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The Truth of The Matter is Episode 194: Starling Discoveries Part 7 (Wise people love truth.)
25 Plays10 days ago
There comes a time when you read the scriptures that you are going to have more questions than answers. Does that mean you should be concerned? No. Here's why: what makes the Word of God interesting and such a mystery is that it will leave you with the opportunity to search for those answers. It will give you the opportunity to get on your knees and ask God for his to reveal things to you. Matthews 7:7 NLT says, Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” So if you don't receive an answer at first, give it time. This episode was inspired by a Bible study I had with a friend. Yes this could have easily been a Bible reflection solo or with friends but this conversation made me go back and revisit the text and learn something I might have missed with deeper insight. I love the practice of thinking deeply and that's exactly what this passage did for me so I share it with you today. The text was Matthew 2:1-2 inspired by Bible study. Hope you enjoy!
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Transcript
Introduction and Welcome
00:00:31
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This is the Truth For The Matters Podcast. I'm your host, Jonathan. This is episode 194. Let's begin by recognizing and appreciating all of our new and consistent listeners.
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We thank you all in advance for continuing to press play at your own convenience. I pray that regardless of the episode you find yourself pressing play on, we believe that it can that it will be a blessing to you.
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Of course, I hope everyone is well. Thank you so much for tuning in.
Bible Study Invitation
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As you know, I've been teaching a Bible study every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the last nine months.
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It's going on a year. And the location of that Bible study has been the same. 864 Gates Avenue in Brooklyn, New York. If you're in a tri-state area, we welcome you to come join us.
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Anyone who is hearing this and you happen to travel to New York and you want to come to a Bible study, you're welcome to come and join us.
Focus on the Gospel of Matthew
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Here on the Truth For The Matters podcast, we are currently in a Gospel of Matthew series. Recently, in the Bible study that i do on Saturday, we started reading the Gospel of Matthew.
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And last week, as I took a look at Matthew chapter 2, I began to explore some things. And I actually came across a startling discovery, which is why I wanted to share that with you all today.
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I'm still working on biblical practicality that is on the way. Be patient with me. because I promise you it's going to be a blessing.
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At least I hope it will be.
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Now, before I get into what I discovered, I believe we should pray first and foremost.
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Heavenly Father in Jesus name, Lord, you said in Matthew seven, That if you asking, you will receive what you ask for. If you keep on seeking, you will find. If you keep on knocking, a door will eventually be opened to you.
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For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened as well. I believe as students of your word, the goal should always be to draw near to you because you promised you would draw near to us in return.
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Therefore, Lord, use me today as your instrument to share with everyone who has decided to listen in. ask for this because I want those to be uplifted.
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I want those to be knowledgeable. I want those who at all decide to press play on this podcast. Let it be an opportunity for you to speak directly to them.
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Rather than keep this knowledge to myself, I would rather share it and spread it to those who are looking for a blessing. So Lord, I ask that you open up our eyes to see the wisdom that you showed me in the text.
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Open up our ears to remember.
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Open up our minds to process our hearts to receive. It for what it is, which I believe is your truth. All those who are in agreement to this and acknowledge my intentions on this, please say this as I say these things humbly with sincerity.
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In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
Startling Discoveries Series: Part Seven
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So there's a lot to get to. And so I ask that you are patient with me. Now this is going to be startling discoveries part seven. Yes, there's seven parts.
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So in a way there are seven mini series within the gospel of Luke and Matthew series. If you want to follow them, you would just have to look for the description that says startling discoveries.
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And I believe each episode as this would be part seven will be a blessing to you. For those who don't know, A starting discovery when I found something out that I completely missed or overlooked.
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When it comes to each chapter, i have done within within the Gospels and potentially within 1 John. So far on this podcast, we have studied 1 John, the Gospel of Luke, and currently we are in the Gospel of Matthew.
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is always important to highlight that in my study, I could have missed something that I never considered. And so again,
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The startling discovery is something that I might have overlooked, such as a theme or connection that I did not see philosophically, psychologically or historically. Right.
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This is why I love the word of God, because no matter how much I may read a chapter in any given book, I find something new to explore every single time.
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You know, the word of God continues to give me new perspective on matters. And it continues to blow my mind every opportunity that I give it.
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I said this in a prayer. I'll say it again.
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as a person that studies the word of God, i have no intentions on keeping this information to myself. But rather, I want to impart it on to you. And my hope is that you take that information.
