Saying 65
He said: A good man had a vineyard that he arranged for tenant famers to take care of it for him in return for a portion of the produce. He sent a servant to collect the grapes. Tenants seized the servant and beat him nearly to death. That servant reported back to his master, but his master responded, "Perhaps they did not recognize him." And so he sent another servant; the tenants beat him, too. Then the owner sent his own son, saying, "Perhaps they will show some respect for my son." Since the tenants were aware that the would inherit the vineyard, they seized him and then killed him. He who has ears, let him hear.
God has a kingdom. He sent Isaiah, Amos, Joel, Jeremiah among others, to tell the Hebrews about it and they were beaten terribly. He then sent Jesus who identified himself as God's son, worked beautiful miracles, and was assassinated by the religious authorities. Those authorities mistakenly believed the vineyard, the kingdom, was theirs to defend even when the truth was right in front of them.
I was one who mocked Jesus, mocked spirituality, mocked religion, mocked believers whether they were talking about Scripture, about chakras, or chanting/dancing in orange robes. I hear myself in this story. Now that I am on the other side of the fence, I feel that experience I used to dole out so cruelly. It hurts.
He said: A good man had a vineyard that he arranged for tenant famers to take care of it for him in return for a portion of the produce. He sent a servant to collect the grapes. Tenants seized the servant and beat him nearly to death. That servant reported back to his master, but his master responded, "Perhaps they did not recognize him." And so he sent another servant; the tenants beat him, too. Then the owner sent his own son, saying, "Perhaps they will show some respect for my son." Since the tenants were aware that the would inherit the vineyard, they seized him and then killed him. He who has ears, let him hear.
God has a kingdom. He sent Isaiah, Amos, Joel, Jeremiah among others, to tell the Hebrews about it and they were beaten terribly. He then sent Jesus who identified himself as God's son, worked beautiful miracles, and was assassinated by the religious authorities. Those authorities mistakenly believed the vineyard, the kingdom, was theirs to defend even when the truth was right in front of them.
I was one who mocked Jesus, mocked spirituality, mocked religion, mocked believers whether they were talking about Scripture, about chakras, or chanting/dancing in orange robes. I hear myself in this story. Now that I am on the other side of the fence, I feel that experience I used to dole out so cruelly. It hurts.
Saying 64
Jesus said: A man entertained guests. When dinner was ready he sent a servant to invite his guests.
The servant went to the first one and said, "My master invites you," but he replied, "I have to collect money from some merchants, and they are due to arrive this evening. Therefore I have to do business with them, and I must be excused from the dinner."
The servant went to another and said, "My master invites you, " but he said, "I have just bought a house, and I have to spend a day there, so I cannot come. I must be excused,"
He went to the next and said, "My master invites you." This one replied, "My friend is about to be married, and I must organize the dinner. I can't come. I must be excused."
Again he went and said to another, "My master invites you." He replied, "I have just bought a village, and I have to go collect the rent I can't come and must be excused."
The servant reported back to his master, "Those whom you invited to the dinner are unable to come." The master said, "Go to the roads outside and invite anybody you can find to the dinner."
Merchants and salesmen will not enter the places of my Father.
Guests have been entertained and then are invited to a dinner, which apparently in Jesus' time, took days to prepare. The servant goes out to the guests (the chosen people, the Jews), but one after the other is too busy to come: business dealings, a new house, the wedding dinner of a friend, rent collection.
So Jesus, not wanting the dinner to go to waste, says "Oh well" and asks his servant to invite anyone and everyone. The Jewish community was too busy with its money, property, traditions, and prestige. They seem to have forgotten the living God that released them from Egypt, parted the Red Sea, extricated water from a rock, guided them through the desert. So Jesus told his servant to go "outside;" go to the gentiles, the drunks, the homeless, the poor, the powerless.
This happens all the time in the 12 Step Way of Life. Though God has saved "my" life, I get busy and don't want to surrender to the work. Today I'm experiencing a micro lesson. A quartet of us are fasting from midnight Thursday to 6pm Friday each week. This has fallen on a day when I have very little to do... so what have I wanted to do? Shop, call or text an ex-boyfriend, obsess about whether putting cream in coffee is a violation of the fast... Finally the thought came that since I have time, I can be more of service today than I would normally be. I've been invited to the "dinner" and can go… and the beauty is that I have the Power to do so!
