Good morning. Well they had a big to do: The king and a
bunch of dignitaries came together to hear Paul. Festus said, I found that he
had committed nothing worthy of death; and since he himself appealed to the
emperor, I decided to send him. I have nothing definite about him to write to
my lord. Therefore I have brought him before you so that after the
investigation has taken place, I may have something to write. For it seems
absurd to me in sending a prisoner, not to indicate also the charges against
him. He was caught between a rock and a hard place. He knew that the Jews had
no case against Paul; but he didn’t want to let him go free and get the Jews
angry at him. Since Paul had resorted to an appeal to Caesar, Festus had to
indicate the charge. He was afraid that Caesar would want to know why Festus
was wasting his time with such a flimsy reason. Paul starts out by flattering
King Agrippa. I consider myself fortunate that I’m about to make my defense
before you today; especially because you are an expert in all customs and
questions among the Jews; therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently... I am
standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers. Why is
it considered incredible among you people if God does raise the dead? He gives
his testimony about his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. He
emphasizes the part where Jesus said that He was sending Paul to the Gentiles;
to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the
dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an
inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Him. This is how
we are supposed to do it – tailor our testimony to fit the audience. He would
not have mentioned the part about being sent to the Gentiles, if he were
talking to Jews, because they would get angry at that. We will finish this next
time. Father thank You that You intervened in the history of the world. You
made what could’ve been a disaster at Normandy Beach to turn into a great
victory for the allies and Your kingdom.
Unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God
Good morning. While Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. Jesus was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men. Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. It doesn’t say, but I assume it is still during this time of the Passover. This man came to Jesus by night. Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do the signs that You do unless God is with him. It just said that the people believed in His name because of the signs He was doing; yet it does not say what those signs were. Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. That is why unbelievers cannot tell what is of the kingdom of God and what is not – they’re not born again. Nicodemus doesn’t have a clue. How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he? Unless one is born of water and the Spirit ...
Comments
Post a Comment