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And that you apply it. Or that you share it as well. So the theme, the title. For this Startling Discoveries. Episode part 7.
Theme: Wise People Love Truth
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Is Wise People Love Truth. Again, Wise People Love Truth. And it's coming out of Matthew chapter 2. Verses 1-2. That's all.
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Matthew chapter 2. Verses That's what we're looking at.
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And it reads, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time, some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
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We saw his star as it rose. And we have come to worship him. Now, some translations would tell you wise men like the one I chose other translations will tell you Magi Magi.
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Which are wise men. And this comes out of the Greek Magi. ah known as priests, sages. They're highly educated.
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They specialize in medicine, religion, astronomy, astrology, denovation, and magic. Denovation really encompasses a wide range of techniques from interpreting omens and signs using tools like tarry cards or casting lots.
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In today's age, this sort of practice has been morphed into other concepts, widely known as the occult, and in other areas, which would be called New Age Christianity.
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Based on verse 1, we know that these men were from the eastern part of the world. So, from a historical perspective, they were most likely residing either in Mesopotamia or Persia, as the term magi originally comes from there.
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You know, what makes this interesting is Abram, who is Abraham, was called out by God from a heavy polytheistic and idolatry society. You can guess where?
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Central Mesopotamia.
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So I'm not surprised by their knowledge since they explored many of these things when it comes to the
Pursuit of Truth Across Cultures
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supernatural. In fact, The question is, and my thoughts can be found in Romans chapter one, but before I elaborate on that, I wanna make a few more comments concerning the Magi or the Magi.
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What I know about them is that they were not kings, but they had plenty of wealth.
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They knew it would take a lot of resources to go on such a trip to discover
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the star in the sky that they saw.
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They were not Jewish, but rather of Gentiles. And so the question is, why were they interested in the birth of a Jewish king?
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That puzzled me. Why? And so the conclusion that I came to is that wise people, which is why they were called the three wise men, love truth.
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Love truth. This is the reason why they were in pursuit to discover
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who the star was. In fact, They understood the resources it would take and made sure the resources that they had were enough to go and and inquire of this truth.
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I always remember what Pontius Pilate asked Jesus in John, in the Gospel of John, chapter 18, verse 38. He asked them, what is truth?
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And so the truth of the matter is, I believe that those who are pursuing truth, once they find it, regardless of what it is or what it looks like, they will accept it.
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As for others, there will be a never-ending line of questioning because of the rejection of that truth that was presented to them.
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I believe this happens more frequently than we would like to believe. I believe in some cases truth is confrontational because at the end of it, it forces you to either accept it and in accepting that you have to change
Truth's Transformative Power
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the lifestyle. You have to change.
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the decisions that you've made that were geared towards what you did maybe in your life or what you plan to do moving forward. And so one of the things that I think people struggle with is that the word of God cannot be read like a menu.
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You have to accept everything in it. Now you will wrestle with a lot of what the Bible has to offer because it's going to challenge people what you've been told to do or what's been shared with you.
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And lot of this comes as a result of the impact of social media, social pressure, and society, right?
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And God told us to come and be separate, says the Lord. And when you are affiliated with A lot of the decisions that you make are informed decisions from Him, passed on by His Word from different writers of Scripture that are warning you about the decisions that you ultimately make and how it can impact you in positive way or a negative way.
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And so that is the reason why truth in and of itself is Jesus Christ. And what he says not only is true, but is also extremely challenging for those who have not gotten to the point where they can accept it.
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Which is why certain people discover truth, it takes them a while to adjust. It takes them a while to implement it into their life.
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That's why some people do things in groups, some people are not at the place where they can handle that decision on their own. And so they would rather make that decision with a moving people and pay the consequences of that.
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And so we can touch on that one another time.
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You know, wise people have a hunger for knowledge. They actually enjoy the quest to obtain that information. Wise people will seek truth wherever it might lead, even if it falls outside of their own tribe or discipline, which is exactly what we have here.
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You know, when you're passionate about something, you will search the ends of the earth to get answers, to find it.
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What truth does is that it gives you the courage to be unafraid to step outside of your religion and make a journey to locate it.
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That's a challenging one. Because when you step outside of what your comfortability is and in that journey, you discover something else. Now the question becomes whatever you discovered, does that force you to then drop what you've followed or believed up until this point.
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In some cases it will, in other cases it won't.
