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For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.Eph 2:9 |
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| Archived Manna: | |
Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Friday, July 8, 2022
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :Jesus Curses the Fig Tree Bible Verse:Matthew 21:18-22 (ESV) "In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once. When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”" Message:
The poor fig tree has the bad luck to become a metaphor. Instead of telling a parable, Jesus acts one out; he gives the apostles a dramatic rendition. The fig tree clearly represents Israel, in the broad sense of the Hebrew nation. The figs are righteousness. This is hardly a new metaphor, as we see the fruit of a tree representing goodness and righteousness throughout the Bible. In Matthew 7, we had a powerful example:
Ye shall know them by their fruits. . . . Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
(Matthew 7:16-20)(KJV)
And again, in John 15:1-8: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.”
The timing of this demonstration and its concreteness inform us that Jesus seeks to apply the general principle of Matthew 7 to the specific situation: His imminent arrest and execution. He is, bluntly, cursing Israel and Judaism. It is not retribution for the act they are about to commit; Jesus is not seeking revenge for his death, for his death is the will of God, a sacrifice for the salvation of the Jews and all nations. Rather, the day of the old covenant is over.
Bible fruit of the vine +
Judaism, as a religion and as a nation, is about to become a discarded husk, a skin that has been shed. The caterpillar or pupa will become a butterfly. Israel (or in Paul’s words, “the Jerusalem below”) will become no more than the cursed reminder of a previous age. From another perspective, it is not actually Christ’s crucifixion that will destroy Israel, but his resurrection. God has provided a fruitful road to righteousness and salvation.
There is also a sense that the old covenant is dying because it is not producing fruit. The Jewish religious leaders are utterly corrupt, and their is no righteousness in them or their religion. Like any tree that is not producing fruit, it must be “hewn down, and cast into the fire.”
Or to say it yet another way — and probably the most correct theological way, for it is a central point of Paul’s Epistle to the Romans — the purpose of Mosaic Law was to give us a yardstick by which we could measure our conduct and see that we were sinful. And the purpose of Judaism was to show that we could not attain righteousness before God by our actions. Now, having served its purpose, God will abandon the old covenant.
Meditation : “A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves.” ~ Amelia Earhart Prayer : I pray that I may be blessed every step of my path this day by the great God of light. May your sun shine upon me; as the moon moves the tide, may your Spirit move my emotions with every grace and magic; may my heart sing with the voice of your angels and my hearth be warm; and may this and every blessed day You have given me be filled with joy......Amen |
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