Sermon Central
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From The Time Of Abraham To The Time Of Jesus, ... PRO
Contributed by Bill Huffhine on May 27, 2004 (message contributor)
From the time of Abraham to the time of Jesus, the Jewish people were the chosen people of God. They were the only people on the face of the earth who knew the one, true God. From Abraham, God raised up this nation to be his voice to the entire world. It was to them that God introduced Himself, gave his laws and commands. His manifest presence was confined to the Ark of the Covenant in the tabernacle and later the temple. The only way for a human being to know and understand God was to be born a Jew, or to become a Jew through conversion. Here is where we introduce ourselves to the term proselyte. In the simplest sense, this word means convert. In our context here, a proselyte is a non-Jewish person becoming a Jewish person.
There was process through which a non-Jew could become a Jewish proselyte, and that process involved three things. A sacrifice, circumcision, and baptism. The sacrifice was a heifer or a pair of turtledoves. It was brought to the priest and given as a burnt offering to God.
The next thing that had to take place was circumcision. Now, out of sensitivity, I won’t be graphic with this. I think most of us probably understand what circumcision is. It is a cutting away of a piece of flesh from a man’s body. This is usually done with an infant who is 8 days old, thus the pain isn’t remembered. But an adult male, who wanted to become a Jewish proselyte had to undergo this procedure, regardless of his age. This circumcision was a really strange thing that was done to separate the Jewish people from every other nation. It was their distinguishing mark, the permanent, irreversible brand on their body that designated them as the only people on earth who were in covenant relationship with God.
Finally, after the circumcision wound had healed the proselyte had to go through the final step, which was baptism. The person was stripped of all of their clothes, completely naked. They then went into the water, and dipped themselves being sure to fully immerse their entire body in the water. They were very careful...
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Contributed by Bruce Willis on Dec 29, 2006
In 1829 a man named George Wilson was arrested for robbery and murder in a US mail heist. He was tried, convicted and sentenced to death by hanging. Some friends intervened on his behalf and were able to obtain his pardon from President Andrew Jackson. But when told of this, Wilson refused it ...read more
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We Went To Disneyland A Few Weeks Ago And Stood ... PRO
Contributed by Brad Froese on Aug 30, 2004
We went to Disneyland a few weeks ago and stood in line together for the 3-D movie, “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience.” I promised my son there was nothing in there that could hurt him when we walked in to sit down, because he was afraid of the dark and unfamiliar theater. When we sat down, I ...read more
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In A Painting Of The Crucifixion By The Famous ... PRO
Contributed by Kim Huffman on Mar 31, 2004
In a painting of the Crucifixion by the famous Dutch artist, Rembrandt, our attention is drawn immediately to the cross and to Him who hangs there. Then looking at the crowd gathered around the Cross, we note the attitudes and actions of these people. As our eyes drift to the edge of the ...read more
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From Daily Encounter Comes This Story By A ... PRO
Contributed by Kim Huffman on Mar 31, 2004
From Daily Encounter comes this story by a Chaplain Robinson: “In 1949, my father had just returned from the war. On every highway you could see soldiers in uniform hitchhiking home to their families. The thrill of the his reunion with his family was soon overshadowed by my grandmother’s illness. ...read more
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Pat Summerall Spent 50 Years With The National ...
Contributed by Ted Mulder on Nov 20, 2004
Pat Summerall spent 50 years with the national Football League. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1952 and played with the Chicago Cardinals and New York Giants until 1961. After his retirement from the game, he joined CBS as a broadcaster, and in 1993 switched to Fox. During his CBS years he ...read more
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