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This is why I say, this is why I say faith is a conviction, not a preference. It's a conviction because now you're going to be tested and that may be the result of challenging you on so many things.
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If it was a preference, that means you can change it consistently because new information is presented to you. And so you're bouncing between different concepts and realities that are then shared with you.
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And so that brings about more confusion.
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You see, those people who love truth, We'll search for it everywhere, no matter the cost, no matter where it leads, even if it forces them to rethink things.
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I love the idea of being forced to rethink things because then reflection comes into play. And you know how much I encourage people to reflect here on the truth of the matter is.
Philosophical Parallels to the Magi
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You know, wise people are motivated by a high level of innate curiosity about the world.
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Take Albert Einstein, for instance, right? He coined the famous quote, I have no special talent. I'm only passionately curious. And so it was the value of persistent questioning and a thirst for knowledge and learning and discovery.
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They ultimately pushed Albert to be widely known historically.
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Another thing about the Magi is that these wise men were more pre-scientists and that they observed the natural world but made accidental connections from what they learned.
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So here's the connection I wanted to make, right? The wise men, the Magi, or the Magi. The wise men, the Magi, were familiar with Jewish religion, even though they didn't know the scripture.
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They were pre-scientists in that they observed the natural world, but made exponential connections with what they learned. Based on these two statements,
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I believe we can make an educated guess that falls under what was stated in Romans chapter one, something I mentioned earlier, and we'll actually you go through it right now. When you look at verses 19 through 23, I want to point out some worth mentioning and the connections, right?
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So verse 19 says, since what may be known about God is plain to them because God has made it plain to them. Meaning when God wants to make something blatantly obvious, in this case, plainly, he does. Why? Because that was his intent.
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Right. We know based on scripture that in first Corinthians chapter 14, verse 33, God is not the author confusion. Therefore, if he says it.
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Then it is.
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If he wants us to easily process something. then that's what it is exactly for. We go to verse 20. It says, For since the creation of the world, God's invisible qualities, his divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood, what was what has been made, so that the people are without excuse. So we know that God, the Father, is physically invisible.
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We know that since the beginning, all things were created by him, to him, and for him. We know that the Genesis account of how everything was formed was based upon his command, which gives us a hint of his eternal power.
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When it comes to his divine nature, we look no further than the Trinity to encapsulate that. All of this was visibly witnessed by humanity. Humanity in and of itself is a reflection of what he created, which bears his image, which he said was good.
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Humanity is a result of that goodness. And when we look at what the Magi studied, it's the supernatural. And so the existence of God is something they were always aware of based upon what they observed.
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The idea of following the star in the sky was obviously an acknowledgement of something that was a sign to them. And so they pursued it.
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We go to verse 21-23, it says, twentyth three says well although they knew god they neither glorified him as god nor gave thanks to him but their thinking became fuile their foolish hearts would darken although they claim to be wise they became fools and exchanged the glory of their immortal god for images made to look like mortal human beings and birds and animals and reptiles And so the Magi were priests, sages, specialists in astronomy, astrology, innovation and magic.
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Based on verse 23, the idea of God has been seen as an animal historically. It's been seen as images, statues, right? It's been adopted by many cultures.
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For instance, The zodiac signs for each month were given through the image of an animal, and those animals represent the general energy and characteristics that that person possessed.
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These types of concepts are rooted in astronomy and astrology.
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And so whether we like to believe it or not, the Middle East, Persia, Mesopotamia has a large impact because a lot of it was rooted in Babylonian religions and customs and practices. And so it's rooted throughout this nation and throughout the world.
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It's been adopted and practiced and passed on for generation to generation.
00:22:36
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You know, for a few minutes, let me take a philosophical route, right? Socrates said that wonder is the beginning of wisdom.
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He also said that the pursuit of wisdom is the most important human endeavor. You know, according to Plato, Socrates believed that the unexamined life is not worth living, which suggests that Actively questioning and seeking knowledge rather than passively accepting the status quo is essential for a meaningful existence, right?
00:23:11
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He famously stated that the only thing that I know is that I know nothing, which highlights his belief that true wisdom begins with acknowledging one's own ignorance and being open to learning.
00:23:26
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You know, it's interesting that
00:23:33
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You know, when I think about philosophy, I think about how a lot of philosophers, whether it was Paragas, Plato, Theus, they actually went to Egypt to learn mathematics, astronomy, medicine, philosophy, right?
