May the mumbling commence!
In what ways do we give our Master His due? In what subtle ways do we deny our Master His due? These are important questions to ask ourselves periodically. These questions were at the heart of the parable that Jesus told the chief priests and teachers of the Law and the elders. This parable magnifies the refusal of these religious leaders to claim John the Baptist as speaking for God or for himself. Read from the beginning of Mark chapter twelve:
He then began to speak to them in parables: "A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.
He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, 'They will respect my son.'
But the tenants said to one another, 'This is the heir. Come, let's kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.' So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. Haven't you read this scripture:
'The stone the builders rejected
has become the capstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes'?" (Verses 1-11)
Everything that we think that we own or have entitlement to comes from God. God is our Master. We have what we have by the grace of God, who rents all our possessions to us. God expects us to be fruitful. And He expects that fruit to glorify His name. Glorification of God is His due.
Everything in our lives must align with this glorification of God. How are we doing with our dues? How have you and I used everything in our lives to glorify God?
The summer and fall seasons are a time of harvest in our lives. For farmers and gardeners, there is literal truth to this. For students (which I hope and pray that all of us are), it means a time of rest from studies so that we may begin to apply our learning’s to our lives.
Too many students allow the summer to ebb away in the hazy and lazy days of summer. Then students must begin again in the fall trying to reclaim the learning that they have lost. I greatly desire to make this summer a time of application.
For me, I want to delve into the Word of God more and more so that I can form a many-tiered story of Elijah’s life – to see how his life foreshadows the lives of both John the Baptist and Jesus. It is a story that I foresee including monologues and dialogues that will uncover patterns – and even more important, at times, deviations from the patterns.
The story of Elijah (and Elisha) echoes forth from the story of Moses and Joshua and foreshadows John the Baptist and Jesus… and by extension Jesus and the church. It is a message that the church desperately needs to hear.
It is a message of succession. God’s will is greater than any of us. The lifework that God has given us will never be completed by one person or one generation. The forerunners need to carefully train the successors and hand off the baton of faith. The successors must take an active part in receiving that baton.
Yes, the different generation can learn from each other! Help us, O Holy Spirit, to learn from one another… so that we might glorify your name among all the people – giving God His due.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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