Jesus continues on to Galilee after meeting with the Samaritan woman outside of Sycha. Jesus was always moving forward because He was on God's mission for mankind. I am glad He kept going, even against all odds. Jesus had said earlier that 'A prophet is not welcomed in His hometown." Luke 4: 22 Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” 23 Then he said, “You will undoubtedly quote me this proverb: ‘Physician, heal yourself’—meaning, ‘Do miracles here in your hometown like those you did in Capernaum.’ 24 But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown. It is amazing how a person can be prejudged about what they are capable of because of where they are from. My hometown is West Plains, Missouri, and God blessed me in an incredible way through what He did there in that town. Far beyond reasoning and far beyond preconceived attitudes. In fact, I was blessed to begin my ministry there and then come back here to see a great amount of fruit from that decision, even in the midst of doubters.
Jesus had said what He said about the unwelcome wagon hometowns put out for their prophets, and He was talking about Himself. There is a special love for the people of your hometown that transcends understanding. I have that love for my hometown and the people who live there. Here is what Jesus did even after saying what He did earlier in Luke's gospel. John 4: 43 At the end of the two days, Jesus went on to Galilee. 44 He himself had said that a prophet is not honored in his own hometown. 45 Yet the Galileans welcomed him, for they had been in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration and had seen everything he did there.
The burden and walk of Jesus were much deeper than a town's acceptance of who He was. Those folks who saw Him in Jerusalem during Passover and what they saw wasn't the same Jesus who was Joseph and Mary's son. When God calls us, we are totally different and yet, still the same. His Spirit enables us to have a much clearer vision of life, and that vision took me all over the United States in a period of 45 years. I can truly look back and see the people God put in my life who were building blocks of my faith walk, and I have been blessed to have known those people.
As I "celebrate" my 70th birthday today, I can see that God continues to burn a hot fire in my soul to "stay the course." Stay the course in my Bible Study, stay the course with dreams He has put in my heart, stay the course to see more and more lost souls saved, and grow those converted disciples to follow Jesus. Nothing has changed in my spirit, and praise God, He is even more real to me than ever. I am waiting for the next great adventure and look forward to it with urgency and faith. To quote a very unfamous author, The Pilgrimage Continues.
Today's Message,
David Warren
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