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Tag: ezekiel

If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly
The Messiah at Festivals

So what does the Messiah of Israel do at festivals and feasts? How does the Messiah lead followers to worship the Lord our God, our Father in heaven?

It was the Feast of Hanukkah at Yerushalayim.
John 10:22 Hebrew Names Version

Yeshua mashiyach

Just a reminder to Christians of this 21st century, Jesus was Jewish.

Yeshua, from Ἰησοῦς in Greek, Iēsous from יְהוֹשׁוּעַ Hebrew meaning Yĕhowshuwa` (Joshua or Jehoshua = “Jehovah is salvation”) in English: Jesus. (The One born to a Jewish mother, a virgin betrothed to a faithful Jew, Joseph son of Jacob {Matthew 1:16}.)

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Gospel of Matthew 1:1 KJV

Although we have been following Jesus through the Gospel of John, for our understanding of the Messiah and His jewish upbringing as the Son of Man, we have just left some predictions of the Prophet Amos.
Amos – Not immune from judgment
For those who turn justice into wormwood
Amos the Seer: “I told you so (5x) – GOD showed me
Who better to ask about the Lord God in heaven than the one who came down from heaven, sent by God the Father?

This is where we left off in the Good News from the Apostle John.

Jesus healed a man born blind, which has prompted much discussion and considerable controversy in Jerusalem.

The Gatekeeper & the Shepherds – the Door

John 9:35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

Is this Man a Gate and the Door to heaven?
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44:1  וַיָּשֶׁב אֹתִי דֶּרֶךְ שַׁעַר הַמִּקְדָּשׁ הַֽחִיצֹון הַפֹּנֶה קָדִים וְהוּא סָגֽוּר׃
44:2  וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי יְהוָה הַשַּׁעַר הַזֶּה סָגוּר יִהְיֶה לֹא יִפָּתֵחַ וְאִישׁ לֹא־יָבֹא בֹו כִּי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּא בֹו וְהָיָה סָגֽוּר׃
 {Masoretic TextShow Cantilliation Marks OffShow Vowel Points OnMasoretic Text} http://blb.sc/00AONj
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Then He brought me back by the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces the east; and it was shut. The LORD said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the LORD God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut.
Ezekiel 44:1-2 NASB

“The priest shall take some of the blood from the sin offering and put it on the door posts of the house, on the four corners of the ledge of the altar and on the posts of the gate of the inner court.
Ezekiel 45:19 NASB

John 10:

2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

7 Yeshua emphasized, “I can guarantee this truth: I am the gate for the sheep.
John 10:7 NOG

Later Jesus will tell the Apostles to also be wary of these religious hired hands determined to devour all opposition.

John tells us how Jerusalem’s religious leaders opposed the Messiah after Jesus healed a man blind from birth. But Jesus tells the crowds a parable against them.

12 A hired hand isn’t a shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep. When he sees a wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and quickly runs away.
John 10:11 NKJV

19 Again the Jews were divided because of these words…

After this, a most popular Messiah Jesus enters Jerusalem for a festival.

Jewish festivals

22 Then the Festival of Dedication took place in Jerusalem, and it was winter.

A brief overview:

The Hebrew Civil Year began with Tishri [October]. At the Exodus the Ecclesiastical Year was made to begin with Abib [April], which, after the Captivity, was called also Nisan.- Hitchcock’s Topical Commentary

“Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.
Deuteronomy 16:16 NASB

But this minor feast (we now call the festival of lights) held importance to a Jerusalem which presumed to have purified and rededicated the Temple. In commemoration of the cleansing and re-dedication of the Temple after its pollution by Antiochus Epiphanes. –H.

The Story Behind the Feast of Dedication

Prior to the year 165 BC, the Jewish people in Judea were living under the rule of the Greek kings of Damascus. During this time Seleucid King Antiochus Epiphanes, the Greco-Syrian king, took control of the Temple in Jerusalem and forced the Jewish people to abandon their worship of God, their holy customs, and reading of the Torah. He made them bow down to the Greek gods. According to ancient records, King Antiochus IV defiled the Temple by sacrificing a pig on the altar and spilling its blood on the holy scrolls of Scripture.

Source:

Jerusalem’s crowed festival

23 Jesus was walking in the temple in Solomon’s Colonnade. The Jews surrounded him and asked,

“How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

25 “I did tell you and you don’t believe,” Jesus answered them.

