Difference between revisions of "Where are you from?"
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<p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Where did Jesus come from? Which synagogue did he belong to? What rabbis had taught him the scriptures? What was his background?</p> | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Where did Jesus come from? Which synagogue did he belong to? What rabbis had taught him the scriptures? What was his background?</p> | ||
<p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Jesus himself gave us the simple answer to this question. He said,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><font color="red">'I came from the Father'</font>.</p> | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Jesus himself gave us the simple answer to this question. He said,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><font color="red">'I came from the Father'</font>.</p> | ||
− | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: | + | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">He was not from the Nazareth synagogue. They had in fact thrown him out of it. Nor, in the sense that really mattered, was he a prophet from Galilee. He was not even from the land of Israel or the Jewish people in the final analysis. He was<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>FROM GOD</b>. That was the only source that really counted.</p> |
<p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">The same was true of John the Baptist<font color="green">. 'There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.'</font></p> | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">The same was true of John the Baptist<font color="green">. 'There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.'</font></p> | ||
<p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Peter inwardly knew and understood this and expressed his faith in the familiar words<font color="green">, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'</font><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>How did he know this? In the words of Jesus:<font color="red">"Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.'</font></p> | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Peter inwardly knew and understood this and expressed his faith in the familiar words<font color="green">, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'</font><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>How did he know this? In the words of Jesus:<font color="red">"Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.'</font></p> | ||
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<p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">It takes no great discernment to recognise past men of God. For the Pharisees this meant Moses or Abraham or David. For us it might be Luther or Wesley or JNDarby or Smith Wigglesworth. With hindsight and helpful biographies we can look back at what they achieved and honour them for it, and declare ourselves their followers. In their day they were often rejected and persecuted.</p> | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">It takes no great discernment to recognise past men of God. For the Pharisees this meant Moses or Abraham or David. For us it might be Luther or Wesley or JNDarby or Smith Wigglesworth. With hindsight and helpful biographies we can look back at what they achieved and honour them for it, and declare ourselves their followers. In their day they were often rejected and persecuted.</p> | ||
<p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">So the Pharisees<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><font color="red">'built tombs for the prophets and decorated the graves of the righteous'</font>, but crucified the Son of God when he came to them.</p> | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">So the Pharisees<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><font color="red">'built tombs for the prophets and decorated the graves of the righteous'</font>, but crucified the Son of God when he came to them.</p> | ||
− | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: | + | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">The test for us is to know the God of today and to receive his word of today and accept his messengers of today.</p> |
− | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: | + | <p style="font-family: TmsRmn; font-size: 16px; line-height: 16pt; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; ">Jesus said,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><font color="red">'My sheep hear my voice.'</font><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>If we truely want to be his sheep, we will learn to recognise and love his voice and to distinguish the true from the false.</p> |
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