HAVE YE NOT READ ?
![]()
| Many times Jesus Christ would answer questions with a
question.
Have you not read? Jesus also said many times, "It is written".
When He utilized these terms, Jesus was telling those He was teaching,
or correcting, if you had read God's Word, you wouldn't be asking these
questions.The point Christ often was making is that we must focus on
the
subject and object to read the Bible with understanding.
Let's turn to an example of Christ teaching us to focus. Christ had just taught the chief priests and Pharisees the parable of the householder which planted a vineyard and let it out to husbandmen. When it was time to harvest the fruit, the householder twice sent servants to collect his portion of the harvest. The servants were beaten, stoned and some killed. The householder sent his own son to collect his portion of the harvest thinking surely they would reverence his son. The husbandmen killed his son. Christ then asked them what the householder should do. The chief priests and Pharisees said he should destroy the wicked husbandmen and let out his vineyard to those that would give him his portion of the harvest. Christ then taught the chief priests and Pharisees what was going to happen to them, because they would soon kill the Son of God. Matt 21:42 Notice, Christ spoke in the present tense. At this very moment Jesus, "is become the head of the corner". Matt 21:43 The kingdom of God will he given to those bringing forth the fruits of the tree of life, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, properly translated, means YHVH's Saviour. He was sent to earth to be the Saviour of all that believe. He also has another responsibility. Matt 21:44 One of Christ's responsibilities will be to destroy Satan and his army of fallen angels. He will grind them to powder. Jesus was telling the chief priests and Pharisees that if they had read God's Word, they would know what he was talking about. Matt 21:45-46 46. But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet. There you have the religious community seeking to bring about the death of the chief corner Stone. You must remember to focus. When Christ said "Did ye never read in the scripture", you should have instantly thought that there must be scriptures in the Old Testament that teach the same lesson Christ was teaching. There are. Ps 118:19 Christ is our gate to righteousness. Righteousness simply means to do that which is right. Ps 118:20-21 He will always hear you. This is part of your inheritance. Christ will not only save you from burning in hell, He is able to save you from problems in your daily life. Read His Word with understanding and He will always hear you. Ps 118:22-23 You might think of the corner stone as the capstone on a pyramid. Jesus is the Capstone. He is King of kings and Lord of lords. Ps 118:24 Are you happy? Do you rejoice? It's your choice. You may accept and believe in the Saviour, or you may stumble on the Corner Stone by going the way of the world. Ps 118:25 The Hebrew word for "save now" is "hosanna". The people, as most of you know, cried out "Hosanna", when Christ entered Jerusalem. What would Christ have us learn from this. Perhaps, He would want us to understand that He was not some "new religion". The prophecy that told of His coming was written over one thousand years prior to His coming. It had been written long before, that the Father would send His Son to be our salvation, if we would believe in Him. Understanding prophecy allows an intelligent person to plan for the future. Are you planning your future into the eternity? Let's look at another test of your ability to focus. Matt 21:12 Is this anyway to act in church? You bet it is! Jesus knew what was going on was evil and put a stop to the evil. Matt 21:13-14 Again, Christ was telling them if they had read and understood the Old Testament, they wouldn't be doing evil in the temple of God. Matt 21:15 Why were they sore displeased? It had been written the Son of David would come to save the world; however, the religious community was being hit right in the "old pocketbook". Matt 21:16 If you are in focus, you should immediately pick up on Christ's Words, "have you not read". Which babes' words does Jesus want us to understand? Let's follow through on this subject and look to the Old Testament. Jesus gave us the clue. Let's turn to a Psalm of David. Ps 8:1-2 Ordained means appointed. You all know the story of David and Goliath. Israel's army was afraid of Goliath; however, the babe David stilled the enemy. Ps 8:3-4 4. What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? What is mortal man that Thou care enough to give him dominion over the earth? Ps 8:5-9 6. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: 7. All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; 8. The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. 9. O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! Let's focus and document that Christ was speaking of David and Goliath in Matthew 21. The title of Psalm 9 follows: To the Chief Musician upon Muth-labben. Those of you with Companion Bibles will find Muth-labben relates directly to the death of the enemy champion Goliath. "Ben" in Hebrew means son and "muth" means death or to kill. Psalm 9 carries on with this theme. Focus! Christ said in Matthew 21 that out of the mouth of babes would come the strength to overcome your adversaries. Have we read what the babe David said to Goliath yet? No. Let's follow through. 1 Sam 17:43 Goliath cursed David for coming out to meet him in battle with sticks. 1 Sam 17:44 Sharpen up for me. We are focusing on what came out of the mouth of the babe David that Christ would want us to understand. 1 Sam 17:45-46 46. This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. David told Goliath that the Lord would defeat Goliath through himself to prove there is a God in Israel. 1 Sam 17:47 What came out of the mouth of the babe? Our instructions to this very day came out of that mouth. The battle is the Lord's. Does this mean all we need to do is pray? That is not all that David did. God expects us to have the courage to put the gospel armour on to stand up to the enemy. He gave us dominion over the earth. Are you on top of it, or is it on top of you? If you read God's Word with understanding, you will be in control. By understanding prophecy, you will know what tomorrow brings and be prepared to handle any situation as God would have you to. I hope you are beginning to see the importance of focusing on the subject. Christ told us that out of the mouth of babes we would find understanding and we did. Jesus told us how to win battles. He taught us that we don't have to fear the enemy. Don't let Satan ruin your life. Order him out of your life in the name of Jesus Christ. You don't have to put up with Satan. Have you not read? You can send comment or question to: BobbyRed |