Matthew the apostle shared how Jesus told His disciples, “ Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be you therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Jesus continued, “But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues. And you shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what you shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what you shall speak. For it is not you that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaks in you. And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. And you shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endures to the end shall be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee into another: for verily I say unto you, You shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come. The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.”, and in chapter ten and verse twenty-seven of his book, Matthew shared how Jesus told His disciples, “preach … upon the housetops” where we read:
What I tell you in darkness, that speak you in light:
and what you hear in the ear, that preach you upon the housetops.
The verse reads, “What I tell you in darkness, that speak you in light:” Matthew began with the words, “what I tell you” which means “that which Jesus declares, utters, proclaims and shares with His disciples” “in darkness” or “in dimness or obscurity” “that speak you” or “the things Jesus uttered, declared, proclaimed and spoke the disciples were to do the same” “in light” which means “in brightness, openness and publicly”. Matthew shared how Jesus told His disciples to openly declare that which He told them while in obscurity.
The verse goes on to say, “and what you hear in the ear, that preach you upon the housetops.” Matthew continued with the words, “and what you hear” which means “and the things they attended to, considered, understood and perceived” “in the ear” or “within the hearing faculties of their bodies”, “that preach you” which means “that the disciples were to publish, herald and proclaim” “upon the housetops” or “on the tops of houses and buildings or rooftops”. Matthew shared how Jesus told His disciples to “proclaim and herald” upon the rooftops those things they heard from Him privately.
When we meditate upon Matthew's words in this verse, we see how Jesus gave instruction to His disciples concerning the declaration of things He expounded to them in secret. Though they were taught by Jesus privately, they were to openly declare things he taught them everywhere they went. The rooftops of buildings would elevate them above people and would give them a special vantage point for sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. God desires to have a loving relationship with every person through His Son Jesus, and when a person receives Him as their personal “Savior and Lord”, His message is one that deserves being declared from every “rooftop” in the world.
Next time Matthew shares how Jesus told His disciples, “fear not them which kill the body”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book
“Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the
marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the
Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms
Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County"
in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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