Rivers of Grace

“Come to me all that are heavy laden and I will give you rest” Matt: 11:28

St. Matthew record the words of  our Lord Jesus as he stood among the down trodden people and proclaimed a powerful invitation to, any and all who will but freely receive it.

“Come to me all that are heavy laden and I will give you rest” Matt: 11:28

This invitation is not just when we first come to believe, but it is for all our Christian life. There are times when the burdens, which we carry, become exceedingly great; and even we Christians find ourselves struggling to carry our burdens in life.

St. Peter wrote to believers throughout the ages regarding our burdens and cares.

“cast all your cares upon him” 1Pet:5:7

The Waters of Grace

Our Lord Jesus is inviting each and all of us to give up our cares and concerns in this life and relinquish the burden to him and to allow ourselves to be plunged into the gentile currents of the rivers of his grace that flow from the alter of the cross.

We see this eternal living stream of God’s holy grace typified in a vision shown to the Prophet Ezekiel. The Prophet sees, in the Spirit , the water flow which streams forth from the alter of the glorious Temple of God.

“and I saw water coming out from the threshold of the Temple toward the east, for the Temple faced east. The water was coming forth from the south side of the Temple south of the alter. He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around outside to the outer gate which faced east, the water was trickling out from the south side.

“As the man went eastward with a measuring rod in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits he then led me through ankle deep water. He then measured off another thousand cubits and led me through waters that were knee deep. He then measured off another thousand cubits and led me to water that was waist deep. He then measured off another thousand cubits, now the water was so deep that I could  cross, because it was now deep enough to swim- a river that none could cross”.Ezk:47:1b-5

This eternal flow of the Holy Spirit, who administers the grace of our God to each and all of us, we are told, led the Prophet into the river in a progressive ever deepening way, to the ankles, that is the early part of our Christian  life, then the Spirit leads us deeper into the River of Grace up to our knees, that is; we are led to pray.  

We are moved to bring our needs, cares concerns and our praise and worship to God through times of prayer both private and corporate as fellowship.

By the Spirit

There are times in our lives when circumstances are such that our words prove to be inadequate or we have no voice to offer before our God. There are times when we simply do not understand the conditions which unfold around us, it is in these moments when God the Holy Spirit intercedes for us.

St.Paul writes that the Spirit himself moves on and for our behalves.

“the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, for the Spirit himself makes intersession for us through groaning which cannot be expressed” Rm: 8:26

This tells us that we can come to him and even in our silence that the Holy Spirit moves on our behalf and conveys our needs to our Father in Heaven.

Jesus Our High Priest

Our Lord Jesus, in his role as the High Priest of God, acts for each and all, even in the dry season of life in which we find ourselves focused upon the weightiness of our burdens rather than upon him.

The writer of the Hebrews Epistle tells us regarding Jesus’ ongoing and active ministry on each and all of our behalves especially in times of hardship despair, need or doubts on our parts.

“for he ever lives to make intersession for them” Heb:7:25b

 This means, that whatever your need, care or concern is this day or any day our Lord Jesus ,as your High Priest,  has brought your very name before the Throne of our God. Jesus has prayed for you this day and every day. He stand there for us, each and all. Jesus immerses us into the Rivers of Grace which the Holy Spirit conveys to us.  

Our Two Witness

With the unified voice of our Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit, each as distinct, yet as one, intercedes for us. This should give us great assurances that our need will be addressed by our Holy Father in Heaven in such away which will be for our eternal best good and according to his divine will for each and all. Your prayer will be heard and your need answered for as the Scared word of God tells us.

“in the mouth of two or three witness a thing is established” 2Cor:13:1

Whatever your need come unto Jesus and be immersed into the River of God’s Grace and find rest in our Lord Jesus.

