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But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness Gal 5:22 |
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Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for collecting daily manna), make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Thursday, April 12, 2018
Today's Passage : Today's Passage:Subjecta:Jesus Calls the First Disciples Bible Verse:John 1:35-44 (ESV) "The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hourThat is, about 4 p.m.. One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter). The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. " Message:
In the previous Bible reading, John the Baptist compared the Holy Spirit descending on Christ to a dove. Here, he calls him the “Lamb of God.” Once again, John chooses imagery of harmlessness, peace, and innocence, a creature that is hunted rather than a powerful fighting animal. The Hebrews were expecting a messiah who would be more aptly named “the Lion of Judah” or somesuch. (And indeed, John uses this term for Christ in Revelation 5:5, but in a very different context.) But Christ came to teach—by both His words and His life—not to fit into the Hebrews’ preconception.
Andrew, a disciple of John the Baptist, becomes the first disciple of Christ. He runs and enlists his brother Simon, who will become the great leader of the church after Christ's ascension. Christ says that he will be called “Cephas.”
Like “dove” or “lamb,” the name Cephas is descriptive. In Aramaic (the native language of Judea at this time), Cephas meant “rock.” Jesus is thus saying, “I name you ‘Rock.’” Rather than translating the sound of Cephas’ name, which is the usual practice with foreign names, the Greek Bible translates the meaning: petra was the word for “rock” in Greek. So we call him “Peter(Thankfully so — I shudder to think of calling the Vatican “The Basilica of St. Rocky”!),” derived from the Greek Petros and the Latin Petrus
(Jesus’ name, on the other hand, is a translation of sound rather than meaning. His Aramaic/Hebrew name would have been something like Yeshua, the Hebrew name we now call Joshua. The meaning of His name was “Jehovah is generous.”)
Jesus’ naming of Peter predicts the function Simon/Cephas/Peter will play in God’s plan of salvation. Shortly before his death, Christ will recall and embellish His intention, for He will tell us that Peter is “the rock upon which I will build my church.”
There is an interesting distinction to be seen by looking at the Greek. “Petra” in Greek does not refer to a small object, i.e. a stone, as it can in English. It refers to bedrock, or at the very least, a sizable boulder. (As in “Rock” of Gibraltar.) Without doubt, Christ intends us to see Peter as a massive and unmovable slab of rock, suitable for use as the foundation for a great building.
Note the prophesy in the quote from Psalm 27: In the time of trouble, God will protect us by sheltering us in the secret place in His tabernacle, built “high upon a rock.”
Meditation : Prayer : God of mercy, swift to help: as my lips pour forth your praise, fill my heart with the peace you give to those who wait for your salvation in Jesus Christ our Lord...Amen |
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