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I remember Paragas, I believe, is said that he spent 22 years in Egypt studying philosophy. I remember Plato who is influential in Greek philosophy was said to have spent 13 years in Egypt studying under Egyptian priests and learning about their philosophical and religious doctrines.
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And think about Socrates who is said to be a student of Plato. There's no record of him studying in Egypt, but I'm sure he read the same things or the same books and materials that Plato read.
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And I can say the same thing for Aristotle, right? Because Aristotle was also a student of Socrates and I'm pretty sure relationship with Plato. Those two individuals, it wasn't said that they went to Egypt, but I don't think we can say that they don't know much about anything.
00:24:58
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But what I can tell you is that what they all had in common was that they were in search of truth.
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their truth was wrapped a little bit more in a pursuit for wisdom, for knowledge. And in some cases, a lot of them thrived in that sort of philosophy.
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Right? You know, based on scripture, what we know for certain is that in 1 Corinthians 1, verse 22, we know Jews demanded signs and Greeks searched for wisdom.
Love vs. Knowledge
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What became abundantly obvious is that in this pursuit for wisdom.
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They still were empty. and Individuals were still empty. In fact. When we go and we read the next sentence or the next verse to that.
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It says. But we preach Christ crucified, stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles. But to those who are called both Jews and Gentiles, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God, for the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
00:26:24
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And so the the desire that people had for wisdom is a good one. But they must have missed what it is that Paul said.
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Paul made a great point. When he said knowledge puffs up.
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But love. Builds up.
00:26:54
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And this is found in first creating shop the verse one. Right. We all have knowledge.
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But why knowledge makes us feel important is love that strengthens and builds us up.
00:27:15
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Right. It also. Edifies.
Historical Pursuits of Wisdom
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So the title of this starting discovery is wise people love truth.
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and so I want to provide you with individuals.
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who love the truth and so much so they were willing to have discussions and engagements and make a decision for themselves regarding the truth.
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Remember the Queen of Sheba? She was associated with Ethiopia and she came to see Solomon for several different reasons. Some of those reasons were political reasons, partnerships.
00:27:56
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She also vented to Solomon, right? And she wanted to test his wisdom. You can find that passage in 1 Kings 10, verses or you can find it in 2 Chronicles 9, verses 1-12.
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I'm going to read it from 1 Kings 10, verses 1-13, and it reads, When the Queen of Sheba heard about the famous Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions.
00:28:24
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So she wants to know about his relationship with the Lord. She wanted to test his wisdom. Verse two, arriving at Jerusalem with a very great carnivore with camels carrying spices, large quantity of gold and precious stone.
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She came to Solomon and talked with him about all she had on her mind. This is the venting portion. Solomon answered all her questions, nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her.
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When the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon, and the palace he had built, the food on his table, the seating of his officers, their attending servants, and their robes and cup-bearings, and the burnt offerings he had made at the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed.
00:29:13
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She said to the king, the report i heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. And so she heard about these things and and hearing these things, she wanted to go and find out for herself.
00:29:26
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She was curious. She had a desire. And in some cases, she was also wise enough to go and experience things. And one of those experiences was him.
00:29:41
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But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes.
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Indeed, not even half was told that was told me in wisdom and wealth, you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy you people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!
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Praise be to the Lord your God, she is acknowledging the God that he serves. who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord's eternal love for Israel, he has made you the king to maintain justice and righteousness.
00:30:24
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She gave the king 120 talents of gold, large quantities of spice, precious stone. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
00:30:39
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Hermann's ship brought gold from Orphea and from there they brought great cargoes of wood and precious stone. The king used the wood to make supports for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace and to make harps and for music.
00:30:59
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So much wood has never been imported or seen since that day. King Solomon gave the Queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for. Besides what he was giving her out of his royal bounty, she left and returned to her own country.
00:31:17
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Now, this conversation about how based upon that last verse where it says King Solomon gave Queen Sheba all she desired and asked for,
00:31:32
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He has 700 wives, 300 concubines. It's been said that he gave her son started a movement.
00:31:49
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And in that movement, you have what is known as the Salomec. legacy. Right.
00:32:00
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And it said it's been said that the amount of work that's been put together for the success dwells based upon the wisdom in his bloodline has passed. Right.