Do you believe His signs?

Even in this day some will believe and come to faith through the Messiah, He IS the gate to salvation and the door to heaven. Others remain blind to truth.

Jesus has already given several signs, proofs in various places of miracles only God could do. The most recent of these, of course, was giving a blind man sight right there in Jerusalem.

“The works that I do in my Father’s name testify about me. But you don’t believe because you are not of my sheep.

Who do you follow?

Some preacher, a rabbi or teacher?

None are the Son of God, the Shepherd of the chosen ones of God our Father.

The Way to heaven

27 My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me.

28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.

Why would you doubt the authoritative gentle voice of the Shepherd at the door?

If you believe in God Almighty our God and Father, do you not see His power and compassion in the Only Son, Shepherd of the chosen to enter into His Glory?

Is Jesus your Lord and Shepherd?

For His love and anointing must be clear to those who are no longer blind.

Would you humbly turn from your sin to hear His gentle voice?

“Follow Me.” “I am the way the truth and the life.” *

29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

A decision of life or death

How many times can you recall that the LORD strikes down the one who sins?

More times in scripture than we can recall.

The LORD GOD IS ALMIGHTY! Fear only him, the LORD, the Existing One.
- John the Baptist had testified of the Holy Spirit of God descending upon Jesus.
- The Lord Jesus raised the dead, healed the sick, gave sight to the blind. A Man of God thought to be from Nazareth asked men and women to follow Him.
- Jesus, Son of Man as He referred to himself, showed signs and wonders to many.
What is left for the Messiah to tell us?

If we must follow Jesus, is He God in Person? – a “Son of Man” the very human Image of God (as a Son of His Father born to a woman)?

For the LORD God is One and our decision to obey the LORD is a matter of eternal life or judgment and punishment of our soul in death.

“I and My Father are one.”
John 10:30 KJV

Truth? or Blasphemy?
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31 Again the Jews picked up rocks to stone him.

 32 Jesus replied, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these works are you stoning me?”

 33 “We aren’t stoning you for a good work,” the Jews answered, “but for blasphemy, because you—being a man—make yourself God.”

 34 Jesus answered them, “Isn’t it written in your law, I said, you are gods? If he called those whom the word of God came to ‘gods’—and the Scripture cannot be broken— do you say, ‘You are blaspheming’ to the one the Father set apart and sent into the world, because I said: I am the Son of God?
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Jesus, Son of Man filled with the Holy Spirit of Almighty God! Once again the Lord confronts the hired hands of Herod, wolves luring the faithful away from the Shepherd, with Scripture and Truth.

How can they refute what everyone has seen with their own eyes?

37 “If I am not doing my Father’s works, don’t believe me…”

You too have seen many signs and miracles. Those in addition to Jesus’ compassion and love for the lost who have sinned.

A few repent seeking return to the safety of the Shepherd.

38 “… But if I am doing them and you don’t believe me, believe the works. This way you will know and understand that the Father is in me and I in the Father.”

Jesus and God the Father are One! Jesus and the Holy Spirit of God are One!

What was it Jesus told the Pharisee Nicodemus?

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
John 3:21 NASB

Jesus IS Spirit; Jesus IS Flesh!

But those who will not bow down to the LORD God accuse the Son of Man of blasphemy. (Let the casual 21st c. reader understand the significance of blasphemy – a sin against God requiring death of the offender.)

39 Then they were trying again to seize him, but he eluded their grasp.

A return to the wilderness

40 He went back across the Jordan River and stayed in the place where John first baptized people.

41 Many people went to Yeshua. They said, “John didn’t perform any miracles, but everything John said about this man is true.” 42 Many people there believed in Yeshua.

Truth

The Apostle John has already revealed the Good News of the Messiah proven by many signs in many places.
- And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
- “But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”
- “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.
- “You have sent to John [the baptist], and he has testified to the truth.
- “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
- “Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?
The One Truth & nothing but The Truth

“I and the Father are One!”
John 10:30 – Strong’s: b) metaphorically, “union” and “concord,” e.g., Jhn 10:30; 11:52; 17:11, 21, 22; Rom 12:4, 5; Phl 1:27

The Apostle John concludes his Gospel as follows:

21:24 Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ μαθητὴς ὁ μαρτυρῶν περὶ τούτων καὶ γράψας ταῦτα καὶ οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀληθὴς ἐστίν ἡ μαρτυρία αὐτοῦ

This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things, and we know that his testimony is true.

