When You Wonder: "Can Good Come From This?"

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When You Wonder: "Can Good Come From This?"

Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

John 1:46 ESV

Have you ever walked through a circumstance and asked, “What good can possibly come from this?”

Perhaps this question came when we endured a health crisis, familial discord, financial upheaval, or disappointment. We wondered how we would make it, when it would end, where God was, and how redemption could possibly take place. Sometimes even the people around us discounted us and assumed our defeat.

Nathanael initially responded to Jesus with this same doubt. In John 1, Philip, a new disciple, was excited to…

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If You've Ever Asked, "Where is Jesus?"

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If You've Ever Asked, "Where is Jesus?"

While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him.

Luke 24:15-16 ESV

Two men, Jesus’ disciples, are walking down a dirt road leading into the town of Emmaus. They witnessed the death of Jesus on the cross three days ago, and they just heard that His body has disappeared from the tomb where He was buried. The women told them an angel proclaimed Jesus had arisen from the dead, but they’re finding this news difficult to believe.

Heads hung low, and brokenhearted, they’re wondering how they could have gotten it so wrong. After all, when Jesus said He was the One they were waiting for––the One who came to set the captives free––they wholeheartedly believed Him. They’d sunk their hopes into His promise of a better life. But now, all those dreams have vanished, and they are filled with dismay.

Jesus begins to walk with them, matching their pace, and joins their conversation. “What are you talking about?” he asks. Despairingly, they stop and look….

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