|
|
|
|
|
| c |
Pastor's Corner |
|
 |
2/4/2001
Have you ever looked into the window of another person’s parked
car as you passed it by in the parking lot? You notice little things, different
things, in every car you pass. It’s not that your snooping, it’s just that
you see what is there. But how many times do the items you see truly make an
impression. Well, this week I had to laugh, and moan, as a particular car seat
filled with "this-n-that’s" caught my spiritual eye.
Ordinary car filled with ordinary junk. Papers on the seat, old cup on its
side. A little cluttered in appearance. It was not badly cluttered, just
ordinary. And sitting on the pile of stuff, was a long red metal object with two
curved hooks on each end. I recognized the object. The object’s name was ‘The
Club’.
As most people know, who have ever watched a late night commercial, The Club
is a car protection device. It was created to guard your car from thieves
driving off with your car, presumably the most important thing you wish to
protect. It may have a lot of junk in it, but you certainly don’t want to come
back from your daily activities to find it gone, right?
Okay. So why was The Club on the car seat? Isn’t that odd? Wouldn’t you
say to yourself, ‘what a dummy’? The owner got the protection in order to
keep his car safe. Then that same rational owner didn’t use the protection.
You can well imagine that this person thought enough about their car, or at
least about the fear of losing their car, that they spent the time and money to
get it protected. Yet this same WISE person just as quickly puts it on the car
seat, hence saying to all thieves, "hello, I am available for pickup"!
Sigh.
What strange mortals we are. The good we would do, we do not, and the bad we
would not do, we do. (Rom. 7:19). We hear the seller of protection, and follow
the call of wisdom, then we promptly forget! We cast aside our protection.
I have a question for you. Where is your Bible? Is it in hand or on a back
seat?
God took 1,600 years to write the Bible, and sent his best salesmen to give
it to you so THIEVES could not break in and steal your soul. You heard the call
of wisdom and willing embraced the protection. Did you then leave The Truth on
the shelf of misuse, announcing to all demons, "free soul to steal, come
and get me"? (Thieves always break in when you are not looking and when you
are not protected.) Check your car -- it may have been hijacked while you were
busy being Martha in the marketplace!
© Anthony
J. Massotti, Th.M. 2/042001
|
|
2/11/2001
The other day, I happened upon a dating show on the
television. On the show, two dating want-a-be contestants were in a car
together going to their next date location. The woman turns to the man
driving and says: "If you treat me like your queen then I will treat
you like my king." The man did not verbally respond to the statement
but presumably made some other comments later. I didn't see any more of
the show after that.
The next day, as I was driving toward my day job, I
found myself replaying the lines from that conversation. It troubled me.
It seemed somehow not quite right, not quite a good attitude to express. I
couldn't put my mental fingers on the slippery feelings of disturbance but
my spirit was churning. It didn't take long for the churning to become an
obvious point.
Consider, for a moment, that the woman represents a new
convert and the man represents Christ. The relationship is one of newness
and mutual 'feeling out' what the other is like. Christ has never known
the convert before. The want-a-be bride of Christ convert is just
beginning to ride in the spirit with the one who is driving. Christ is
eager to have a relationship. The convert is eager for ... what? Ah yes.
What can Christ do for ME! Is that not what the average Christian has been
trained to expect? God is there for ME! "If HE will treat me as a
QUEEN", is at the heart of religious thought. We may not say it in
exactly those words, but we do mean it that way in our hearts. What is the
church doing for me? Am I treated importantly? Can I use its resources for
MY benefit? Am I being treated with respect? Can I do whatever I DECIDE
and get the 'authority' to accept that? If the answer to that becomes YES
then the convert says, "ok, now I will treat you with respect due
your position". And the convert is not satisfied with what did He do
YESTERDAY. No. No. No. The QUEEN wants Him to shower her with flowers NOW,
healings NOW, money NOW, miracles NOW, everything NOW. Today is the
measuring rod. It's a date by date relationship in the converts mind.
Now expand this symbolical imagery just a little wider.
The woman is the whole church. The man is still Christ. Now what? Are we
still serving Christ with cloaked motives? Are we withholding our
adoration, praise, respect, and loyalty UNTIL He first demonstrates how he
is going to treat US? Is He KING first and we the submitted Queen at HIS
side carrying out the duties HE has decided upon? Or are we more like the
Queen of the bug kingdom -- expecting all the kingdom drones to serve our
needs? He has PROMISED to take care of His ENTIRE kingdom. We are part of
the kingdom; however, let us never forget the Scriptural condition which
says, "Seek ye first the kingdom and righteousness OF HIM"
(Matt. 6:33 lit). He is KING first. He will treat us as His true Queen
when we respect HIM first.