And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books that would be written.

What other sign do you need to open your eyes to what Jesus plainly has said?

I and the Father are One!
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NEXT: The Resurrection of Lazarus ... God-willing...
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March 25, 2020
Do you believe in the Son of Man?
“No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.
The witness of Jesus to Nikodēmos – John 3:13-15 NASB
(the world knows where He is leading)

Returning to the Light

We have been following the signs of the Messiah which the Apostle John presents in his Gospel.

Jesus had healed a man born blind who confronts the religious officials of Jerusalem with the evidence that this man must be the Messiah!

“While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.”
The witness of Jesus to His Apostles – John 9:5

To give a sense of some time passing in these events which took place I paused John’s story Jesus – Siloam – “I washed and I see where the man sent to Siloam to wash and could now see was questioned by Pharisees.

Before returning to the seeing man’s witness of the Light in John 9, first let’s return to a scene of a Pharisee questioning Jesus. John has already set the stage for this sign of the Messiah giving sight to the blind.

29:18 וְשָׁמְעוּ בַיֹּום־הַהוּא הַחֵרְשִׁים דִּבְרֵי־סֵפֶר וּמֵאֹפֶל וּמֵחֹשֶׁךְ עֵינֵי עִוְרִים תִּרְאֶֽינָה׃

John 3:

Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him,

“Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”
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John 9:13 They brought the man who used to be blind to the Pharisees. 
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John 3:9 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?”

10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony.

12 If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?
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John 9:24 So a second time they summoned the man who had been blind ...
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John 3:19 This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”
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John 9:28 They ridiculed him: 
“You’re that man’s disciple, but we’re Moses’s disciples. We know that God has spoken to Moses. But this man—we don’t know where he’s from.”
 30 “This is an amazing thing!” the man told them. 
“You don’t know where he is from, and yet he opened my eyes.
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John 9:

35 Jesus heard that they had thrown the man out, and when he found him, he asked,

“Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

Now here is a question from our Lord to the man whose sight He returned worthy of consideration by each and every soul who for a brief time dwells in this world of darkness.
- “Do you believe in the Son of God?”
- Is Jesus who now confronts you in plain sight?
- Does the Messiah of our salvation sent to the world by God our Father ask you to believe?
Listen, learned Pharisee of these last days, and see the Light of the Gospel. Is the Spirit of the living LORD speaking to you?

But returning to the response of the man formerly blind:

36 “Who is he, Sir, that I may believe in him?” he asked.

37 Jesus answered, “You have seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”

38 “I believe, Lord!” he said, and he worshiped him.

Wouldn’t you, if the Messiah had given you sight?

Shouldn’t you, since the Messiah Jesus has drawn you from the darkness of your sin to the Very Light of Life?

Son of Man – a view from Scripture

Where did the Messiah Jesus come up with this favorite self-designation by which He describes His humanity to man?

Jewish rabbis who studied scripture knew it well, for the Prophet Ezekiel uses ‘son of man’ in numerous descriptions of his heavenly encounters. First, a definition from the Hebrew:

Son of Man!

Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.
Then He said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet that I may speak with you!”
Ezekiel 1:28-2:1 NASB

2:3 וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי בֶּן־אָדָם שֹׁולֵחַ אֲנִי אֹֽותְךָ אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל־גֹּויִם הַמֹּורְדִים אֲשֶׁר מָרְדוּ־בִי הֵמָּה וַאֲבֹותָם פָּשְׁעוּ בִי עַד־עֶצֶם הַיֹּום הַזֶּֽה׃

בֵּן
ben
- Meaning ‘son’ in a broad sense, specifically as ‘son’ (2978x); but also as ‘first’ (51x)
- Genesis 27:32 וַיֹּאמֶר לֹו יִצְחָק אָבִיו מִי־אָתָּה וַיֹּאמֶר אֲנִי בִּנְךָ בְכֹֽרְךָ עֵשָֽׂו׃
- Revelation 22:13 [gk] ἐγὼ τὸ Ἄλφα καὶ τὸ Ὦ ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος ἡ ἀρχὴ καὶ τὸ τέλος
  - “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
אָדָם
‘adam
- man or mankind, generally, only occasionally specific to the first man, Adam or a human man rather than a human woman
- Genesis 2:7 Then the LORD God formed man H120 of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man H120 became a living being.
- Ezekiel 1:5 Within it there were figures resembling four living beings. And this was their appearance: they had human H120 form.
Son of man most frequently designates a human being, one born of flesh. More than any other Prophet Ezekiel uses it to describe a mortal human chosen by God to tell God’s people what the LORD must say to them.

