Matthew 13:10-17
His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”
He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them. That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand. This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend. For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes, so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’ “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.
When we think of the man Jesus, we think of him as a miracle worker, prophet, healer, preacher and teacher; but seldom do we think of him as a genius. We are certainly in awe of his insight and knowledge, but generally reserve the title ‘genius’ to those individuals that possess extraordinary intellect or creativity not common or accessible to ordinary people. But I submit to you this morning that Jesus was the foremost spiritual genius of all time. Jesus is the GOAT.
Notwithstanding his miracles, signs and wonders, simply focus for a moment on his enduring philosophical dissertations. Time and time again, Jesus discloses (to all those that would listen) the treasures of heaven. He reveals timeless mysteries and ancient secrets that even the greatest of prophets were never told. Even if you didn’t believe he was the Son of God, you’d have to admit that no other person on earth has made the lasting impact Jesus made in his short but powerful ministry.
Admittedly, when I think of genius I generally think of Albert Einstein. Einstein is best known for his theory of relativity. This theory was definitely a total departure from normal thinking. It wasn’t immediately accepted or universally embraced. But those theories and subsequent applications proved to be ‘spot-on’. But while proving his genius, he also help uncover the sinister nature of humankind.
It was July 16, 1945. An expectant community of scientists, engineers, and military observers watched the predawn skies near Alamogordo, New Mexico. A great light filled the skies and a superheated shock wave rushed out from ground zero at hundreds of miles per hour, splintering houses in a fraction of a second. The 100 ft. steel tower on which the device was mounted was vaporized, and the sand near Ground Zero was fused to radioactive silica glass. A saddened J. Robert Oppenheimer, head of the scientists involved in the Manhattan Project, saw the spectacle and quoted Shiva from the Bhagavad Gita: "I am Death, the Destroyer of worlds." The nuclear age had just been born with the test explosion of the first atomic bomb. From where did all that energy originate? Einstein provided the answer with his famous equation, E = m c2.
Yes he was a genius, but his genius couldn’t cure the hearts of men. But this man Jesus is different. His genius is in healing the hearts of men. His genius come directly from our Father. His genius is in his unique ability to understand, communicate and fellowship with the Creator of all things. Consequently, there is nothing beyond his ability to grasp and to control. He truest genius is in the science of love.
Genius is a condition of birth. You can’t train, study or buy genius. You must be born that way. You may learn a lot on your own, but that doesn’t qualify you as genius. But Jesus found a way. He found the formula that we all can experience his genius. He found the formula for us to undue the limitations of our initial birth and innate wickedness of our hearts. His simple formula is, NB=WS2. Meaning, new birth equals water and the Spirit.Your genius is in your new birth. In other words, YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN!
God Bless
