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Elder Bryce Lowrance

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Back Home To Nazareth

10 April 2014

But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child’s life. And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judæa in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee: and he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene. - Matthew 2:19-23

After Herod died, his “kingdom” was divided among three of his sons that he had not killed. The area of Judea was ruled by Archelaus whom we meet here in Matthew 2. Herod Antipas ruled in Galilee. Philip ruled the territory east of Jordan.

Archelaus was appointed by Herod before his death and confirmed by Rome. Apparently, he was evil as well. He sent his army against the people who made an uprising during the Passover and killed at least 3,000 (possibly as many as 9,000) Jews in the streets. Joseph had good reason to be wary of the new king.

Herod Antipas had a milder temperament and Nazareth was a nondescript place. God led Joseph back to his hometown where Jesus would grow up in the safety of obscurity.

When Jesus began his ministry in Jerusalem, the people learned that He was from Nazareth. He was called a Nazarene. This means that Nazareth is His home town. This should be distinguished from a Nazarite who took a vow and did not cut his hair. We have no record of Jesus taking this vow. Therefore, the depictions of Jesus with long hair are inaccurate.

In fact, we do not have much Biblical record of the youth of Jesus in Nazareth.

And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. - Luke 2:40

There are a lot of spurious writings about the childhood of Jesus but none of them are the word of God. We may be intrigued by these stories, but rest assured, God has given us everything we need to know about Jesus in the Bible.

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Tags: egypt, family, harmony_of_the_gospels, herod, jesus, joseph, mary, matthew, nazarene, nazareth

Welcome

Brentwood Hills Primitive Baptist Church is a community of believers working together to transform our lives to the image of Jesus Christ. We believe it is our duty and privilege to live the gospel of the doctrines of grace in such a way as to edify the families within our church and other children of God in our community. Through regular worship based on strong Biblical principles, fellowship, admonishment, and outreach, we glory in the grace of the sovereign God working in our lives thereby showing the Spirit of God in the world.

Brentwood Hills was organized in 1906 in Fort Worth, Texas as Laodicea Primitive Baptist Church. You can find much of the history of the church, as well as other churches here: Primitive Baptist History Database

We identify ourselves as an old-line Primitive Baptist church. If you read our Articles of Faith, you’ll see that we hold to such doctrines as the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. We recognize the King James Version (KJV) as the only English translation worthy of being called the Bible. We believe in salvation solely by the grace of a sovereign God. We believe that Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to the earth to do the will of His Father, which was to deliver from the sentence of death all those the Father gave Him before the world began. We believe that Jesus fully satisfied the Father by atoning for all the sins of all His people. In time, we believe the Holy Spirit comes to each person that belongs to Jesus and regenerates them. Then (and only then) can anyone have faith, which is a fruit of the Spirit, by which you are able to believe the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you ever hear the gospel, or believe it if you did hear it, or obey it if you did believe it, rest assured that Jesus will remain forever faithful to you because, if He died for you, He will never deny that you belong to Him.

We believe that everyone for whom Christ died will without fail be raised again from the dead to a glorified life. Even if we are alive when He returns to raise the dead, we shall be changed to a glorified life. All the Redeemed will meet the Lord in the air. Then He will take us to Heaven and there we shall forever be with the Lord. The wicked will be raised at the same time as the righteous, but the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment along with Satan and his angels. Until that glorious day when Christ returns to raise the dead, He has provided a place for His people to find rest for their souls. This place is the Church. Jesus Christ set-up His church on this earth before His death on the Cross. The church is there for those of His people who have come to believe that God saved them by His Son, Jesus Christ. To believe that Christ “paid it all” gives believers the strongest motivation to serve Him. Once enlightened to this glorious truth, then the child of God should feel an obligation to become and remain an active member of the His church. To serve the Lord in His church makes for one of the great blessings to experience this side of Heaven. It fulfills you to serve in His church and it gives your life purpose and meaning.