בֶּן־אָדָם צֹפֶה נְתַתִּיךָ לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל וְשָׁמַעְתָּ מִפִּי דָּבָר וְהִזְהַרְתָּ אֹותָם מִמֶּֽנִּי׃
“Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me.
Ezekiel 3:17 – Masoretic text; NASB

Judgment by the Light

Prior to this witness by the man who was blind the Apostle John has already witnessed the context of this sign by the Messiah Jesus.

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying,
“I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
John 8:12 NASB

13 So the Pharisees said to Him, “You are testifying about Yourself; Your testimony is not true.”

Jesus’ debate with the Pharisees, some who do not believe, has already taken place. John now presents a proverbial metaphor at the conclusion of this sign by Jesus that indeed, He IS the Messiah.

John 9:

39 And Jesus said,

“For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.”

Would we expect any better reaction to Jesus from those who have already publicly proclaimed their opposition to the Messiah before their very eyes?

40 Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him,

“We are not blind too, are we?”

Are they? For they know well their own Scripture of the coming of the Messiah.

Isaiah 29:
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הֹ֚וי אֲרִיאֵ֣ל אֲרִיאֵ֔ל קִרְיַ֖ת חָנָ֣ה דָוִ֑ד סְפ֥וּ שָׁנָ֛ה עַל־שָׁנָ֖ה חַגִּ֥ים יִנְקֹֽפוּ׃
וְחָנִ֥יתִי כַדּ֖וּר עָלָ֑יִךְ וְצַרְתִּ֤י עָלַ֨יִךְ֙ מֻצָּ֔ב וַהֲקִֽימֹתִ֥י עָלַ֖יִךְ מְצֻרֹֽת׃
הִתְמַהְמְה֣וּ וּתְמָ֔הוּ הִשְׁתַּֽעַשְׁע֖וּ וָשֹׁ֑עוּ שָֽׁכְר֣וּ וְלֹא־יַ֔יִן נָע֖וּ וְלֹ֥א שֵׁכָֽר׃
כִּֽי־נָסַ֨ךְ עֲלֵיכֶ֤ם יְהוָה֙ ר֣וּחַ תַּרְדֵּמָ֔ה וַיְעַצֵּ֖ם אֶת־עֵֽינֵיכֶ֑ם אֶת־הַנְּבִיאִ֛ים וְאֶת־רָאשֵׁיכֶ֥ם הַחֹזִ֖ים כִּסָּֽה׃
הֹ֛וי הַמַּעֲמִיקִ֥ים מֵֽיהוָ֖ה לַסְתִּ֣ר עֵצָ֑ה וְהָיָ֤ה בְמַחְשָׁךְ֙ מַֽעֲשֵׂיהֶ֔ם וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ מִ֥י רֹאֵ֖נוּ וּמִ֥י יֹודְעֵֽנוּ׃
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Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices.

And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee.

Be delayed and wait,
Blind yourselves and be blind;
They become drunk, but not with wine,
They stagger, but not with strong drink.

For the LORD has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep,
He has shut your eyes, the prophets;
And He has covered your heads, the seers.

Woe to those who deeply hide their plans from the LORD,
And whose deeds are done in a dark place,
And they say, “Who sees us?” or “Who knows us?”

On that day

Isaiah 29:

18 On that day the deaf will hear words of a book,
And out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.

19 The afflicted also will increase their gladness in the Lord,
And the needy of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

24 And those who go astray in spirit will come to understanding,
and those who murmur will accept instruction.”

These scriptures from Isaiah, a true Prophet of Israel, the Pharisees would know well.

How will we know that the Messiah stands before us as the Son of Man?

“The eyes of the blind will see.

Give glory to the LORD your God,
Before He brings darkness
And before your feet stumble
On the dusky mountains,
And while you are hoping for light
He makes it into deep darkness,
And turns it into gloom.
Jeremiah 13:16

“We are not blind too, are we?”