00:32:15
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and So you can you can ask yourself how truthful that is and maybe it is true. Right. So I don't think I'm here. to question and the legitimacy, but I am here to point out that there's some possible truth to it. And if there's possible truth to it, it just goes to show you
00:32:38
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how much wisdom and information can be passed. Okay?
00:32:47
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Again, food for thought. Again, it's called the Salomic Dynasty. And the son is to be believed, Malachi.
00:33:00
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All right. With that being said.
00:33:09
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One of the things we can look at is that she traveled again to experience Solomon for herself and brought with her gifts and what we know based upon how it's incomparable to what.
00:33:25
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three mo The three wise men did is that when they heard or they saw about the reports, she was persistent in her pursuit to find out the legitimacy of the reports.
00:33:37
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Just like the three wise men were curious about the star in the sky and all that they have studied and what they decided to do to put together resources and then go in pursuit of that star.
00:33:51
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I think it's pretty obvious. about the legitimacy of how they viewed what they saw and what it meant to them. And this is the point that I'm making about how wise people love wisdom, that they're willing to go and experience it. It's not enough to hear about it, but to experience it, because in experiencing it, a lot of different things that's attached to it can open up a perspective that you might have and change the outlook of that perspective.
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Last example is Paul's visit to Athens.
00:34:34
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In the book of Acts chapter 17 verses 16 through
00:34:40
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And it reads, while paul was waiting for them in athens he was greatly discuss to see that the city was full of idols so ye reason with the synagogue with both jews and God fearing Greeks, as well as the marketplace day by day with those who happen to be there.
00:35:01
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A group of Epicurian stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked was this babbler trying to say others remarked he seems to be advocating foreign gods.
00:35:16
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They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. Then they took him and brought him into a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, may we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
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Now, I brought this in here because in search for wisdom and understanding, they were curious. And in that search, I'm pretty sure some of them accepted, it some of them didn't.
00:35:42
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But the openness to hear it, the openness to be curious, the openness to bring him in a space where you have knowledge, great minds at that time was interesting.
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Verse 20 says, you are bringing some strange ideas to our ears and we would like to know what they mean. So they considered it strange, but they were curious. They wanted to know.
00:36:09
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Verse 21, all of the Athenians and foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking and listening to the latest ideas.
00:36:21
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And that's pretty much what I wanted you to see. Now, keep listening. Verse 22. Paul then stood up in a meeting of the Areopagus and said, People of Athens, I see that in every way you are very religious.
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For as I walk around and look carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription to an unknown God. So you are ignorant of the very things you worship. This is what I am going to proclaim to you.
00:36:50
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The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heavens and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. He is not served by human hands as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone everything.
00:37:05
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Life and breathe everything else from their appointed time in history and the boundaries of the land. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out to him and find him.
00:37:21
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Though he is not far from any one of us, for in him we live and move and have our being. As some of your own poets have said, we are his offspring.
00:37:33
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So even in the way that they expressed information within a poetic means, they were talking about the same God. That Paul is claiming Jesus Christ.
00:37:45
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Right. The issue is their knowledge of him was expressed in different ways. And this is something that I was trying to get you to see about the Magi. Is that as they searched and pursued God.
00:37:59
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They did it in a lot of different ways. And in the ways that they did it. They probably didn't have a name for it. They just knew through the supernatural means of exploring it.
00:38:12
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They discovered God. Individuals like Paul are are doing something that we all need, and that's providing explanation and also providing insight into what should be truly acceptable when it comes to the biblical doctrine and its relations and connections to what God would want believers to proclaim and believe.
00:38:42
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Verse 29 says, Therefore, since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine beings like gold or silver or stone. So here's the explanation, an image made by human design and skill.
00:38:54
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In the past, God overlooks us ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man who has appointed.
00:39:09
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He has given proof to this and everyone by raising him from the dead. When I heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, we want to hear you again on this subject.
00:39:24
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So they may not have been convinced by the first side of this conversation, but it opened the door. And if I'm not mistaken, Paul says, right?
00:39:36
Speaker
One person waters, another person plants, but God gives the increase. And so you never know. where things are going to go when you share the gospel with people.
00:39:47
Speaker
You never know that that seed you plant, what God's going to do with it. And so we have to be mindful of the fact that this is why you should continue to share the good news.
00:40:05
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Right? Just to take it a step further, Look at what happens next. Verse 33 at that Paul left the council. Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed.
00:40:19
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Among them was Dionysus. A member of the Epicurus, also a woman named Damaris and a number of others.