Benediction: May we each and all be ever immersed in the eternal River of God’s Grace, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor 

The Fountain of life Church a Congregation of Grace Communion
2101 Old National Pike,  Washington, Pennsylvania, 15301   www.gcfountainoflife.org 

The Fountain of Life is heard on the RKP Radio Network 1710 and 1670 AM in Washington and North Franklin ,and 1790 AM in the Arden Fair Grounds area of Washington Pennsylvania, and on 1710 AM in Bentleyville and Monongahela, Pennsylvania. And online around the world at www.rkpradio.com 

You can follow the Fountain of Life on Face Book - Click on our Face Book link : https://www.facebook.com/Fountain-of-Life-Church-349595355088375/

"If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"

  

Because I am Generous

A traditional interpretation of the parable of the workers in the Vineyard has been to focus on 20:16 (“the last will be first,”.) to understand the parable as a statement about the gift of eternal life, as the ultimate equalizer, which will be bestowed upon to all “laborers in the vineyard.”

From our contemporary view, this parable brings to mind issues of and daily laborers. What is “fair” for those who work in the various service potions.

The “parable of the laborers in the vineyard” is unique to Matthew. The stories that surround the parable -- the rich young man/Peter’s claim to have “left everything” and Jesus’ third prediction of his death/James & John’s request -- were consecutive accounts in Mark.

Matthew’s inclusion of this parable interrupts that narrative flow. In Matthew’s narrative context, Jesus’ parable seems to be a story directly (connected) to discipleship issues, possessions, and authority.

Matthew’s placement was important to the larger narrative structure, this “parable” was typified. For example, in the preceding story (cf. 19:23-29),

Peter declared, “we have left everything and followed you” (19:27).

This kind of dedicated service to Jesus will reap a reward (cf. 19:28), but these rewards are not just for Jesus’ immediate disciples but for Christians who have followed, since “many who are first will be last” (19:30

The parable also played out in the story that followed the parable (21:17-28): Jesus predicted his death to the disciples for the third and final time (cf. Matthew 16:21; 17:12; 17:22-23). Right after this prediction, the mother of James and John requested special privilege for her sons (rather than a direct request from James and John themselves, as in Mark 10:35-45). They, too, “have borne the burden of the day” since they’ve been with Jesus from the beginning of his mission.

In this following story, we hear the concern -- and, perhaps some of that “envious” spirit -- from the other disciples. But, Jesus warned them as well: greatness comes through service (cf. Matthew 20:25-28). God’s generosity will not succumb to human jealousy. As Matthew’s Jesus preached earlier, God provides rain for the just and unjust alike (cf. Matthew 5:45).

Matthew 20:1-16 is a true-to-life parable. “Day laborers” would be readily available in the market place. But it would be unusual for a wealthy “landowner” to locate his own workers. Usually, the manager would have hired the laborers, just as he would have been responsible to pay wages (cf. 20:8). More than likely, the manager would not have returned to the market place to hire additional workers at the end of the day and offered the same wage. He would be fearful of his landowner’s reaction to such an unwise investment in labor.

The first-century workers union complaint (cf. 20:11-12) seems reasonable, even if misguided. Why wouldn’t those who have labored less receive less? But the landowner had a different conception of fairness. In the first-century economy, the master could choose to do what he pleased with his resources.

The landowner’s question, “Are you envious because I am generous?” (verse 15), is the translation of a Greek idiom which literally translates as “Is your eye evil because I am good?” An “evil eye” (ophthalmos poneros) speaks of a deeper problem than it may first appear.

As Jesus taught, “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light; but if your eye is unhealthy (ophthalmos poneros; so, if you have the “evil eye”), your whole body will be full of darkness” (cf. 6:22-23). In this account, the “evil eye” was the opposite of generosity jealousy, greed, selfishness,

And, the “landowner” (or, preferably, “household master” from oikodespotes) is a common analogy for God in Jesus’ teaching in Matthew’s Gospel.

The Gospel of Mark does not uses this analogy. So, it may reveal something about Matthew’s cultural setting.

