Very recently I had two opportunities to talk about the parables of the kingdom of God with friends. It amazes me how dull of hearing people can be. They look at you like you’re from another planet (huh?). As if to say why on earth would anybody show such an interest in the words of Jesus (kingdom parables)? It reminds me of the old expression “batting their eyes like a calf with a new gate”. WHY you might ask? You REALLY have to ask? The creator was talking about MANIFESTATIONS! Mark 4-22 for there is nothing hid, which shall not be MANIFESTED; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. Look at what dictionary.com says that manifest means: Manifest adj : clearly apparent or obvious to the mind or senses; \"the effects of the drought are apparent to anyone who sees the parched fields\"; \"evident hostility\"; \"manifest disapproval\"; \"patent advantages\"; \"made his meaning plain\"; \"it is plain that he is no reactionary\"; \"in plain view\" [syn: apparent, evident, patent, plain] n : a customs document listing the contents put on a ship or plane v 1: provide evidence for; stand as proof of; show by one\'s behavior, attitude, or external attributes; \"His high fever attested to his illness\"; \"The buildings in Rome manifest a high level of architectural sophistication\"; \"This decision demonstrates his sense of fairness\" [syn: attest, certify, demonstrate, evidence] 2: record in a ship\'s manifest; \"each passenger must be manifested\" 3: reveal its presence or make an appearance; \"the ghost manifests each year on the same day\" Look at what the last sentence says. “Reveal its presence or make an appearance; \"the ghost manifests each year on the same day\". Has it ever occurred to you that Jesus Christ-the miracle worker, God almighty, was walking around in a physical body teaching people how he was doing his miracles via the kingdom parables? “HE THAT HATH EARS TO HEAR LET HIM HEAR” Isn’t that what a “manifestation” is? A miracle? I realize holy Joes will lament “NOW THAT’S GOING TOO FAR! But is it? If a ghost were to “appear” before you right now, wouldn’t that be a miraculous experience? Wouldn’t it be a “manifestation”? Now, there’s more to it. Jesus was doing his miracles by the HOLY Ghost, but how do you think he got the Holy Ghost? How about by these teachings of the Kingdom? By the latter definition of manifestation found above; couldn’t we conclude that Jesus merely obtained a “manifestation” of the Holy Spirit? I believe that everything that we will ever need or obtain from God in reference to the fulfillment of his word is routed through the teachings of Mark chapter four. And people wonder why I spend so much time pursuing understanding into the teachings of the Kingdom of God. I WANT GOD MANIFEST IN MY LIFE! Is that really that hard to understand? And yet people are clueless as to the fact that there is a system laid down by Christ whereby we can tap into these things, calling them into existence (make them a reality). But it doesn’t come from crying and whining and asking for Manifestations. DID YOU GET THAT! It comes from HIDING the things that we want, within our hearts. We do the “hiding” (planting, sowing, covering, “keeping secret”, it’s the idea of planting a seed) and God “rewards us openly”…-MANIFESTATION. I have heard Godly people pray and make the biggest blunder possible in prayer. They use the word manifestation. THAT’S A NO-NO (it will produce fear. “Hiding” produces faith-now you know where fear comes from). Learn the secret of humility. HIDE his word in your heart and keep it hidden (the opposite of manifesting it-in and of ourselves-as though we could-PRIDE). So that God-through the seed planting, cultivation, process, CAN reward you openly. Have you noticed that everything in the teachings of the Kingdom seem backwards of the way that we do things? Actually we’re the backwards ones. “There is a way that seems right unto man but the end thereof is death”... “The first will be last and the last will be first”. These are the “secrets” that Jesus came to bring to light. And yet Christians are more interested in Hollywood than they are in obtaining the ability to manifest Gods word to the world around us. I know people that will give you the biggest grinniest smile when talking about a Hollywood production (just for fun tell them that there’s full backal nudity and watch that smile grow). But if you ever mention the word of God they’ll turn that smile upside down (I call it the baby diaper look i.e. an imaginary baby diaper beneath the nose). They’ll “manifest” the spirit of sourpuss. No excitement. No glee. NO NOTHING! Why is that? That’s not right. AND THEY JUST DON’T GET IT. That’s what Jesus called hard heartedness (seeds that fell upon the rock). And they could just decided to HEAR what Jesus is saying but no. Hollywood’s better apparently Weather you believe that a manifestation is a miracle or not it doesn’t matter. But if something appears out of the blue and it’s a good thing, then I’m going to want more of the same. And THAT IS A MANIFESTATION. . What if you had a whole body of believers that had this ability to produce fruit unto God in this way and instruct others as to how to do so as well? Wouldn’t that be wonderful? But instead of learning what Jesus taught (this is what HE chose to teach), we’re out fussing about water baptism, or weather you can have a swig of beer. Dear Lord (lamenting vehemanently)! But as long as we’re going to blind as bats, I guess we’ll be experts on water baptism.