EVERY Religion has Hypocrites- even the TRUE One!
by MuchCloserLook 41 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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RolRod
<< So among the many things real Christians have to endure- is often each OTHER!>>
Amen, I gave a talk many years ago on John 17, dealing with the Lord's Gethsamane prayer in part I said the folliwng:
Jesus asks the Father for four things regarding his disciples. Look at the text with me: "Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name-the name you gave me-so that they may be one as we are one." (V.11) The word for "protect" means to guard or keep. But here's the question: What does He want them to be protected from? It's not the Devil and his powers because He gets to that in verse15.
Whatever it is that He wants them protected from will be a threat to their oneness and unity. Here's my suggestion: Jesus prays that the Father protect them from themselves. The greatest threat to unity is sinful human nature. Jesus has seen it in the disciples before. They argued over: who was the greatest; who should sit at the right and left of Jesus in glory; who should wash the feet; why they couldn't do certain miracles; whether they should let the children come to see Jesus. It's human nature.
We are naturally drawn to bitterness, jealousy, self-centeredness, pettiness, gossip, grudges, anger, prejudice and much more. Each of these things is deadly to the church and to relationships. Jesus is praying that the Father would protect them from such division. If the disciples were going to carry the message to the world, they needed to work together. So do we.