In them indeed is the process of fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah, which says: You shall indeed hear, hear but never grasp and or understand; and you shall indeed look, look but never see and perceive. For this nation's heart has grown fat and dull, and their ears heavy and difficult of hearing, and their eyes they have tightly closed, yet, in case they see and perceive with their eyes, and hear and comprehend the sense with their ears, and grasp and understand with their heart, and turn; I should heal them.
Matthew 13:14-15 (Amplified)
I have to admit that I am sometimes amazed by those who are professing to know Christ but are living a life less than what is available to them. Look at it this way; it’s like having a gift, yet never opening the package to see its content or see what you’ve been given freely.
To be convinced means to be influenced or persuaded; to make someone sure or certain of something, or to believe or to be certain. Yet, we hear these phrases from those who are perhaps convinced but not converted, “I am confident that it’s real and as soon as I get my life together or really, it does not take all of that?" Then there are those who are faithful, but not converted and they might say, "I am touched by the eloquent and beautiful words of the Pastor, didn’t he truly preach today or he certainly brought a word or ooh, church was so good today.” Many are influenced by the Word but are not fully utilizing or practically making use of what’s been heard to their benefit or to their advantage. Being converted after being convinced is the part we need to grasp. Converted means to change something from one character, form, or function to another, or be changed in character, form or function or to adopt new opinions or beliefs, or someone who has chosen a new way of life or a new set of beliefs. This one speaks to me and brings II Cor 5:17 to mind, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We have got to get this in perspective and how it was intended for us.
This entire chapter, Jesus’ relays His message in parables and helps to put things in perspective. Although it’s a "natural" meaning and they literally understood the parable, they did not understand its "spiritual" significance. Jesus then gives the disciples a reason as to why he uses this type of instruction to get His point across. He wanted them to understand that the Kingdom truths and principles were to be received, believed, communicated, and taught as such, so that even those who were intentionally inconsistent with right and wrong, corrupt, easily swayed, manipulated, and molded; or better yet, those who thought in their foolish minds that they knew and understood it all. However, in verse 15, Jesus tells them that just in case they do see and understand their condition, their present state of mind and turn from it (II Chronicles 7:14), get their heart right, they would live, He would pardon, sanctify and heal then and He would save them. There was a healing for their soul if they wanted it. I love that God is a God of second chances!
So many of us today, are living beneath our privileges, we are convinced that Jesus is real on Sunday or when it’s convenient to call on His name, but we have yet to become converted fully into the body of Christ. We hear the Word, we hear the Word, we hear the Word, yet the Word is not applied to its greatest extent for life in our everyday living. We do just enough to get by but just enough is not good enough. Like in those times of Jesus, we see and we hear but we closed our eyes to the whole truth and reject the divine teaching of the Word. We sometimes won’t accept what we don’t understand. The scripture says, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding (Proverbs 4:7). It is imperative that we understand and with that we will begin to see and to hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying to us as we read and study the Word (II Tim 2:15). I love what it says in verse 16 and it brings it all together, "blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears, for they hear." When we come to the realization of the Word, we come understand it for our life and conversion begins to take place. We’ll begin to live the life that was meant to be lived. We’ll experience "life" when the application of God’s Word is in full effect. We’ll see God do some amazing and wonderful things for us, through us and because of us. My Word tells me that in His presence is fullness of joy!
I am not only fully convinced and converted, but persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom 8: 38-39).
Until the morning, be blessed,
Cynde
Matthew 13:14-15 (Amplified)
I have to admit that I am sometimes amazed by those who are professing to know Christ but are living a life less than what is available to them. Look at it this way; it’s like having a gift, yet never opening the package to see its content or see what you’ve been given freely.
To be convinced means to be influenced or persuaded; to make someone sure or certain of something, or to believe or to be certain. Yet, we hear these phrases from those who are perhaps convinced but not converted, “I am confident that it’s real and as soon as I get my life together or really, it does not take all of that?" Then there are those who are faithful, but not converted and they might say, "I am touched by the eloquent and beautiful words of the Pastor, didn’t he truly preach today or he certainly brought a word or ooh, church was so good today.” Many are influenced by the Word but are not fully utilizing or practically making use of what’s been heard to their benefit or to their advantage. Being converted after being convinced is the part we need to grasp. Converted means to change something from one character, form, or function to another, or be changed in character, form or function or to adopt new opinions or beliefs, or someone who has chosen a new way of life or a new set of beliefs. This one speaks to me and brings II Cor 5:17 to mind, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We have got to get this in perspective and how it was intended for us.
This entire chapter, Jesus’ relays His message in parables and helps to put things in perspective. Although it’s a "natural" meaning and they literally understood the parable, they did not understand its "spiritual" significance. Jesus then gives the disciples a reason as to why he uses this type of instruction to get His point across. He wanted them to understand that the Kingdom truths and principles were to be received, believed, communicated, and taught as such, so that even those who were intentionally inconsistent with right and wrong, corrupt, easily swayed, manipulated, and molded; or better yet, those who thought in their foolish minds that they knew and understood it all. However, in verse 15, Jesus tells them that just in case they do see and understand their condition, their present state of mind and turn from it (II Chronicles 7:14), get their heart right, they would live, He would pardon, sanctify and heal then and He would save them. There was a healing for their soul if they wanted it. I love that God is a God of second chances!
So many of us today, are living beneath our privileges, we are convinced that Jesus is real on Sunday or when it’s convenient to call on His name, but we have yet to become converted fully into the body of Christ. We hear the Word, we hear the Word, we hear the Word, yet the Word is not applied to its greatest extent for life in our everyday living. We do just enough to get by but just enough is not good enough. Like in those times of Jesus, we see and we hear but we closed our eyes to the whole truth and reject the divine teaching of the Word. We sometimes won’t accept what we don’t understand. The scripture says, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding (Proverbs 4:7). It is imperative that we understand and with that we will begin to see and to hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying to us as we read and study the Word (II Tim 2:15). I love what it says in verse 16 and it brings it all together, "blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears, for they hear." When we come to the realization of the Word, we come understand it for our life and conversion begins to take place. We’ll begin to live the life that was meant to be lived. We’ll experience "life" when the application of God’s Word is in full effect. We’ll see God do some amazing and wonderful things for us, through us and because of us. My Word tells me that in His presence is fullness of joy!
I am not only fully convinced and converted, but persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom 8: 38-39).
Until the morning, be blessed,
Cynde
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