29 Comments
  1. A Jewish man sent His son to Israel to learn more about the Jewish culture. His son comes back a Christian.

    The man goes to His friend Irving. What is going on? I sent my son to Israel and he comes back a Christian. Irving said I sent my son to Israel and he came back a Christian too. The men decided to seek out a Rabbi’s advice by telling their situation.

    The Rabbi said I sent my son to Israel and he came back a Christian also. What is going on with these young folks? Lets pray to the Lord.

    Then a voice came down from Heaven and said….

    I sent my Son to Israel too!!!

  2. To rest in the finished work of Christ will require us to trust in his work, his suffering
    (the cross) for atonement of sin, and to allow him to work in our lives and in the lives of others. (Michael Row
    The Boat A-Shore) We have to let him do the rowing as it’s his boat. Yet I believe he will raise up intercessors to go out against evil done to others while they were on their way to Zion. I believe they will go out against the thugs, do justice and judgment, plead for the sake of righteousness, and allow the Lord to do his work.T
    They will need to keep his word while they do this and be as they are to be for him. (not necessarily as others think they should be)

  3. Mike Brown: (About Rest)
    But He says that if you find your life, you will lose it; if you lose it, you will find it for life eternal… so, if you ever don’t want to accept the Truth (because the Truth sanctifies…) for any reason along this “walk of faith” (unto sanctification)… through the “work of faith”… because of not wanting to work the works that God is implicating… I can be lost… like the branch that doesn’t abide in the Vine (“if you abide in ME, and MY [Words/Truths] abide in you…”).

  4. “To rest in the finished work of Christ” is to truly and deeply appreciate what Jesus did for us on the cross. To trust that it is finished. To one day look forward to living with the Lord forever. To rest in that assurance. To rest in that promise. To rest in that hope. Not to worry, not to stress but to rejoice that Heaven is our home. That we will one day see the Lord face to face.

    Wow! What a day that will be. What a day!!!!

  5. Dr. Brown, I was talking with some Messianic Jews who said that the New Testament wasn’t written in Greek but in Aramaic (among other things they were saying). I LOVE Jews, but I will not turn a blind eye to their heretical teachings – they said that Jesus is not God, etc., such nonsense. Be that as it may, I just needed to ask whether there was any merit to their assertion that the N.T. was written in Aramaic, instead of Greek.

    I remember in the N.T., the “Messianic Jews” caused many to stumble with “false doctrines” “of demons” 1 Tim., Galatians, Colossians, etc.,

  6. Blessings Bob!!!

    Daniel…what you said about “Messianic Jews”. Anyone correct me if I’m wrong but, I always thought a Messianic Jew was a Completed Jew. One who believed Jesus is the Messiah. Folks like Dr Brown and Sid Roth, aren’t they considered to be Messianic Jews?

  7. Yes, Debbie; I don’t mean people like them — that is the point: people cannot say, “because I am Messianic Jewish, I am the ultimate in source of truth information, and everything I say is solid gold, and I smell like roses all the time.”

  8. I think that the teaching that salvation is a ‘free gift’ is a false doctrine. If I am required to lift a finger, or put forth a *single breath of effort, in order to be ultimately saved (a.k.a. ‘overcome’), doesn’t that mean that salvation is NOT a gift?
    -Faith is compared to a *’FIGHT’.
    The Jews were ‘given’ Canaan as a ‘gift’ of ‘Promise’ – is it not comparable to the ‘gift’ of the ‘promise’ of eternal life, today (for Christians)?
    But it was NOT given to them, and it was NOT free at all; they had to *’FIGHT’ to enter. This is not a gift at all; it is something else that I don’t know what to call – like, a ‘trial gift’, or something: if you do what I like, you can have the gift; if you do what I don’t like, I kick you out of the gift. That isn’t a gift – at least not according to my definition of a gift.

    Joshua 18:3
    “So Joshua said to the people of Israel, “How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?”

    -Faith is compared to a “harvest” that comes to a ‘hard-working farmer’.
    A ‘hard-working’ farmer is WORKING… how is it a gift, then? Farmers work hard, till the ground, sow seed, water the ground, etc., etc., etc., so HOW is it a gift??

    -Jesus, Himself, says that faith is a ‘work’.
    This is the WORK of God – is it a gift, then? If there is an OUNCE of effort that I need to put forth, it is NO LONGER A GIFT.

