Chaff

January 18, 2009

The life of Jesus. Read Today: Ministry of John the Baptist Matthew 3: 1 - 12 , Mark 1: 1 - 8, Luke 3: 1 -20

Luke 3:16-17 ESV
16 John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”


Chaff is an interesting word. In our culture, where agriculture is not a big thing, we do not realize what it is, so let's define it. Wikipedia says:

Chaff (pronounced /tʃɑːf/ or /tʃæf/, depending on dialect – both to rhyme with "half") is the inedible, dry, scaly protective casings of the seeds of cereal grain, or similar fine, dry, scaly plant material such as scaly parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw. In agriculture chaff is used as livestock fodder, or is a waste material ploughed into the soil or burnt.

So what both Matthew and Luke say in their Gospels is that the people who are not doing what pleases God are like a useless item that deserves to be burned. John has basically said you are useful and will be gathered to God, or you are useless and will be burned forever in a fire that never goes out.

What are the requirements for useful and useless? Thankfully they are not mine to give. But they are clear in the Bible. Salvation is the one thing that seperates the two. Take time to talk to Jesus today and receive Him as your savior.

Read for tomorrow: John Baptizes Jesus Matthew 3:13 - 17; Mark 1:9 - 11; Luke 3:1 - 20