Entrapment
You and I come into this world, “Trapped”
God has come to set us free with His divine power
So, remember your worst enemy God says to love
God came to set that person free
Why do we act like Pharisees entrapping people?
Shouldn’t our responsibility be to help people find freedom through Jesus Christ?
Isn’t the Kingdom of Heaven Message about freedom?
Entrapment
The last week before Jesus’ crucifixion
was spent giving vision to the Kingdom of Heaven.
At the beginning of the week…
We find Jesus telling a parable where He says
the Kingdom of Heaven is like a king preparing
a wedding banquet for his son.
Matthew 22:1-14
The parable,
like many of the other parables of Jesus…
Speak of those who will reject
the Message of the Kingdom so…
Jesus ended this parable with…
"For many are invited, but few are chosen."
Matthew 22:14
The next verse says…
Then the Pharisees went out
and laid plans to trap him in his words.
Matthew 22:15
“Plans to trap”
The Pharisees were good at trapping…
They had their hard fast laws and rules.
When they felt their authority was threatened,
they would set a trap.
Traps are always meant to capture or snare.
There are two methods for trapping…
The one method uses a bait,
something to attract,
something good or desirable,
to get the victim in the trap.
The second method…
Is a trap placed in the path of the victim.
Like a snare where a loop is in or around the path.
This method is also used with fish,
where a net or poles are used in a “V” shape,
easy to get in…
But narrows as you get further into the trap
till the opening allows the fish into a holding area,
but will not allow the fish to return.
Like hunters who love to trap,
so do many of us like to trap others.
We use words by forming questions designed
for answers with no way out.
How you form a question will determine your answer.
This is used all the time to trap and condemn people…
To gain power and leadership.
Politics…
Is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups,
or other forms of power relations among individuals,
such as the distribution of resources or status.
We all are political.
We have chosen sides even when we are not
very knowledgeable about the subject.
We should all be careful of how questions are framed.
I was in a class where the leader
gave those in the class a question to answer.
The question did not have a good foundation
and when the tables of people in the class discussed the question
there was a lot of confusion as to what was the question.
The result was many opinions on a number of ideas
and the purpose of the discussing groups was not achieved.
Many times, questions are asked to get a popular answer.
You have heard the phrase…
“He is singing to the choir”.
The “a-mens” make you feel good…
But the depth of understanding becomes shallow.
There are many good words
that have lost their meaning…
Because the choir is singing “Christianese”
the meaning becomes lost
or those hearing the words do not know the meaning.
We all should be cautious of entrapment.
Think about what is asked of you.
Think about what you are asking of others.
The Pharisees were religious leaders
caught up in their form of religion.
They missed the refreshing truth Jesus came to give.
The opposite of trapping is reasoning.
God invites us to reason with Him
even though we are sinners.
Isaiah 1:18…
"Come now, let us reason together,"
says the Lord.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.
Though we are all condemned…
God did not come to condemn
but to save.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through him.
John 3:17
God gives us a way of escape…
Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
2 Peter 1:4
You and I come into this world, “Trapped”.
God has come to set us free with His divine power.
So, remember your worst enemy
God says to love.
God came to set that person free.
Why do we act like Pharisees entrapping people?
Shouldn’t our responsibility be to help people
find freedom through Jesus Christ?
Isn’t the Kingdom of Heaven Message about freedom?
Scripture Reading
Matthew 22:14-16 NIV
14 "For many are invited, but few are chosen."
15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words.
Psalms 124:6-8 NIV
6 Praise be to the Lord,
who has not let us be torn by their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird
out of the fowler's snare;
the snare has been broken,
and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
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