Matthew 11:4-15 ~ what you hear and see

 

This song works better by omitting 

the second stanza. Or altering this!

Matthew 11:4-15

4 And Jesus answered them, 

“Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. 6 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” 

 7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: 

“What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. 9 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.

 10 This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’ 11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. 

Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 

12 From the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of Heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, 14 and if you are willing to accept it, 

he is Elijah who is to come. 

15 He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Why Do We Spend So Much Time Talking About John The Baptist? Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, gets plenty of attention in our Sunday lectionary readings: he appears twice during Advent and three times throughout the Epiphany! Why is that? To understand John the Baptist, we need to turn to the Old Testament and recall the prophet, Samuel. Samuel was born to a barren woman named Hannah. He grew up in the temple and served as a priest, offering up sacrifices to God on behalf of Israel’s sins (I Sam 7:9). Additionally, before the era of the kings of Israel, Samuel was the last great judge to administer justice in Israel (I Sam 7:15). He had a king-like role before Saul and David, the first kings were appointed. Thus, Samuel was a kind of prophet, priest and king, who anointed David as king of Israel, with his triple authority of prophet, priest and king. John the Baptist is the spitting image of Samuel. He too is a prophet declaring repentance and forgiveness in the wilderness. He too is in the lineage of priests because his father, Zechariah, was a high priest. He too is a judge, calling out Herod for his moral bankruptcy, while declaring comfort and peace to the humble and oppressed. He too was born to a barren mother, Elizabeth. John the Baptist's functions were akin to Samuel's with the triple authority of prophet, priest and king. So, when he baptizes Jesus, he is anointing Jesus, with his triple authority, as the true king of Israel, the son of David, the Son of God, who has returned to take up His rightful throne. For the Israelites back then, waiting with bated breath for their king to return, John the Baptist was a blaring, flashing sign that could not be ignored, pointing to Israel’s long-awaited king. He is vitally important because his presence makes Jesus’ person and ministry crystal clear for those who have dim eyes and dull ears. Yet, there is a second reason why we emphasize John the Baptist. As Christians, we too are called to be blaring, flashing signs, pointing to the king of the World, Jesus, to a world that has dim eyes and dull ears. Our lives are the sign. As the collect for John the Baptist exhorts us, when we speak the truth, boldly rebuke vice and patiently suffer for truth’s sake, we shine like stars and lights in a world filled with darkness. John the Baptist gets plenty of attention in our appointed Sunday lectionary Gospel readings so that we can learn from his example and live like little lights that point to the true Light of the World, Jesus Christ. The Rev. John D. Sundara Vicar for Worship and Evangelism If you know someone who would like to receive our daily devotions, please forward your copy to a friend. If you would like to reply to this devotional, please email the Rev. John Sundara at jsundara@smec.org.

St. Martin's Episcopal Church | 717 Sage Road | Houston, TX 77056 US

Abba, Father,

Our Father, Who is in Heaven

Come to us, Father. 

Come to us, Holy Spirit. 

Come to us, Jesus Christ.

Help us

each day

to see the Joy and Adventure

Jesus Christ sees

in John 14, 15, 16 and John 17.

To Be more Heaven on earth

To see more Heaven on earth

To say more Heaven on earth.

and

to Bless more Heaven on earth.

Every Day.

In the retirement of President Joe Biden,

Thank You

 for his endorsement

enabling all the Americans 

voting for him, to receive

their vote instead of 

an abandonment of their Primary Votes

to elites 

merely dictating.

Each day to

promote what is Good

what is Heavenly

what is a Blessing.

Father, in Heaven, Thank You,

Abide 

in every moment

 of our Lives.

The Lord God

Father of All

Saving the world

One moment at a time!!!

Eternally.

The Safety of 

one

who has faithfully

served this Nation.

And is Loved. 

Safety in

our homes.

Safety in

our Nation.

Thank God,

for His Healing,

for your prayers, Kurt,

the worthy doctor, we prayed for

had to come home from brain West Nile rehab

due to Hurricane Beryl.

Kurt

 is back walking, sitting, 

climbing the stairs

and eating. 

Since coming home as bedridden in rehab

to home to

his wonderful family and beloved wife.

God is GOOD!

Jesus is GOOD!

The Holy Spirit is GOOD!

We pray for the healing

of our Nation,

Nations.

The Grace, Mercy and Love

for 

our Jesus Christ

His Father

and Holy Spirit

to prevail,

establish

and

fill

all our families

the ill blessed

with His

Love

and Word of Healing.