    *During typing this, I understood something, that could POSSIBLY be true… the ‘Promise’ was the Spirit; the Spirit is the Life of God – so, to receive eternal life, I need to ‘stay in the Spirit’… and the thing I need to do in order to stay in His Eternal Life/*Spirit, is submit to Him my *spirit — through the work of faith. It is necessary for my faith to obey His Spirit’s indication of what is true. The Spirit/Eternal Life was received by believing a Word that was preached to the hearer (by the Witness/SPIRIT; not by man’s volition, though the man may be there preaching, it is not of his own volition, but the Spirit had to have sent him); then, we must keep believing certain Words that are OF the Spirit in order to progress in the Spirit (‘The anointing teaches you all things…’).
    ‘In HIM was life…’
    ‘…and this is the Testimony of God: that He has given us eternal life, and the life is IN HIS SON’

    I am not sure that I understand anymore: WHAT words am I supposed to believe? Words from the Spirit?
    That is difficult.
    Basically, it IS by works, because when you BELIEVE someone, you are ‘WILLING’ to work according to the pattern of what they are saying is true – if the willingness is not present, that, itself, is disobedience; if the willingness is there, then the working must follow:
    ‘…work out your salvation with fear and trembling, knowing that it is GOD who is at work in you both to WILL and to DO for His good pleasure.’

    On one hand, there is the idolatry of pleasing my flesh, my eyes, and my soul’s desires; on the other hand, there is the correct service done to God that God is at work in me to cause to exist, and then I must WORK ACCORDINGLY.
    Yakov worked for Rachel, but the years passed like days *because of his love for her.
    John says that whoever loves God works, but it doesn’t seem like work.

    So, this says that salvation is NOT a gift, but requires WORK – even if it is not ***considered work, because of love; still, work is EXPECTED. I guess I was mixed up; I thought that salvation was a gift, and now that I see it is NOT a gift, but works are EXPECTED, I can change my tune…

  9. ‘Free gift’ — the catch is ‘BY FAITH’. The ticket I need to give the guy at the turnstile is ‘faith’, and then I can enter grace — and the salvific work of grace, which is called ‘salvation’.

    Do you REALLY believe? Do you even HAVE that ticket stub? Not ‘know’, but are you ACTIVELY WORKING ‘AS IF IT WERE TRUE’?

  10. Daniel,

    Post 11 was fun. How about this. YHWH adopts us. It is His generosity, love and mercy that gets us into His family, not our works or good deeds. We are offered sonship. We can accept or reject the kind offer. Now that we are sons, we learn the rules of the family. YHWH teaches and chastens us so that we will grow up properly. We do not want to remain children or disobedient children, if we love Him. Walking in His Spirit causes us to fulfill his word.

    We also have an inheritance that is also a gift from YHWH. We can despise our birthright, so to speak, or show our gratefulness by loving obedience. We can learn the family/kingdom rules and keep them or we can go our own rebellious way. When it comes time for the inheritance we may get left out of the will, so to speak. As long as we are alive there is opportunity to turn back to YHWH, if we have neglected His instructions, and receive our inheritance. Here are some key verses:

    1 John 3
    2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
    3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
    4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
    5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
    6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
    7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
    8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
    9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
    10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

    Ephesians 5
    1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
    2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
    3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;
    4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.
    5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
    6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
    7 Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

    Hebrews 12
    4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.
    5 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
    6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
    7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
    8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
    9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
    10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
    11 Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
    12 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
    13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
    14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
    15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
    16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
    17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

    Romans 8
    4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
    5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
    6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
    7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

    So we can fulfill YHWH’s word if we renew and subject our minds to His Torah/instructions/law. We cannot earn our salvation or our inheritance, but we can make our calling and election sure by working out our salvation. We are supposed to get in the yoke with Y’Shua, which is easy, not stand back and watch all the work get done. We need to cooperate with His Spirit by learning and doing His commandments. We will be allowed into the holy city and partake of the tree of life if we endure until the end.

    Matthew 10
    22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

    James 1
    12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

    2 Peter 1
    3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
    4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
    5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
    6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
    7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
    8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
    9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
    10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

    Though YHWH has given us all things that pertain to live and godliness, we need to cherish these gifts and put them to good use.

    Hebrews 2
    1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.
    2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;
    3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

    Revelation 14
    12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

    Revelation 22
    11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
    12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
    13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
    14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

    Shalom

  11. Daniel you are a deep thinker. You are making my brain hurt. 🙂 I see the honesty and sincerity in your questions.

    Here is what the Lord just gave me to allow you to see things clearer.