The "place of the Father" is a place where "I know who I am because of whose I am." I belong to God, to the One, to the Unity, to the "I am," to Jesus. If I identify as "a merchant" or as a "salesmen" I have exited the truth. What happens when people ask, "What do you do?" and I say, "I work for God." They think I'm a nut but can't see they themselves are completely stuck in the "web," imprisoned in the "matrix" of this world when they respond, "I work for a non-profit," or "I own a real estate company," or "I waitress."
I had a sponsee, a real alcoholic, that I took all the way through the steps. She was happy and grateful but prioritized Weight Watchers, a new apartment, lover, gifts for her nieces and nephews, and her day job. She got drunk instead of going to the dinner that would have fed her "food" that never would leave her hungry and probably would have been given the Power to do all those other nice things, just not on her time but on God's time.
Jesus said: A man entertained guests. When dinner was ready he sent a servant to invite his guests.
The servant went to the first one and said, "My master invites you," but he replied, "I have to collect money from some merchants, and they are due to arrive this evening. Therefore I have to do business with them, and I must be excused from the dinner."
The servant went to another and said, "My master invites you, " but he said, "I have just bought a house, and I have to spend a day there, so I cannot come. I must be excused,"
He went to the next and said, "My master invites you." This one replied, "My friend is about to be married, and I must organize the dinner. I can't come. I must be excused."
Again he went and said to another, "My master invites you." He replied, "I have just bought a village, and I have to go collect the rent I can't come and must be excused."
The servant reported back to his master, "Those whom you invited to the dinner are unable to come." The master said, "Go to the roads outside and invite anybody you can find to the dinner."
Merchants and salesmen will not enter the places of my Father.
Guests have been entertained and then are invited to a dinner, which apparently in Jesus' time, took days to prepare. The servant goes out to the guests (the chosen people, the Jews), but one after the other is too busy to come: business dealings, a new house, the wedding dinner of a friend, rent collection.
So Jesus, not wanting the dinner to go to waste, says "Oh well" and asks his servant to invite anyone and everyone. The Jewish community was too busy with its money, property, traditions, and prestige. They seem to have forgotten the living God that released them from Egypt, parted the Red Sea, extricated water from a rock, guided them through the desert. So Jesus told his servant to go "outside;" go to the gentiles, the drunks, the homeless, the poor, the powerless.
This happens all the time in the 12 Step Way of Life. Though God has saved "my" life, I get busy and don't want to surrender to the work. Today I'm experiencing a micro lesson. A quartet of us are fasting from midnight Thursday to 6pm Friday each week. This has fallen on a day when I have very little to do... so what have I wanted to do? Shop, call or text an ex-boyfriend, obsess about whether putting cream in coffee is a violation of the fast... Finally the thought came that since I have time, I can be more of service today than I would normally be. I've been invited to the "dinner" and can go… and the beauty is that I have the Power to do so!
The "place of the Father" is a place where "I know who I am because of whose I am." I belong to God, to the One, to the Unity, to the "I am," to Jesus. If I identify as "a merchant" or as a "salesmen" I have exited the truth. What happens when people ask, "What do you do?" and I say, "I work for God." They think I'm a nut but can't see they themselves are completely stuck in the "web," imprisoned in the "matrix" of this world when they respond, "I work for a non-profit," or "I own a real estate company," or "I waitress."
I had a sponsee, a real alcoholic, that I took all the way through the steps. She was happy and grateful but prioritized Weight Watchers, a new apartment, lover, gifts for her nieces and nephews, and her day job. She got drunk instead of going to the dinner that would have fed her "food" that never would leave her hungry and probably would have been given the Power to do all those other nice things, just not on her time but on God's time.
Saying 66
Jesus said: Show me the stone that the builders rejected. It is the cornerstone.
"Builders" choose stones that are cut to conform to a larger structure in three dimensions. The ones that are bent and don't work in the world's edifice are the very ones that carry the message of a different reality, a fourth dimension. Jesus was rejected and yet was a cornerstone of a new consciousness of our identity as "children of a living Creator with whom we form a relationship upon simple and understandable terms as soon as we are willing and honest enough to try." BB page 28.
Jesus said: Show me the stone that the builders rejected. It is the cornerstone.
"Builders" choose stones that are cut to conform to a larger structure in three dimensions. The ones that are bent and don't work in the world's edifice are the very ones that carry the message of a different reality, a fourth dimension. Jesus was rejected and yet was a cornerstone of a new consciousness of our identity as "children of a living Creator with whom we form a relationship upon simple and understandable terms as soon as we are willing and honest enough to try." BB page 28.