This morning I woke up
feeling nauseous. I felt like there was mucous clogging up my throat. I felt sick to my stomach, but I could not throw up. So the feeling of nausea stuck. It is now 5am, And I’m lying here in bed. As I do everyday, I pick up my phone and begin to write a poem. Today’s poem is based on Matthew 11, verses 20-30. Lord, help me digest the bitter words that are about to come, because I can already see they you are saying the same thing that you said in Luke 10. Matthew 11 says, “Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God. “What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse. I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you. “And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead. For if the miracles I did for you had been done in wicked Sodom, it would still be here today. I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on judgment day than you.” At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way! “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:20-30 You see, “from the time John the Baptist began preaching, the Kingdom of Heaven had been forcefully advancing, and violent people were attacking it.” For “before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to seeing” the suffering servant. But in this passage we see towns of people with little faith and great disbelief. Who are the people of Korazin, and Bethsaida and Capernaum, and why does Jesus say they will go down to the place of the dead? Well, these three towns surrounded the Sea of Galilee, and the people of these towns, were first-hand witnesses to Jesus. They saw Him performing miracles, but they would not repent for their sin, and acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God. He compared their generation to children, sitting in the marketplace, seeking self-satisfaction - flitting from one desire to the next. Lacking wisdom and spiritually lost. Do you know - “Wisdom shouts in the streets. She cries out in the public square. She calls to the crowds along the main street, to those gathered in front of the city gate: “How long, you simpletons, will you insist on being simpleminded? How long will you mockers relish your mocking? How long will you fools hate knowledge? Come and listen to my counsel. I’ll share my heart with you and make you wise. “I called you so often, but you wouldn’t come. I reached out to you, but you paid no attention. You ignored my advice and rejected the correction I offered. So I will laugh when you are in trouble! I will mock you when disaster overtakes you - when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster engulfs you like a cyclone, and anguish and distress overwhelm you. “When they cry for help, I will not answer. Though they anxiously search for me, they will not find me. For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord. They rejected my advice and paid no attention when I corrected them. Therefore, they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way, choking on their own schemes. For simpletons turn away from me - to death. Fools are destroyed by their own complacency. But all who listen to me will live in peace, untroubled by fear of harm.” Proverbs 1:20-33 I say to this Generation, Have you forgotten God? Are you like the children that Jesus speaks of? Are you like the towns that will go down with the dead? Yes, the Word of God can be bitter - but oh, it tastes so good.
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