© Anthony
J. Massotti, Th.M. 2/112001
|
2/25/2001
Once, there was a man standing in front of a hill. The
hill was very tall, and the sides were filled with rocks. Surveying the
land with an eye to climb the man noticed what looked like a path twisting
and turning through the rocks like a snake wiggles in the soil. He waited.
He meditated. He hesitated.
Along came another man and stood next to the man
contemplating his next move. "Are you going to climb?" said the
man. "I cannot decide, said the first man, "I am not sure that
it is safe, even though I think I see a path." "Oh,"
replied the new arrival, "the path is not the way up, you must go by
the rocks!"
The contemplating sojourner recoiled in shock and
skepticism. "Sir, you must be mistaken. I have carefully analyzed
this hill, and the rocks are most deadly for sure. Look! Every rock is odd
and sharp and all are covered with either moss, or overgrowth, or
moisture. If I were to step on those rocks I would most surely tumble,
break my bones, crack my skull, and die!"
The other replied, with the smile of a professor
goading a student, "I have traveled this way many a time. I assure
you, the ROCKS are the only way to travel safely up THIS hill."
At that moment a third man, young and full of zeal,
came upon the discoursing company. "What goes," said the man,
"why do you stand here a talkin'. Come. Let us walk together. It is
only a short hill, and the sun is setting. Soon it will be dark. See!
There! A path. We must make haste."
The wizened sojourner was about to make comment when
the young man shook his head and said, "Some people take too long to
make decisions. When the answer is obvious – and this one is obvious for
this path has been used before by many -- one must ACT and not
think!" With that said, the man bolted for the path with a gallop.
Sure as bears climb trees and salmon jump upstream with confidence the man
was seen moments later well beyond halfway up the hill.
The skeptic turned to the other and declared, "Did
I not say the path was right, and the rocks were wrong? Look! The sure way
is always the well worn path!" With that statement he made a step
toward the path. Then, a most blood-curdling scream could be heard! Down
came the young man, bouncing and ricocheting everywhere, and then, he fell
out of sight.
The skeptics gloat turned to instant horror. He turned
and stammered, 'What happened?" The new companion sighed -- a most
unsettling sigh -- and then he spoke.
"The rocks you see here on this hill are truths;
they are sure and solid and have been here since time began. They await
the discovery of the seeker. Each is in its place as the Maker has
designed it to be. You are correct to say that the rocks are covered with
moss, overgrowth, and moisture. These three indeed make the way
treacherous -- for they are sins, worldly affections, and human desires.
The hill is wisdom itself, and is unlike any other hill you will ever
cross.
If you slip on a rock, because the moss was in the way,
you will only bruise your ego but it bring humility and carefulness in
your climb. Indeed, I assure you, every man who attempts to live by truth
will surely slip and fall at different times. Truths, real truth, make all
travelers’ journeys feel a little insecure. The traveler who seeks
security will ultimately chose to turn away from the journey altogether
for fear of the hill. Wisdom is not easy to traverse.
"But sir," the man interrupted in panic,
"the hill had a perfectly good path! Surely, the footing was better
there – is not truth supposed to be obvious? Maybe the man’s walk was
at fault, instead. Should not wisdom be easy to see, and the application
thereof quickly achieved? If it is truth, wisdom, or right, it would
surely not be hard to trod, as these rocks would most certainly be?"
With that, the other man began to step up to the first
rock, then the second, then the third, and finally, when he was a quarter
way up the hill, he spoke his last words.
He replied, "Friend, You have heard it said that
narrow is the way that leads to truth, and wide the way to destruction,
but I say to you this day that the narrow way is not ALWAYS the right way
-- if the path has been worn smooth by tradition! Too many people,
following too many people, have created paths, which cannot be traveled
safely to arrive at the higher levels of revelation truth. They who travel
the path fall because the path has turned to fine sand, wherein is nothing
solid to be grounded. It has become the sands of a million ideas, by
thousands of minds, filled with a billion opinions. Other travelers fall
on these ideas, become beaten by the truths they ignored, and broken on
the slipperiness of being fallible. They die; never seeing spiritual
reality from the top of the this fine hill. There is a way that seems
right to a man, but the end thereof is death."
The student nodded with understanding. The quest of truth would be
precarious, and the way would have to be traveled with careful attention
to every detail. He would ignore no rock as an opportunity to climb
higher. He would fear neither moss, nor overhang, nor moisture, for they
would surely be gone in a short while, when he reached the top of the
hill. With that his first obstacle was conquered. Can you guess what that
obstacle was?
|
© Anthony
J. Massotti, Th.M. 2/25/2001
|
|
|
|
. |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
 |
Original Quote by Pastor Anthony |
|
|
The Moon Reflects The Sun -- Because It Can! What Do You Reflect?
|
|
|
This site was last modified on 10/10/2007
|
|
Content:
Anthony J. Massotti Th.M. || Technical:
Webmaster ||
Copyright Information |
|