00:40:30
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And you see that's. A start when it comes to sharing the truth with people. That right there is a great example of that.
00:40:43
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And so in their pursuit of knowledge and insight, let's say Paul doesn't go over there and do anything. Right. What if he doesn't have that conversation?
Sharing the Gospel and Transformation
00:40:56
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What if he doesn't get the courage to go and speak?
00:41:03
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And so we have to be mindful
00:41:08
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Of God's way.
00:41:13
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Of having conversation with us. Through different avenues. Because. In that conversation. You'd be surprised.
00:41:24
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Let's look at one more passage. Let's look at. The passage in Acts chapter eight, verses 26 to 40, Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch.
00:41:37
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Now, an angel of the Lord said to Philip, rise and go towards the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem into Gaza. This is the desert place. And he rose and went.
00:41:49
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And there was a.
00:41:52
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Epiopian eunuch, a court officer of Candace, queen of Epiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come Jerusalem to worship and was returning.
00:42:05
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Seated in his cherry, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. The spirit said to Philip, go over and join this cherry. So Philip ran to him, heard him reading Isaiah, the prophet and asked, do you understand what you are reading?
00:42:20
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And he said, how can I unless someone guides me? And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. And now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this.
00:42:34
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I'm not going to read all the way through it. But actually, let me do so. Like a sheep, he was led to the slaughter. Like a lamb, it sneered in silence.
00:42:49
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So he opens his mouth and his humiliation justice was denied him. He who described his generation for his life is taken away from the earth.
00:43:00
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And a eunuch said Philip about whom I ask you, does the prophet say this about himself or someone else? Then Philip opened his mouth and began and beginning with the scripture, he told him the good news about Jesus.
00:43:16
Speaker
And as they were going along the road, they came to some water and a eunuch said, see, here is water. What prevents me from being baptized? And he commanded the cherry to stop.
00:43:27
Speaker
And they both went down into the water, Philip the eunuch, and he baptized them. And when they came up out of the water, the spirit of the Lord carried Philip away and the eunuch saw him no more and went on his way rejoicing.
00:43:43
Speaker
Why am I sharing this story? I'm sharing this story with you because this is another great example. Wise people love truth. And in this example, you had a eunuch who's part of a Ethiopian culture.
00:43:59
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We don't know what kind of gods that they are serving. We have no idea. what we do know is that he was saved. What we do know is that he will have the opportunity to take what he learned and pass it along.
00:44:14
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And so wise people just like the eunuch, wise people just like Queen Shiva, wise people just like the three wise men,
00:44:26
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giving examples of their willingness to take it a step further, even if they're from a different culture or background. And so I hope that this blesses you. i hope that this encourages you. I hope that you continue to be prepared because God may use you just like 1 Peter 3.15 says, always be prepared to give a reason for the hope that you have, but do it gently and respectfully.
00:44:54
Speaker
You never know how God is going to use you as his instrument for righteousness. And so that's the reason why we must be prepared. And on that note, let's close out in prayer. Heavenly Father, Lord, in Jesus name, I thank you so much for continuing to bless me, continuing to open up my eyes to see, continue to open up my heart to receive, continue to open up my mind to learn more and more about you.
00:45:20
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I pray for the forgiveness of sins. Any sin that I've committed intentionally or unintentionally, I ask that you forgive me. Lord, ask that you continue to be a blessing, not just to me, but to all who are listening, to their family members, to their friends. Keep them all safe from any hurt, harm, and danger. Protect them. Guide them.
00:45:39
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And I pray that they draw near to you.
Closing Prayer and Encouragement
00:45:42
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I pray that what's being done on this podcast is an example for those out there that desire to get to know you better. Encourage them, motivate them, inspire them to go deep into the scriptures so that they can see that your truth is where the scriptures lie. That your truth will bring them to a place where they can be not not just smart, but mindful and full of discernment.
00:46:11
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I trust you, Lord, with all that you do. I'll continue to place my faith in you, not because of what you've done, but because of who you are. And I pray all of those who are listening that they can be changed and transformed by this word.
00:46:25
Speaker
And based on that relationship that we all desire, we should all pursue to have an S relationship in Jesus Christ through that relationship. We have eternal life through that relationship. We are transformed, not just by the renewing of our mind, but we take that transformation and It's not just a personal transformation, but it becomes a public and community reform.
00:46:49
Speaker
Thank you, Lord. Appreciate you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.