March 10: Following His Guidance.
HIS STRATEGY.
After being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee and came and lived in a city called Nazareth.--Matthew 2:22, 23
Have you ever had an experience of finding something wonderful at an unexpected and despised place? Featured in countless magazines and on TV shows, the story of the Paraguayan orchestra of Cateura has warmed my heart. Amidst mountains of trash, the children living in the now-famous Cateura slum could have never imagined that one day they would become internationally known musicians. Someone had the amazing idea of creating instruments out of trash and the unlikely orchestra was born, which has now performed all over the world. *
There are five fascinating infancy narratives in Matthew, each one built around an Old Testament prophecy. This is quite important for Matthew, who points out that Jesus fulfills the Old Testament Messianic prophecies. By the way, this is the core reason why the Old Testament is so important to us: it contains the DNA of Jesus, giving us information about the appointed Deliverer who would come. The last of the infancy narratives, found in Matthew 2:19-23, is puzzling and unexpected. God communicates with Joseph through two dreams, the first of which starts with a divine command to leave Egypt and go into the land of Israel "for those who sought the Child's life are dead" (verse 20, compare with Exodus 4:19). After being warned is a second dream not to go to Judea due to the reign of Archelaus (Herod's son), Joseph took his family to Galilee, to the city of Nazareth. This was a small, obscure town, with a bad reputation, which becomes obvious from Nathanael's comment when introduced to Jesus of Nazareth in John 1:45, 46: "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth.' Nazareth is not mentioned in the Old Testament at all. It was a small town, estimated to have had less than five hundred inhabitants in the first century A.D. Why would God choose such a town for Jesus, the Galilean Messiah? Well, God is an expert in creating beauty out of ashes and deliverance in unexpected places. When someone hints that God may not be able to use you and your circumstances for His glory, remember Nazareth.
My Response:___________________________________________________________
* For information, go to www.landfillharmonicmovie.com
HIS STRATEGY.
After being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee and came and lived in a city called Nazareth.--Matthew 2:22, 23
Have you ever had an experience of finding something wonderful at an unexpected and despised place? Featured in countless magazines and on TV shows, the story of the Paraguayan orchestra of Cateura has warmed my heart. Amidst mountains of trash, the children living in the now-famous Cateura slum could have never imagined that one day they would become internationally known musicians. Someone had the amazing idea of creating instruments out of trash and the unlikely orchestra was born, which has now performed all over the world. *
There are five fascinating infancy narratives in Matthew, each one built around an Old Testament prophecy. This is quite important for Matthew, who points out that Jesus fulfills the Old Testament Messianic prophecies. By the way, this is the core reason why the Old Testament is so important to us: it contains the DNA of Jesus, giving us information about the appointed Deliverer who would come. The last of the infancy narratives, found in Matthew 2:19-23, is puzzling and unexpected. God communicates with Joseph through two dreams, the first of which starts with a divine command to leave Egypt and go into the land of Israel "for those who sought the Child's life are dead" (verse 20, compare with Exodus 4:19). After being warned is a second dream not to go to Judea due to the reign of Archelaus (Herod's son), Joseph took his family to Galilee, to the city of Nazareth. This was a small, obscure town, with a bad reputation, which becomes obvious from Nathanael's comment when introduced to Jesus of Nazareth in John 1:45, 46: "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth.' Nazareth is not mentioned in the Old Testament at all. It was a small town, estimated to have had less than five hundred inhabitants in the first century A.D. Why would God choose such a town for Jesus, the Galilean Messiah? Well, God is an expert in creating beauty out of ashes and deliverance in unexpected places. When someone hints that God may not be able to use you and your circumstances for His glory, remember Nazareth.
My Response:___________________________________________________________
* For information, go to www.landfillharmonicmovie.com
RSS Feed