To the contemporary reader, the analogy may cause concern, since many of these masters owned slaves in Jesus’ parables (e.g., 10:25; 13:27; 21:34; 24:45). For this short discussion, why was God’s reign often compared to landowning activities? Was it simply Jesus’ theological belief that God “owned” all the land (cf. Deuteronomy 10:14; Psalm 24:1; Job 41:11)?

Within Jesus’ parables, household masters generally made wise decisions (e.g., 13:27-30), even if misunderstood (20:11-15). The possible exception to this pattern occurred in 21:33-41; here, the landowner’s patience cost him his son’s life because of evil (grumbling?) tenants who worked the land (cf. 21:33-41).

Perhaps, Jesus stressed the landowner’s active patience as a positive sign of God’s forbearance. To many interpreters, however, the inability to recognize the dangers from his servants’ experiences suggests a naiveté on the landowner’s part.

In our passage under discussion, the landowner was to be emulated (even if most of Jesus’ audience members would have been more culturally attuned to the experiences of the laborers). The so-called “parable of the laborers in the vineyard” should more aptly be called the “parable of the Landowner’s generosity.” As Jesus taught earlier, in Matthew’s parable chapter: “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household (oikodespotes) who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old” (13:52). So, “scribes…trained for the kingdom” (i.e., Jesus’ disciples) are expected to be like the “landowners” (i.e., God), who generously provide for all of their “laborers.”

So, the parable is really not about the “laborers in the vineyard.” In fact, this is not even a story about the growth of the vineyard. Nor was there any significant attention on the activities of the workers. We hear the complaints of those who have toiled all day long, but the story was really not about them either.

Rather, Jesus’ parable highlights the generosity of God. As the ultimate “landowner,” God will use what has always belonged to the Creator for the good of all even if humans fail to view the world through God’s eyes. In Jesus earlier words: God’s perfection is exemplified in God’s rain on the just and the unjust (cf. 5:48). The landowner’s question in the parable is Jesus’ punchline for the story: “Are you envious because I am generous?”

The Simplicity that is in Christ

“the simplicity that is in Christ” 2 Corinthians:11:3  

 

On almost any given Sunday Christians can hear a wide variety of viewpoints and messages being proclaimed. There is truth to the content of many of these messages and most of the focus is within the bounds of what we might understand as orthodox Christianity and is in agreement with the historic Christian Creeds written through the ages. 

Some of these messages have an intense focus on prophetic events. This view and focus on events developed largely in the early 1800’s through the preaching and ministry of a man named John Darby, but not exclusively by Darby there were others as well from time-to-time.

Apocalyptic Language

Darby, and others, had and have, developed elaborate and complex prophetic schematics which chart the events leading up to the coming of our Lord Jesus. These schematics can be overly complicated and some of them unfortunately ignore the Biblical use of what is called “Apocalyptic language”, which was an oratory and literary device taught and used in the rabbinical schools of the times in which the Holy Scriptures were inspired. 

This “Apocalyptic language” was even used by the Prophets to convey God’s message to humanity in and trough the Old Testament Scriptures.  This “Apocalyptic literary” style of preaching and writing was used by the Holy Spirit to speak of the seriousness of disregarding God’s word to us, and reveals and dramatize the disastrous results of humanities attempts to save themselves, and looking to any other means of salvation aside from the only means through which God has provided salvation for us in and through the person of Jesus.  

“there is salvation found in no other name under Heaven other than that of Jesus by which humanity might be saved.” Acts: 4:12

St. Paul even comments upon the purpose of the written record of the sacred writ as a powerful illustration of what occurs when humanity attempts to accomplish what only God can accomplish for us whether it be in our personal lives or collective lives.

“These things happened to Israel and are record as examples and warning for us, on whom the end of the age has come.”1Cor:10:11

Apocalyptic language is a powerfully dramatic and highly symbolic presentation to warn and or admonish us all to put our trust in God and his Holy Divine Son Jesus, who is the promised Messiah, and is the focus of God’s saving work from the very onset of creation and human history and who is the confirmation that God will bring all human history into his perfect will and that he has and will act for our eternal best good.