    Take a person who goes scuba diving. They have to wear this wet suit. But if you never wore a wet suit before you are going to feel uncomfortable, might complain because it feels weird on you. Your not use to wearing it and you just want to remove it, take it off. You might care what others think about you when they see you wearing it. However, you know you won’t be able to scuba dive w/o wearing one. So, you put the uncomfortable feeling of wearing the wet suit aside. You are now diving in the water looking at the world of the fish. You are so amazed, so full of joy, your like “WOW”, your having a “my, my, my” moment. Your wet suit doesn’t bother you anymore. You have adjusted to wearing it. Your focus isn’t on it anymore. Its on the better things that is being shown to you. Your sorrows have turned to joy.

    Well, when we become born again we need to get adjusted to wearing the “wet suit” of Christ. All the complaining is your old self, your sinful nature opposing the things of God making changes in your life. Like John the baptist said…We need to decrease for the Lord can increase in us. All the works you start doing doesn’t become work anymore, it becomes a way of life for you. Because it is Christ working through you to do them, not the old you. But the new born again you. That results in peace, joy and love.

    Jesus Christ does all the work in you, you just have to allow Him to do it. Don’t fight Him. Trust Him.
    John 15:5
    “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

    Just like the Lord did all the work for Joshua and the people going to the Promise Land. The walls of Jericho came tumbling down. All they had to do was trust in the Lord and be obedient to Him.

    I truly hope this post made sense to you.

  12. Isaiah 57
    20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.

    There is no rest for the wicked, but the righteous can rest in YHWH’s salvation. The rest is in their minds and hearts. This rest/peace/trust produces good works that YHWH had delineated previously.

    Ephesians 2
    10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

    Failure to do the word is failure to enter into rest/trust in YHWH.

    Hebrews 3
    6 but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.
    7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you will hear His voice,
    8 Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, In the day of trial in the wilderness,
    9 Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me, And saw My works forty years.
    10 Therefore I was angry with that generation, And said, ‘They always go astray in their heart, And they have not known My ways.’
    11 So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest.’”
    12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;
    13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
    14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end,
    15 while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
    16 For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses?
    17 Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness?
    18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey?
    19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.
    1 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.
    2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.

    As can be seen in the above verses, unbelief and disobedience are part and parcel to each other. Real rest works. Real works are rest to the soul.

    Matthew 11
    29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

    Y’Shua was the Torah/word of YHWH made flesh. He obeyed every last detail. Was it a burden to Him or a joy to be pleasing to His father? Without the additions and traditions of man, the Torah is rest.

    Jeremiah 6
    16 Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.

    1 John 5
    1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.
    2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
    3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

    Shalom

  13. I think everyone is still missing the point that salvation is NOT a gift at all! It is a gift BY FAITH – and because the ability to HAVE FAITH is a GIFT, in ITSELF, in THAT sense, GRACE is a GIFT.

    However, sin can make you get a hard heart, and ‘not believe’ the Truth of God’s love that you don’t deserve.

    An easy example is a homosexual who doesn’t want to stop sinning, so he will not believe homosexuality is a sin. This is a gross, superficial example; BUT it is like any other sin that causes unbelief. Unbelief is simply unwillingness to work ‘as if’, or ‘accordingly’.

    Even desires must be worked for. Some people say ‘I don’t work, because I do what I love’ – that doesn’t mean they don’t work; that just means they love to fulfill that desire – what ever it is. ‘Wherever sin was great, grace was even greater.’ (that is, at least, ‘wherever sin is realized owned up to and admitted’)

    Yakov worked for Rachel; we must work for Christ; Yakov (James) said the same thing.
    _______________________
    BUT does this mean… since man is a 1)physical body, and 2) a spiritual body (and my soul works by either, which ever it ‘notices’)… that *in the same way that I am not saved by my physical body’s ‘works’, I am not saved by those ‘works’ that pertain to the spiritual body — ‘faith’? “…believes with the HEART, unto justification…” (pretty sure HEART and SPIRIT are the same, especially since the electromagnetic field of the body is centered in the HEART, and 5,000 times stronger there than in the head — and Daniel said that the electromagnetic conductivity was strongest in the UPPER BODY [SILVER is the most conductive of all those metals] part of the statue [representing all the Mediterranean Empires that would exist in history] which is where the HEART is [and that the feet are made of iron and clay, which is probably nearly non-conducive to electricity — and if electricity is comparable to spirit, then it means that (because Job said that man is given SPIRIT in order to UNDERSTAND), then the Scripture that says ‘they are children of no UNDERSTANDING; therefore, i will haven no mercy on them’ goes together with the fact that in the Empire of the feet of iron and clay is the time of JUDGMENT [no mercy])?

    That the believing with the HEART is NOT my job, EITHER? That I must give the glory to God by letting His Spirit rouse my faith – just as lemon pie rouses my desire to eat?? It is not a work if it is something you LOVE… but, then again, even something that you love, because you are looking to the reward, you DO work for, even though you do not CONSIDER it to be work, because of the enjoyment you are looking forward to… “…who endured the Cross for the joy set before Him”…

    I am a little confused.