Are we the takers in life,

not helping our culture,

friends,

the people who know us,

our world,

to know

what God

would want us to have to say

and do.

We create the culture

in the Light of our life.

Let us 

be Lights for the Lord.

With just our lives.

Eternal God, 

in whose perfect Kingdom no sword is drawn

but the sword of righteousness, 

no strength known but the

strength of Love: 

So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, 

that

All

peoples 

may be gathered under the banner 

of the Prince of Peace,

Jesus Christ

As children 

of one Father; 

to Whom be dominion 

and

glory, now and forever. 

Amen.

Thank You. Jesus.

Our God is working. His Son,

Jesus is working.

Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

YES, Bless the Lord Jesus

Thank You, Jesus

Psalm 103 ~ The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed

Psalm 103

Bless the LORD, 

O my soul; 

 and all that is within me,

Bless His Holy Name!

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul,

and 

forget not all His benefits -

3 Who forgives all your sins

and 

heals all your diseases,

4 Who redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you 

with love and compassion,

5 Who satisfies your desires with good things

so that your youth is renewed

 like the eagle's.

6 The LORD works righteousness

and 

justice for 

all 

the oppressed.

7 He made known His ways to Moses,

His deeds to the people of Israel:

8 The LORD is compassionate 

and gracious,

slow to anger, 

abounding in love.

9 He will not always accuse,

nor will He harbor His anger forever;

10 He does not treat us as our sins deserve

or repay us 

according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great 

is His Love 

for those who fear Him;

12 as far as the east is from the west,

so far 

has He removed our transgressions 

from us.

13 As a father has compassion 

on His children,

so the LORD has compassion 

on those who fear Him;

14 for He knows 

how we are formed,

He remembers 

that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass,

he flourishes like a flower of the field;

16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,

and its place remembers it no more.

17 But from everlasting to everlasting

the LORD's love

 is 

with those who fear Him,

and His righteousness 

with their children's children -

18 with those who keep 

His covenant

and remember to obey His precepts.

19 The LORD has established His Throne 

in Heaven,

and His Kingdom

 rules over 

all.

20 Praise the LORD, 

you 

His angels,

you mighty ones 

who do His bidding,

who obey 

His Word.

21 Praise the LORD, 

all 

His Heavenly Hosts,

you 

His servants who do His Will.

22 Praise the LORD, 

all 

His Works

everywhere - in His Dominion.

Praise the LORD, 

O 

my soul.

When we read something like 

The LORD works righteousness

and 

justice for 

all 

the oppressed

Oh, Eek. We immediately think The Lord is much higher than we are because this is a difficult statement. I used to feel this way about Ascension Sunday and was given what my heart could understand and love - we know where Jesus is.

Leviticus 19:19 

“You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your cattle breed with a different kind. You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material.

Deuteronomy 22:11 

You shall not wear cloth of wool and linen mixed together.

Deuteronomy 22:9 

“You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, lest the whole yield be forfeited, the crop that you have sown and the yield of the vineyard.

Acts 17:10-11 

The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

Revelation 19:8 

It was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

And the other one the critics love:

Deuteronomy 21:18-21

King James Version

18 If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them:

19 Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place;

20 And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard.

21 And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

Jesus, we are told in His Word, is the cornerstone. Begin with the Beginning. What you love about God and connects you to The Lord. 

The place where I connect to Jesus Christ, The Word of God, manifest:

And God said, let there be Light.  As a baby, this was my first word. My parents were bringing me home from dinner with my godmother Anne. They woke me up, put me in the car, and I began to speak, for the first time, "Light!" And pointed out, to my parents, the streetlights. My parents said we laughed all the way home. And God saw it was good! I believe!

Hosea 6:6 

For I desire steadfast love 

and not sacrifice, 

 the knowledge of God 

rather than burnt offerings.

Nehemiah 8:10 

Then he said to them, “Go your way. 

Eat the fat and drink sweet wine 

and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, 

for this day is holy to our Lord. 

And do not be grieved 

For the joy of the Lord 

is your strength. 

What will we say to words seeming not to have the wisdom found in The Book of Proverbs. When we dismiss this utterly, we are not the Father of the Prodigal Son.  In our meaningful lives, we reach out for understanding.  In the Good Samaritan, we know we could all play a part. The one who walked on by or the one who helped. 

