Vineyard of the Lord (Luke 6:43-45)

-


Hypocrites,

do you know you are the rotted tree.

You cling fast to a tradition,

what clothes to wear,

which prayers to speak,

but inside,

deep in the core of your being,

there is nothing but rot.


Hypocrites,

no tainted tree can produce good fruit.

It spawns only what it is.

If the tree's nature is vile

the efforts of any gardener

will offer up nothing but decay.

Do not seek grapes among the thorns.

Seek them instead,

in the vineyard of the Lord.




copyright 2025 - Donald P James Jr

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jesus in the Snow

-
Image
This picture hung on the side of my parents refrigerator when I was a child.  I was always intrigued by the black and white blotches which did not seem to form anything recognizable.  One day I asked my mother about the photograph.  She said it was the face of Jesus and that if I looked closely I could see Him. I could not for the life of me see our Lord in the meaningless menagerie of spots.  I remember standing at the side of the refrigerator staring at the picture as it hung there almost taunting me. One day, in my teen years, when I wasn't really trying to see the face in the black and white blotches anymore, I saw Him.  Maybe I needed to see the face more, at that age, when I was on the threshold of adulthood then when I was a child.  Now, as the years have passed, I find it difficult not to see Him in the patterns of melting snow on the mountainside. ~ I have a question for you.  When you look at the patterns of melting snow, do yo...
Read more

Embattled Denominations

-
Image
Embattled denominations, tearing apart the precious body of our savior. Laws of man, apart from God's word, twisted by politics and the quest for filled pews. One phrase, one word, and one religion is saved, while another is doomed. Jesus taught to seek Him, not the laws of men, the glory of modern Pharisees, or the virtue of politics. copyright 2025 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author
Read more

Daily Bread (Proverbs 30:7-9)

-
Image
Two things I ask of you, Lord; do not refuse me before I die; Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God Proverbs 30:7-9 "I have these needs," she says. "I need an abundance of things.  My closet is full.  My pantry is stocked.  And yet, if I really think about it, I'm not happy.  I've recently discovered this about myself.  I don't know how to change.  I don't know where I should direct my life.  I feel that my world is cluttered... a mess." The listener sits back in her chair.  The woman across the room is crying out for help.  The listener knows she is limited to the wisdom God will pour out.  She prays silently and speaks firmly. "Things. Stuff." The listener begins, "It burdens your soul.  You cannot find happiness when you see...
Read more

Matthew 19

-
Image
Does our law allow these things? And with the question He points back to scripture. "Have you not read". All the answers are right there. But you have to have eyes to see and ears to hear. Why then... and but...? Because you are dense, hard to teach. Two shall unite, man and woman, as in the days of creation. No man may separate or redefine. They ask a question, specific, and the Lord's answer encompasses so much more. They question divorce and He defines marriage. Does His law allow these things? copyright 2018 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author
Read more

Pine Tree

-
Image
"Is it perfect?" Marcy said as they stopped along the short path. It was quiet on the edge of the woods, walking through the tree farm.  She loved the sound of snow crunching under her feet.  The three inches that had fallen three days ago was crusty underfoot.  The sun was trying its best to melt winter's dressing.  Marcy could feel the glowing warmth on her face, despite the cold temperatures. "Better than perfect," Robert replied. This would be their first Christmas as husband and wife.  They had come out to tag the tree.  It would later be cut down and Robert would pick it up with his Ford F-150 next weekend. "Will the star fit on top?  It is my Grandmother's star.  It has to fit on the top." "It will," Robert assured her. She wrapped her arm around the crook of his elbow. "If I listen," she said. "I can almost hear the sap running through the bark." "You're thinking of Maple Trees." "Nope.  I am...
Read more

The Women

-
Image
You ran, perhaps filled with a joy unknown before. After the empty day that was yesterday, you had expected nothing more than more emptiness. You ran, the light frightened you, but the voice gave you strength, so you sprinted from the sight of stones and boulders. Would they believe you? Your euphoria had to diminish, a tiny bit, as you considered rejection. You were women, you had no voice among the men, your opinion had no weight except in His hearing. You ran, all the way to great city. It is what the light told you to do. Peter and John, they will doubt your words. Your excitable rambling will make little sense to the world. Miracles exist to fester doubt, and what is seen by the women, is never equal to what will be seen by men. copyright 2025- Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author
Read more

Empty Nets

-
Image
The sea lapped against the side of their boats.  The night had been unproductive for both vessels.  Men with muscular builds and hair covered limbs hauled their nets from the water.  Even empty, lifting the nets from the sea was a chore for tired arms. "The catch is barely enough to feed my family." The speaker of the complaint was solidly built.  His clothing had soaked up sea water and sweat.  His day was ending with mounting frustration. "Things will get better, Simon." For a brief moment Simon believed his brother's passive response to their looming starvation, or more urgently their inability to pay the tax, had some basis in reality. "Once again, Andrew, do I have to listen to your view of our lives, wasted on fish and the call of the sea?" "It would be possible... to be something different." "We have been fishermen all our lives.  You and I know no other trade.  I cannot, overnight, become a carpenter.  Neither can you.  I am not ...
Read more

Proverbs 4:11

-
Image
The Dream of Solomon - Luca Giordano The way, the path you have been shown. The route, rough at times, has lingered by a sea with fishermen, it has crossed the barrenness of the countryside and delivered us to the Holy city. The way, the journey of uprightness embraces all if they but seek comfort. You will not stumble along this path, each stride will have purpose. The way, a proverb, from Father to Son, and then to the adopted. Instruction given from a bush, burning, from a small rise in a meadow, and from the wooden beams of new life. copyright 2025 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author
Read more

A Prophet Has Walked Among You

-
Image
They shall know that a prophet has been among them  Ezekiel 2:5 Christ Walking on the Water - Julius Sergius von Klever You should be able to tell by the imprints left by his sandals. Is there evidence that a heavy beam was dragged behind him? You should be able to tell since he was shunned by those who knew him most, by those who'd seen him when he was less serious about life. You should be able to tell by the words spoken from his mouth, or by the results of his hands being laid on the afflicted. A prophet walked among you. The lamb stood in your presence and you said, "Not him.  He is just a carpenter. Not him.  He is unacceptable, even in his own home." copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author
Read more