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But he who trusts in Me shall possess the land and inherit My Holy Mountain" (Isaiah 57:13). |
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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 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. Tuesday, February 11, 2025
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :Felix Hears the Charges Against Paul, at Caesarea Bible Verse:Acts 24:1-9 (ESV) "And after five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and a spokesman, one Tertullus. They laid before the governor their case against Paul. And when he had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying: “Since through you we enjoy much peace, and since by your foresight, most excellent Felix, reforms are being made for this nation, in every way and everywhere we accept this with all gratitude. But, to detain you no further, I beg you in your kindness to hear us briefly. For we have found this man a plague, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. He even tried to profane the temple, but we seized him. By examining him yourself you will be able to find out from him about everything of which we accuse him.” The Jews also joined in the charge, affirming that all these things were so." Message:
Having failed in their plot to murder Paul in Jerusalem, Ananais and his toadies must travel to Caesarea; rather than sitting as the judges in the case, they have been reduced to petitioners before the Roman court. It is not clear why Tertullus presents the case rather than Ananais. Perhaps Ananais is too proud to appear as a petitioner before another court, acknowledging his subordination to Felix. Perhaps Tertullus is well-spoken, or can speak in Latin, or understands the Roman laws. Perhaps Tertullus knows Felix.
The wolf will live with the lamb
At any rate, Tertullus presents a well-conceived argument. He speaks of the beneficial peace in Judea and then paints Paul as a person who would destroy that peace. The first accusation he makes is that Paul stirs up riots among Jews, not only in Judea but “in all the world,” i.e. throughout the Roman empire.
This is the charge that will get Rome’s full attention. The Jews chafed under Roman rule. (And, in fact, eight years later, the Jews would start a full-fledged rebellion, the First Jewish-Roman War, that would last for 7 years.) Felix’s first order of business, as governor of Judea, is to prevent riots which might lead to rebellion.
Tertullus’ second accusation, presented more as a matter of explanation, was that Paul is a leader of the heretical Nazarene Sect, i.e. Christianity. This was of enormous importance to the Sanhedrin. It had some importance to Felix, also, since he wanted to curry favor with whichever sect held power over the Jews. But it was not of primary importance; if Felix had become convinced that the Nazarene sect was more powerful than the Sadducees and Pharisees, he would have switched sides in a heartbeat.
The most important motive to the Jews, however, is not even presented to the Roman court. Paul had avoided condemnation in the Sanhedrin by identifying his beliefs with those of the Pharisees; so Ananais has a hidden agenda to diminish Pharisee influence, or at least bypass it.
Meditation : Prayer : Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip me with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in me what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever...........Amen |
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