<TITLE>12. Par 104-117</TITLE>L-104   That's--that's the one of the most astounding statements! So many people will--will set off and criticize anything, instead of coming and taking it to heart, and searching it and seeing whether it's right. If those scribes would have only done that to Jesus Christ, the... you Jewish people wouldn't be in the condition you are now. See? And the world, the churches wouldn't be the way they are now. The people, we wouldn't be the way we are, if we studied the Scriptures and if God raised up something. We know there is a lot of fanaticisms; there has always been, there always will be, until Jesus comes. But then, false prophets and false christs, and everything else, is to rise in the world, showing times of the sign, signs of the times, rather, and so forth. But He said, "Don't you believe it." See? But now notice, in this, they didn't stop to think Who, what He was doing.

L-105   Philip said, "Come, see for yourself." So when Philip and--and--and Nathanael went along the side of the mountain, together, come in to the meeting just about like this, say, where Jesus was speaking.

L-106 Now, I don't know how they come up. He might have been standing out in the audience, he perhaps might have been up here where Jesus had, was praying for the sick. It's, no, we're not told just what position they were in. But as soon as Jesus saw the man, He said, "Behold an Israelite, in whom there is no guile!" Now look at what He is making Himself, identified, when He was here yesterday.

L-107 See, He never made any great intellectual talks. We have no record of Him schooled in seminaries, as I said. He never wrote a book. He never wrote one word. He wrote something on the ground, and then took His hand and erased it out again. Why didn't He write something? Because He was the Word.

L-108 So, see, if they'd only know, He was the Word. He was the Word Itself made flesh. He was God made flesh. God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself.

L-109   Now notice what He did, when Philip bringing this staunch Jew up, He said, "Behold an Israelite, in whom there is no guile."

L-110 Well, some might say, "Sure, they could tell, the way he was dressed." No, all the Eastern people wore turbans, they wore beards, they wore garments. You couldn't have told him from an Assyrian or any other person. He just had on that type of a garment.

L-111 Said, "Behold an Israelite, in whom there is no guile." How did He know that he was that just, honest man that he was? He could have been a--an outlaw. He could have been a thief that had come up there with Philip. He didn't know, but He had a way of knowing.

L-112   And he, it astounded this man so much, that he said, "Rabbi," which means teacher, "when did You ever see me? How do You know me?"

L-113 He said, "Before Philip called you, when you were under that tree, I saw you." See?

L-114 And what did this scholar of the Word know by that? He knew that was that Prophet. He said, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God. You're the King of Israel."

L-115 And Jesus said, "Because I told you these things, you have believed, now you'll see greater than this."

L-116 You see how He was identifying Himself. Not in a certain dress, not in a great... being a great famous lecturer, some doctor's degree from some college.

L-117   Them things are alright. I'm not criticizing. I'm trying to pull out something that should come out of there, see, to show you. Them denominations and colleges, and dressings, as far as I'm concerned, they're alright, but we're not talking about those things now. See? I'd certainly rather see a man in religious garb than see him like some of these women out here on the street, see, or something. Would rather see him, if he's even a fanatic in his religion, I'd rather see him like that than out here drunk somewhere, in a ditch, see, so I have nothing to say about that.


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