LUKE 20 (PART 3): PARABLE OF THE MIRROR

For a minute I was confused -
You see, when I first read the verse,
“The scribes and the chief priests
sought to lay hands on Jesus"
I initially thought
they had his best interest at heart,
and they desired to lay hands on 
and pray over him.

But then I quickly remembered
that was not what happened!

That was not the kind of
laying on of hands they meant.

Instead, their desire was to hurt Jesus
because He did not think or act like them.

Apparently they wanted others 
to be just like them; 
to honor and obey them,
instead of following the Word of God.

Their position of power
had gone to their heads,
and they truly believed
they were the best.
Lord, help us with our haughtiness -
it's the worst kind of log there is!

Nonetheless,
​Jesus spoke the truth in love
despite the pressure they put on him.
“they perceived that he had
told this parable against them,” -
Well, you got to give them that,
at least that perception was right!
Jesus was definitely
giving them an opportunity
to look in the mirror
and change their minds.

But what the scribes and chief priests
did not understand,
is that the Parable contained
an opportunity to humble themselves,
and repent.

If only they had taken
a longer time to look,
perhaps they could have seen
the log in their eye -
they may have gained
a better understanding
of who God is
by the revelation of what He says.

The Parables offer a great opportunity 
for Holy Spirit to reveal himself to thee -
but it takes dedication and great humility
for the unveiling of Christ to be seen.

The more the Word of God is digested,
the hungrier you get
for his unfailing love and faithfulness.

There is a never-ending supply
of God’s amazing love,
and it runs through the deep ocean
of the Old and New Testament.

But these Pharisees hardened their hearts,
they thought they already knew
everything about God.
So much so
that they lost respect for Him,
and told themselves
they didn't have to fear His wrath. 

Their pride and self-centered thoughts
was all it took to harden their hearts.
The sad part of all of this,
is they had no idea Jesus would ever say,
"Depart from me,
because I never knew you at all."

And since their hearts were hard,
and pride filled their lofty heads,
they took what Jesus said as an offense.

It's amazing how quickly
people get offended,
when another person has a different opinion.
Instead of showing love,
they want to tear the person apart,
thus the scripture says,
“The scribes and the chief priests
sought to lay hands on Jesus."

But
“because they feared the people,
they watched him and sent out spies,
who pretended to be sincere,
that they might catch him
in something he said,
so as to deliver him up to the authority
and jurisdiction of the governor.”
Luke 20:20

It’s amazing how God is able
to see the intent of the heart,
even when a person’s actions
show genuine kindness.

These men and their servants
had nothing but evil intent -
they were definitely what scripture calls
"wolves in sheep’s clothing!"

On the outside
they showed lots of charm,
acting as if they were extending
peace into the world.
But on the inside,
their scorn was being unfurled.

They asked Jesus, 
“Teacher, we know that you speak
and teach rightly,
and show no partiality,
but truly teach the way of God.
Is it lawful for us 
to give tribute to Caesar, or not?”
Luke 20:22

Now that the Lord has given me
a spirit of discernment,
I can clearly see
the manipulation behind it.

I also find it interesting 
that their attempt 
to catch him in a crime,
is to try
to pit his faith
in a worldly authority 
against his faith in God.

Isn't that how it is today?
The ones who say
they trust and believe,
are the first to condemn
and submit to the popular culture
of the world. 

As always,
you may be able to fool a man,
but you certainly can not fool God!

Jesus perceived their craftiness,
and said to them,
“Show me a denarius.
Whose likeness and inscription
does it have?”
They said, “Caesar’s.”
He said to them,
“Then render to Caesar
the things that are Caesar’s,
and to God the things that are God’s.”

“And they were not able
in the presence of the people
to catch him in what he said,
but marveling at his answer
they became silent.”
Luke 20:26

God is so good.
His wisdom is abounding!
Instead of answering the question
the way they intended it for him,
He turned it back around
and showed them the mirror again!

There are two types of Kingdoms -
the World is where Satan resides
and he tempts us into eternal death;
and the Kingdom of God,
is where Heaven exists
and we find eternal life
through Jesus Christ.

Give unto Caesar that which is his,
such is the value
we put on our coins -
which is a symbol for temporary value
of our world.

Give unto God that which is His,
such is the value
we put on our hearts -
which is a symbol for the eternal life
found within God's servants' hearts.