Made Complicated 

When understood properly, and viewed through the saving work and life of Jesus, “Apocalyptic language” points us and orients us to look to and trust completely in Jesus and also reassures us that God's will is being accomplished in the Earth regardless of what the “world system” does or does not do. 

 In some cases, this style of “Apocalyptic” presentation, and message,  has been so contorted, as to fit  personal view points ,  and has been worked into a complex schematic of history and prophecy which, unintendedly, has focused some of our fellow brethren’s attention upon ,and preoccupies their minds with events and not upon Jesus himself.

Some have become so “event oriented” seeing the work of God only as a series of Earth shaking cataclysmic events unfolding in the years to come. This “event orientation” has caused some believers to miss the truth of the “Apocalyptic” events which unfolded , and were fulfilled in and around the life of Jesus; through the incarnation, the dramatic miracles which he performed , the preaching of the Kingdom of God, his arrest, crucifixion, death and his glorious resurrection. Jesus’ whole life, was and continues to be an ongoing “Apocalyptic” Earth shaking event.

Some of our brethren can be so caught up with the often troubling events in the world around us, at times attempting to draw specific prophetic meaning for every occurrence.

Some of our fellow Christians have even succumbed to the temptation to predict when the “end will come” in spite of the plain words of the Bible that the best we can do is know that we are in the general season of  “the end” , we cannot know when our Lord Jesus will come.

“no one knows they day nor the hour , not even the angels in Heaven , but only the Father knows” Matt:24:36

We can know that we have God’s sure word that there will come a day when the Heavenly Trumpet will sound and the Heavens will part and our Lord will descend in great glory and God’s glorious Kingdom will be made manifest over all things. Matt: 24, Mk: 13, Lk: 21, Rev: 19, 1Cor: 15

This prophetic preoccupation is very compelling, for the world around us is at times uncertain. It may be for some, that a constant focus on events gives the sense of control over their lives. At times, some might feel that they will be caught up unware and be swept along with traumas of the world system as it reels to it’s conclusion.

It is true that Christians should be alert and informed regarding conditions in the world Jesus even in his “Apocalyptic” Olivet Prophecy tells us to be able to discern the season in which we live. Matt: 24:44, Matt: 25:13

Jesus is telling us that our life in him keeps us from being taken off guard, especially spiritually so that we can discern when a thought or an idea is contrary to Biblical injunctions.  

Even as the world at times anguishes in turmoil and terrible times do come we have our Lord’s divine assure that he will never abandon us and we need not give into fear at the tings which happen around us.

“I am with you even until the end of the age” Matt: 28:20b

We believers need to rest in the sure word of God and relinquish any and all fears about the world’s troubles. Jesus will come, you are not alone, yes, dark days will arise upon the Earth in the times to come and are already here, but our God has given his Church around the world a simple message of the Gospel which is Good News for all people which should calm our heart in spite of what takes place around us. St. John wrote regaling this message of the love of our God.

“Perfect love drives out all fears” 1Jhn:4:18

The Gospel is a simple message, that God loves us  which need not be clutter with side issues,  but is focused upon Jesus and his unconditional eternal love for us, in spite of the “end of the world” and cataclysmic events which will arise in the world around us. 

Simplicity of the Gospel

When St. Paul preached and ministered to the Christian Church in the Greek city of Corinth he said that his primary message was a focus upon the person of Jesus and God’s work of salvation, as it is manifested and revealed in, and through his Holy Son. 

Now it could be said that St. Paul was speaking in regards to his posture of heart as one of humility and lowliness. There is very much a truth to that view of what St. Paul was writing about in his Corinthian Epistle but from that posture of heart came forth his central message to the Christians not just in Corinth but throughout the ages.