Mixing fabric. We are told to pray for more of God's Good Will, Heaven on earth. Probably God knows a thing or two about the elements of the Universe!  And we find the clothing and shoes of those in the Exodus, lasted for 40 years. The Scriptures tell us to pray about everything. God is interested in all our.... details. To be this interested, you'd have to have tremendous Love. 

So, instead of doing away with these ideas. Like doing away with the detail of clothing and shoes for 600,000 men in the Exodus, instead of having this detail in the Scriptures. Plus the multitude Deuteronomy tells us.  We can decide God in His wisdom sees this, fabric, crossbreeding of livestock, mixing crops, this list, seen exactly as the Rules for Kosher.  Why did Kosher exist? King David lived to be in his 50s. The rest of the Bronze Age was living to the average of 19 or 20 years old.  And how do we apply The Book of Acts, reversing Kosher? 

Ecclesiastes 3

For everything 

there is a season, 

and a time for every matter under heaven

Don't wear mixed clothing, don't experiment with crops, don't crossbreed livestock. 

In the past days, the extreme fragility of life, missing modern medications, without antibiotics, salve for allergies, and or hope during crop failure.  We can condemn God. Or find what He is saying. Like the Prodigal Father runs to the Son. We can apply mercy to the word of God, or we can sacrifice the veracity of faith. 

Stoning children. Failure to deal with children who go on to murder or mass murder. 

We would hope parents with children who make bombs, keep stacks of knives, and stack up weapons, would seek help from many, many, many doctors. Until help is found.  Then, that era of Bronze Age or Iron Age, death, was the solution. Today, we hope parents will not leave a stone unturned to find help for children gone off the rails.  Certainly, this would be a place of comfort for the parents of someone with these problems. 

In our culture, we are quick to condemn and cancel. Instead, give mercy.

The LORD works righteousness

and 

justice for 

ALL

the oppressed

Ephesians 2:8-9

For by grace 

you have been saved through faith. 

And this is not your own doing; 

it is the gift of God, 

not a result of works, 

so that no one may boast.

Abba, Father,

Our Father, Who is in Heaven

Come to us, Father. 

Come to us, Holy Spirit. 

Come to us, Jesus Christ.

Help us

each day

to see the Joy and Adventure

Jesus Christ sees

in John 14, 15, 16 and John 17.

To Be more Heaven on earth

To see more Heaven on earth

To say more Heaven on earth.

and

to Bless more Heaven on earth.

Every Day.

In the retirement of President Joe Biden,

Thank You

 for his endorsement

enabling all the Americans 

voting for him, to receive

their vote instead of 

an abandonment of their Primary Votes

to elites 

merely dictating.

Each day to

promote what is Good

what is Heavenly

what is a Blessing.

Father, in Heaven, Thank You,

Abide 

in every moment

 of our Lives.

The Lord God

Father of All

Saving the world

One moment at a time!!!

Eternally.

The Safety of 

one

who has faithfully

served this Nation.

And is Loved. 

Safety in

our homes.

Safety in

our Nation.

Thank God,

for His Healing,

for your prayers, Kurt,

the worthy doctor, we prayed for

had to come home from brain West Nile rehab

due to Hurricane Beryl.

Kurt

 is back walking, sitting, 

climbing the stairs

and eating. 

Since coming home as bedridden in rehab

to home to

his wonderful family and beloved wife.

God is GOOD!

Jesus is GOOD!

The Holy Spirit is GOOD!

We pray for the healing

of our Nation,

Nations.

The Grace, Mercy and Love

for 

our Jesus Christ

His Father

and Holy Spirit

to prevail,

establish

and

fill

all our families

the ill blessed

with His

Love

and Word of Healing.

Remembering what

Terry Bollea,

aka Hulk Hogan,

said about our words.

Are we the takers in life,

not helping our culture,

friends,

the people who know us,

our world,

to know

what God

would want us to have to say

and do.

We create the culture

in the Light of our life.

Let us 

be Lights for the Lord.

With just our lives.

Eternal God, 

in whose perfect Kingdom no sword is drawn

but the sword of righteousness, 

no strength known but the

strength of Love: 

So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, 

that

All

peoples 

may be gathered under the banner 

of the Prince of Peace,

Jesus Christ

As children 

of one Father; 

to Whom be dominion 

and

glory, now and forever. 

Amen.

Thank You. Jesus.

Our God is working. His Son,

Jesus is working.

Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

YES, Bless the Lord Jesus

Thank You, Jesus