COGR – Birdwatching, An Underappreciated Pastoral Skill
February 3, 2024
Good day! I am writing a series of short reviews of abbreviated COGR video clips. I am looking for input and comments. If it makes it easier, I will gladly supply a Word document so comments can be put in the document, and we can communicate directly. My email address is lattema@icloud.com. I hope you find these reviews helpful.
Transcript:
We’re ready for the third parable. That’s going to go back to Matthew, chapter thirteen, and we’ll read verses thirty-one and thirty-two.
Matthew thirteen, verse thirty-one and thirty-two, Read Brother Yancy, another parable put forth unto them saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, least of all seeds, when it is grown, it’s the greatest among herbs and becomes a tree.”
Now, I was in Israel one time, and they showed me a mustard tree. Who else was there with me? Remember that? Mustard? Yes, showed us a mustard tree. All right. So we see birds lodging. Birds in the Scripture have never been good. Cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
Remember it was Abraham who was trying to offer up a sacrifice of what he had to fight with, birds. Try to steal the sacrifice away. Those birds, if you don’t watch it, birds will come around to you too. Be fluttering around, trying to rob you. Pick your eyeballs out, so that you can’t see.
When we get into the spring and it’s calving season, and our cows start having calves, I start looking for those red-headed vultures. Now don’t tell nobody this is pretty public, but I stand out there with a twelve-gauge shotgun. And if I think they’re starting to descend upon one of my baby calves, they’re met with fury.
Well, I’ll tell you something worse than a vulture or these bird spirits. And here we see in this third time, brother, you can move the chart just a little. I mean, not the chart, but here we’re still talking about. This time, we’re talking about bad people in places that they should not be.
That’s what we have right here is bad people in places that they should not be. Jesus said one time that the Pharisees were sitting in Moses’ seat. And what we have here we have bad people. The Scripture says, when the righteous are in charge, the city rejoices. Well, in this time, the righteous is not in charge.
Look at this critter up here he’s some… It ain’t the seat that’s so bad. It’s that person setting in it. It’s a bird. He’s a bird? Wickedness? Yes. Wickedness in high places, spiritual wickedness in high places. All right? Is that all of that?
Commentary:
For this to make sense, a bit of background information is necessary. It is part of the COGR mythology that the seals and trumpets of Revelation and the parables of Matthew thirteen align, shedding light on one another. This is a novel approach. It is for this reason that the meaning of the parable is hijacked, losing its most likely interpretation and instead explaining seemingly unrelated circumstances. A parable about the development of the kingdom of God becomes a teaching about how important it is to have the right person in charge.
This parable is about the kingdom of God and focuses on the mustard seed, not birds. The inclusion of birds alters the narrative, which is then used to make a point about having multiple people in leadership positions, or the wrong people in leadership positions. As a result of constant manipulation like this, much of what is being presented across the series fails to maintain biblical integrity.
The mishandling of the mustard seed parable becomes evident as the interpretation overly emphasizes the negative symbolism of birds, diverging from Jesus’ intended meaning of the parable. While acknowledging the scriptural portrayal of birds as unclean, the speaker stretches the metaphor too far by attributing them to spiritual agents harming believers, a perspective inconsistent with Jesus’ narrative. Additionally, the speaker strays off-topic by sharing personal anecdotes about birds and cattle on their farm, detracting from the biblical lesson’s significance. Moreover, the misuse of scripture to justify personal opinions, linking “bad people in places they should not be” to the speaker’s perceived rightful religious leadership, reflects a misapplication of the biblical context. Finally, the passage lacks a clear connection to the broader context of Matthew 13 and Jesus’ teachings, failing to present a cohesive interpretation that is aligned with the intended spiritual lessons.
In summary, the passage struggles with maintaining fidelity to the intended biblical message, instead meandering into personal anecdotes and interpretations that do not align accurately with conservative Christian theological principles or the original intent of Jesus’ teachings. Ray’s explanation of the parable is unrecognizable and does not align with the original intention of the parable. It is not about who should be in charge but instead is about the growth of God’s kingdom.
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