“When I came to you brothers, I did not come to you with eloquence and wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I decided to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you with fear and trembling” 2Cor:2:1-3

 The Heart of the Gospel

St. Paul was not just talking about the content of his Gospel alone ,and his messages’ central point ,but he was speaking of his complete reliance and simple trust in that central point , which is the person of Jesus.  

St. Paul is telling us, that he understood that his, and all of our salvation is accomplished and is made manifest in the saving work of Jesus expressed to us in the most dramatic “Apocalyptic” way at the cross of Calvary and is confirmed through the resurrection of our Lord from the dead, for without the resurrection the cross would have no value and without the cross there would be no resurrection, for Jesus had to die in order to rise.

“for if Christ be not raised then our preaching is in vain and your faith is useless”  1Cor:15: 14

This is the heart of the Gospel; that Jesus, the incarnate eternal Son of God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity has come and has accomplished for us the salvation which we could never bring to pass, which the Scriptural records so powerfully reveals to us and bears witness to . The Heart of the Gospel is God's heart for and toward us.   

"for God so loved the world" Jhn:3:16

This is the simple message of God’s love. This simple yet profound love of God which has ,and is expressed to all humanity at the cross is the Gospel, the good news which  St. Paul and the early Church witnessed to the world and of which St. Paul preached in a posture of humility to the Christians of his time.

The primitive Apostolic Church did not present a complex scheme of history and prophecy about wars and worldwide destruction,  but rather, the proclaimed  the simple message of God’s love for and toward an  errant humanity who live in a state of misunderstand about the Lord God and even themselves. 

This message of the love of God is truly good news for us, that our Lord has done for us everything needed for our salvation; all any need do is to embrace it all through grace and trust in Jesus, when we embrace this salvation then we experience the reality of this salvation and transformed by the Holy Spirit and we become oriented to the person of Jesus through whom we have a relationship with the Holy God, the Trinity, who is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Jesus Undiminished

When our message, which we declare to the world, becomes an “event” message then we can, if we are not careful, diminish Jesus down to the role of being a participant in a series of cataclysmic events. Any diminishing of Jesus being central focus of the Church’s message will result in a form of legalism wherein our status with God is seen as uncertain and can only be “maintained” by our performance.

This view when it enters our minds can breed fear, for we lose sight of the complete perfect work of Jesus, which means, that when Jesus is diminished in any way his work of salvation is therefore diminished and allows for the thought that it is not complete, that there is something left undone or to be earned or merited by us. If this is true salvation would not be by grace alone.  This is an unintended result which enters when we take our focus off the person of Jesus as the central focus of our Gospel.

The Simple Truth

There will be difficult days during the “last days” as the “world system” convulses to it’s end and the glorious return of our Lord Jesus even as St. Paul long ago to the young pastor Timothy.

“But know this, that in the last days difficult times will come”2Tim:3:1

Yet we can in spite of the “events” which take place we can take hold of the simple truth  that God loves us and has given us his Son Jesus to which we can turn be assured of his unconditional love which drives out all of our fears.

This simple yet profound message of the Father’s love for us as it was and continues to be expressed in and through Jesus is the good news of the Gospel. This is the simplicity  which is found in Christ.

Benediction: May we each and all ever be oriented toward the person of Jesus and may we all experience the depth of our God’s Holy love for us all, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen


              

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor 

The Fountain of life Church a Congregation of Grace Communion
2101 Old National Pike,  Washington, Pennsylvania, 15301   www.gcfountainoflife.org 

The Fountain of Life is heard on the RKP Radio Network 1710 and 1670 AM in Washington and North Franklin ,and 1790 AM in the Arden Fair Grounds area of Washington Pennsylvania, and on 1710 AM in Bentleyville and Monongahela,             Pennsylvania. And online around the world at www.rkpradio.com
   You can follow the Fountain of Life on Face Book - Click on our Face Book link                                                                                              : https://www.facebook.com/Fountain-of-Life-Church-349595355088375/

                                                                                                          "If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"