  14. Joshua 1: 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

  15. Dude, Mike Brown spoke a word to me that time he was giving a sermon recently (that was uploaded), when he said, “Faith isn’t like, “GRRRRRR GRRRRRRR” — What are you doing? “I’m TRYING to believe! … It doesn’t work like that… I added that… for those listening.” LOL! Cause I was doing that EXACT THING! LOL !!

  16. Why do guys call girls dude? Isn’t a dude a guy? or is “dude” just a young person expression? Huh, dude? LOL

  17. It was a general expression sent into the air… sort of like, ‘whosoever’ ? LOL!!! I don’t know, I don’t really say it that much; I am ashamed for saying dude now… but isnt’ that nuts? lol! He called me out over a downloaded sermon! HAHA — no God called me out through him

  18. Don’t be ashamed, I was just teasing you. The Lord is Awesome. I believed He did speak to you through him.

  19. If it is possible, Dr. Brown, please answer this question I posted — and I am sorry if I have filled your comment section with stuff… but I am really striving to understand this… I can’t just “try harder” if I don’t even understand… like playing baseball with a broken leg…

  20. “I think everyone is still missing the point that salvation is NOT a gift at all!” – Daniel

    I don’t believe salvation is a free gift either, otherwise everyone would have it. There are requirements to be met, but Jesus says they are very much doable and even easy when your attitude is right, I reckon. We can understand salvation as a gift because we are given more than we could ever deserve or earn. We could never really earn salvation by our own works, because we wouldn’t have the time in the day nor the dedication or ability. I do believe that requirements must be met for us to be saved…many Christians insist they don’t have to work and I believe that is due to a free-loading spirit.

    The harvest of a farmer is still a gift, in some way, he is getting more than he physically produced himself. The earth/sun did most the work…he just helped setup and maintain the right conditions. The farmer is thankful because he recieves the benefit of all this work – most of which was totally out of his hands and control. I don’t know if this helps.

  21. God knows everything I need before I ask. He also knows everything I need salvation from. Whenever I find that I have fallen, my only salvation is the work of Christ, his shed blood, God’s offering for my sin. It’s then that I realize that my salvation is a gift, a gift of God’s grace.

    And yes, it does come through faith which also is a gift of God.

    It’s God’s grace that lets me know when I’ve fallen short. It’s his grace that keeps me from a lot of falling. It’s his grace that has given me other desires. It’s his grace that has given me hope. It’s his grace that has given me new life in Christ.

    I believe salvation is a gift. We decide to receive it and I trust the good sense to do so is also a gift of God’s grace.

    I’ve been saved so many times and each time it is a gift of God’s grace.

    In the beginning when God made man in his image, his work was finished. (Genesis 1-2:1) It seems to me that God speaks in many ways. He tells us things by leading us in his word. Some of the things of the past tell us about the future.

    I trust we will be made in the image of God by the work of Christ, that we will conform to the image of Christ by God working in us through Jesus.

    When Eve was tempted by the origional sin in the garden, I wondered if she could have come up with something origional herself, like “Thou shalt not kill., or Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.”

    It seems to me that Satan was guilty of both those faults.

    I became aware today of a song today that I’m convinced isn’t quite right. (post 3) I’m not sure exactly why, but am convinced it’s just a bit off. I suspect a few things. God teaches us in many ways.

  22. Since God works in us the WILLINGNESS to do, ONLY the lazy slave gets in trouble —

    “The desire of the sluggard slays him.”

    The sluggard desired Jesus, but was too lazy to obtain Him, so He slays the sluggard.

  23. Those that are in bondage to sin are slaves to it. I believe it does take some effort to resist
    the will of a demanding master to gain one’s freedom. The will to do the will of God is present with him whose delight is the will of God.
    (Romans 7)

    Had the Lord Jesus not taken us out of such death as sin is, we would still be in bondage to it.

    It seems to me that prior to that, our only hope was that we were given by God’s grace, a desire to like what is right.

    I think also that a desire for what is right must be stronger than evil desire in order to get free and live free.

    I believe God wants us to have godly desires. I trust he wants us to want what he wants. If it’s his will for us to have what he wants us to have,
    we may ask for it with confidence. (I John 5:14)

    To those who have received Christ, such works of God are available to them. One of his great works is to direct our heart by the holy spirit.

    I remember hearing of how a coach once told one of his pole vaulters, “If you get your heart over the bar, the rest of you will follow.”

    I John 4:4

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