Today’s chapter is Matthew 13

Tom writes:

As we press deeper into Matthew we see more of the character of Jesus. Here is one part of him I think is often overlooked - everything he did was expertly crafted to provoke. He couldn’t have annoyed more people if he had grabbed a megaphone and bellowed into their faces. What he says to people is accept me or reject me - but what you can’t do is be ambivalent towards me. Will you see yourself as my field and beg me to make you good soil? Will you agree my kingdom is worth everything and trade all you have to gain it? Will you accept I’m going to separate all people in a harvest? Are you getting what Jesus is saying in these parables? Are you really get them? He is saying He owns you. He owns you and me and every single inch of this earth and how you respond to your owner will determine whether he accepts you or rejects you.

We find this hard to swallow. Our culture has hard-wired us to footnote God’s rejection out of the gospel. Our daily dish is a warm dose of God’s approval slopped in everyone’s direction. Jesus wants to be your lapdog and all of that stuff. Nope. Like an annoying butler, day after day Jesus serves up the difficult to digest dinner of God’s Lordship of our universe. These lovely stories that we teach to our children are actually asking them this - will they accept that Jesus is the Director of their whole life, letting him tell them their part, provide them with their costume, prompt their lines? If they (or we) say no - then what they are actually doing is writing themselves out of the script. There is only one director, and his name is Jesus. But - and this is what Jesus wants you to do - if you do accept Jesus as Director and if you ask him to help you play your part in his play then you will be hugely fruitful, you will receive great treasures, you will be overcome with joy and will shine like the sun.

Question for reflection

Is Jesus annoying you or provoking you in any way in this season? If you saw his provocation as an invitation to life and joy, how would you respond to it?

Matthew 13 - Wednesday 21st August