of Jesus to demonstrate various features of the kingdom of God which was soon to be established.  The occasion was one when "great crowds gathered about Him, so that He got into a boat and sat down.  And the whole crowd stood on the beach, (v.2).  Although Jesus often resorted to parables as a form of instruction, it seems that on this particular day He used it exclusively, for we are told that "all these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, He said nothing to them without a parable," (v.34).  It was rather unusual for Him to limit His approach to one form of teaching, and His disciples were somewhat puzzled over it.  At one point they asked, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" (v.10).  Jesus answered them with the statement quoted above, (v.13).

      Jesus' objective was not to mystify people with cryptic expressions or enigmas to point them in conflicting directions.  His purpose was rather to make plain to them the truth that could save them.  There were, however, those who came to Him for other reasons than to hear truth.  They were men of evil heart who only wanted to debate, ridicule, and try to destroy Him.  It was with a view to them that Jesus couched the great principles from God in the form of parables.  His enemies would not bother to try to penetrate their simple surface and discover the meaning within.  But the sincere, truth seeking disciples would.  It was unto the latter that He exclaimed, "Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear," (v.16).  In other words, Jesus was following His own directive: "Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you," (Mat. 7:6).  He was presenting to those who were appreciative His great lessons in protective verbal coverings.

      It has always been true that there are people who see but do not see, and who hear but do not hear.  And neither seeing nor hearing, they never understand.  The "seeing" in this context does not refer to visual perception.  Neither does the "hearing" refer to audient ability.  Jesus' opponents saw and heard the same things His disciples did.  What Jesus was talking about was minds that are open to receive and believe the truth, that are sympathetic and will accept the truth with joy unto their salvation.  Those are the people whom the Lord will bless with the precious gift of understanding and the ability to apply it with wisdom.

      Our prayer to God should always be that He help us guard ourselves from hardening our hearts to the point where we can no longer see or hear the truth.  Our concern must be to find out what creates such an obdurate mind and resist its formation within us.  Jesus in this chapter points out three factors in the Parable of the Sower.  First is our exposure to God's enemies, who persistently work to pick the truth out of the minds of prospective disciples, (v.19).  Second is having a mind so shallow that truth cannot penetrate it far enough to take permanent hold, (vs. 20-21).  Third is being more interested in worldly treasures that bring temporary pleasure, but then vanish forever, than in spiritual treasures that bless the owner both now and forever, (Mat. 6:19-22).  Beyond these factors which hinder the assimilation of truth, others are revealed elsewhere in the New Testament so that we might be careful to avoid them.  Self-righteousness and pride, for example, were the two major mental barriers that blocked the truth from the Pharisees and scribes.  Foolishness and levity are sometimes denounced as things that prevent people from apprehending truth.  Prejudice, malice, and moral perversion are other forces that disable people from receiving truth and benefiting from it.