OUR FATHER WHO KNOWS WHEN EVERY SPARROW FALLS
The Lord Jesus, teaching His disciples in Mathew chapter 10 verses 27 - 33, teaches the mode of transmission that will be used in the dissemination of the goods news of the kingdom of God in the light of the fierce resistance they will face.
In their secret places of prayer, they would receive the messages from Jesus that they would then proclaim in the open.
And even in the hostile environment, they were not to fear the response of their detractors who could only kill the body and not the soul. Rather than fear men, the Lord told them that they should fear God who could destroy the body and soul in hell.
27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
The Lord informed His followers that the Father knows when every sparrow falls even though they could be bought at the market for almost nothing. If the Father tracks the life of each sparrow, how much more does He track the life of those who trust in Him?
The Lord adds that the Father knows so much about each of us that every hair on our heads are numbered by him.
This matches verse 17 of Psalm 139 which says in the NIV;
How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!
In light of the opposition they would face carrying the good news of the kingdom and in the light of the direct and personal interest that the Father has in each of them, the Lord Jesus then charges His followers to publicly identify with him.
This association with Jesus, even when it is hazardous to His followers, is what formally registers before the Father that the believer is in Jesus and thus can be inducted into kingdom matters by the Father.
Amen.
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