“What do you say about Him, since He opened your eyes?” And he said, “He is a prophet.”

“… one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”

“… You do not want to become His disciples too, do you?”

41 Jesus said to them,

“If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
“But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
Genesis 1:4; John 1:5; Matthew 6:23 NASB

John 9:41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

Have you born blind confronted your sin?

Will you now worship the Messiah, the Lord Jesus, who opens your eyes to the Light?

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying,
“I am the Light of the world;
he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness,
but will have the Light of life.”
John 8:12 NASB
March 3, 2020
WE Have Been Here Before – in Awe of JESUS
We show no awe of Jesus in our no-salt ‘christian’ lives. Oh, perhaps in a stanza of singing, a sentence of sermon or a moment of compassion in our encounter with another; but for the most part we Christians fail to show any awe of Jesus in our worship or daily lives.

Our church and yours will most likely witness the “aahhh” of a baby born in Bethlehem directed for our children. Ah, not awe — the small sprinkling of Christ for the community, rather than Spirit led worship of the Christ who still lives.

AWE!

The forgotten awe of the Lord God witnessed in the past becomes the superstition of today’s disbelief.

When we read of the awe of Jesus we quickly overlook it. How easily we miss a personal awe of the Lord.

So just for a moment put yourself in the sandals of some witnesses we missed in Jesus’ introduction. (For the Gospel shows us much more than the ‘ah’ of a babe in a manger.)

The Gospel of Matthew

1:20b … an angel of the Lord appeared to him [Joseph] in a dream… 24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the Lord’s angel had commanded him.

Note: Maji: Matthew 2:1 A caste of wise men specializing in astronomy, astrology, and natural science

2:2 “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him.”

13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt.

19 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.

The Gospel Mark

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

The Good News (εὐαγγέλιον) of Luke

1:8 … he was serving as priest before God… 11 An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified and overcome with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah…

26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David…

2:9 Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid…

13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”
Luke 2:14 NASB – Strong’s G2107 – eudokia Blueletterbible.org

33 And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him.

Does Jesus still amaze you after hearing HIS STORY each year?

Do you hear the awe in these witnesses of Christ? And like them do hold HIM in awe as well?

34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed—

Prophecy – Simeon recalls and applies prophecy of the Messiah to Jesus, the Son of Man born in a manger in Bethlehem.

The Gospel of John

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

The same was in the beginning with God.
John 1:2 KJV of Christ Jesus ‘this one, visibly present here

The Lamb of God in a manger

The Lamb of God

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

30 This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’

John the Baptist was in awe of Jesus. Are you?

51 And He said to him [Nathanael], “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Awesome! Truly, the Gospel records many instances of awe connected to Christ Jesus.

What is Awe?

φόβος – phobos

You know the greek root and its connection to fear, dread, terror and that which strikes terror.

Yet we marginalize our phobias even of miracles. And awe in this sense startles our sense of the natural. For our human understanding must be finite and understanding of the infinite baffles us.

We mention the fear of the shepherds who witnessed the awe of angels at Jesus’ birth. Yet seldom will we note the supernatural motivations for the multitudes of followers who subsequently had to see and hear the Messiah Jesus.

In just one scene here in Nain, imagine yourself as part of the crowd gathered for the funeral of this man. Jesus, of whom you have heard, walks up and touches the coffin.

“Young man, I say to you, arise!”
The dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother.
Fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying,
“A great prophet has arisen among us!” and,
“God has visited His people!”
Luke 7:14-16

Luke further records witness of the first century church.

Everyone kept feeling a sense G5401 of awe; G5401 and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles.
Acts of the Apostles 2:43 – awe = Literally: fear was occurring to every soul

Fear as Consequence of Awe

We frequently live in fear during this brief mortal journey of our life.

Do we fear man and circumstance or the Lord?

Therefore here this one example of awe from the Hebrew Bible [Old Testament] as wisdom for our fear.

33:8 יִֽירְאוּ מֵיְהוָה כָּל־הָאָרֶץ מִמֶּנּוּ יָגוּרוּ כָּל־יֹשְׁבֵי תֵבֵֽל׃
Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
Psalm 33:8 Masoretic Text; NASB
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To be continued...
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December 15, 2019