Hi Brian!

It was so good to see you all this weekend! The girls are growing up so fast! We are so looking forward to seeing your new home! The word for this week is "strong". We'll be looking at only one of the Greek words translated strong in the New Testament. It's found in these three verses:

Luke 1:80 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel. KJV

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

1 Corinthians 16:13 Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. KJV

These are all the Greek word "krataioo". Strong's Concordance says: to empower, to increase in vigor. Thayer's Greek Lexicon says: to strengthen. The Dictionary definition for strong says this: Having or marked by great physical power. Having moral or intellectual power. Having great resources as of wealth or talent. Effective or efficient in specified areas. Extreme, intense. Ardent, zealous. All of these are great assets to possess and to operate in. In the first two verses we are reading about JESUS and how He grew to be strong, as a man and not as God. He was raised as any other Jewish child, especially a boy, would have been. They began training in the Scriptures at a very young age. Here is an excerpt from a site on this subject:

The people of Galilee were the most religious Jews in the world in the time of Jesus. This is quite contrary to the common view that the Galileans were simple, uneducated peasants from an isolated area. This perspective is probably due to the comments made in the Bible, which appear to belittle people from this area. At the Shavuoth feast in the book of Acts for example, the people seem amazed that the Galileans were capable of speaking in other languages. But this is certainly a bias against Galileans by the people of Judea and other countries due to the very strong and passionate religious commitments of the people of Galilee. Besides, the Galileans had more interaction with the world living on the "way of the sea" (the trade route, see Matthew 4:15) than the Jews of Jerusalem who were more isolated in the mountains. The Galilean people were actually more educated in the Bible and its application than most Jews. More famous Jewish teachers come from Galilee than anywhere else in the world. They were known for their great reverence for Scripture and the passionate desire to be faithful to it. This translated into vibrant religious communities, devoted to strong families, their country, whose synagogues echoed the debate and discussions about keeping the Torah. They resisted the pagan influences of Hellenism far more than did their Judean counterparts. When the great revolt against the pagan Romans and their collaborators (66-74 AD) finally occurred, it began among the Galileans.

Jesus was born, grew up, and spent his ministry among people who knew Scripture by memory, who debated its application with enthusiasm, and who loved God with all their hearts, all their souls and all their might (Deuteronomy 6:5). God prepared this environment carefully so that Jesus would have exactly the context he needed to present his message of Malchut Shemayim. "The kingdom of heaven" and his followers would understand and join his new movement. He fit his world perfectly. Understanding this helps to understand the great faith and courage of his followers who left Galilee and went to the whole world to bring the good news. Their courage, their message, the methods they used, and their complete devotion to God and his Word were born in the religious communities in the Galilee

So JESUS, growing up in this environment, would have become 'strong' in every area of life, progressively, step by step. In 1 Corinthians, we, as born again believers, are encouraged to continue to grow in this strength and ability in every area, and we have more tools to do so with the entire New Testament revelation to glean from and to stand on! This is a never ending process of continual growth and development, as long as WE choose to do so! With Holy Spirit as our personal Teacher, the Word of God can come alive for us and become clearer than ever so that we, too can "wax strong" in every area! And then WE can pass on what we have learned to children and grandchildren, giving them a head start on their own growth and development. What an advantage that THEY now have! And THAT was God's great plan all along! GOD is GOOD! Here is Hillsong UNITED with "Who You Say I Am":

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!