Stretching the Universe Stretching the Universe is a simple thought reflection from Job 9:8 about the source of the universal stretching is God. August 22, 2013 “He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.” (Job 9:8, HCSB) If there was a beginning point (oddly named the “Big Bang”) and the universe continues to stretch, then the Bible reveals that the Person who did the stretching is God. “He stretches the northern skies over empty... Read more
Faith Grade System August 20, 2013 “The law, then, was our guardian until Christ, so that we could be justified by faith. But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,” (Galatians 3:24–25, HCSB) The Law came to us via Moses to teach us as tutor or teacher about Christ. The Law was an instructor. It taught people that they could not ultimately obey all the law. The Law taught everyone that they needed a Savior.... Read more
The Danger of People-Pleasing Preaching The Danger of People-Pleasing Preaching is a simple thought reflection on leadership from 2 Timothy 4:3 about the danger of people-pleasing preaching. August 19, 2013 “because the time will come when people will not listen to the true teaching but will find many more teachers who please them by saying the things they want to hear.” (2 Timothy 4:3, NCV) What’s bad for leadership in the corporate world is even worse in the church. The... Read more
Luke 15:11-32 Welcome Home Philip Yancey shared this in Rumours of Another World, “Living in Colorado, I climb mountains. Colorado has 54 mountains rising above 14,000 ft and every summer I climb some of them. On a summer weekend in the mountains, I see casual hikers who have no idea what they are doing. In sandals, shorts, and T-shirts, carrying a single container of water, they start up a trail at mid-morning. They have no map, no compass, and no... Read more
2 Samuel 24:1- 25 Money and Debt Money can be a test, temptation, or a treasure. God made it a test (2 Samuel 24:1) Satan made it a temptation (1 Chronicles 21:1) David made it a treasure (2 Samuel 24:2-3) In essence, David was counting his wealth. He was counting all of the “things” he had. In the Old Testament, the size of an army and the size of a king’s population was a measure of his wealth and status.... Read more
Genesis 4:3-8 Being Responsible with Our Offerings I want to challenge you to think about how responsible we need to be with our offerings. The Bible speaks of an offering as an act of worship. An offering is something that is given by the worship to express love to God. The Bible describes it in a variety of ways. We can give of our POSSESSIONS: What we have We can give of our PRAISE: What we say We can give... Read more
Matthew 18:21-35 Forgiveness If you’ve ever gotten to a concert early, you’ve probably heard the musicians tuning their instruments. It isn’t a particularly pleasant sound, but we know it is necessary for the harmony to come later. Instruments slip out of tune so easily. So do relationships. Many times harmony is missing from our relationships because our hearts are out of tune. In his book, Untwisting Twisted Relationships, William Backus wrote, “Though we expect from our relationships the sweetest moments... Read more
Nahum 2:1-13 Our Responsibility Toward Evil We live in a world not that much different from Judah. We have encountered in recent history a set of attacks that were different than we have had in our past. Our world is full of evil. Now as you look at this text, it seems to just a recitation of a battle. Within this battle scene, God is seen as a victorious warrior. Some have criticized the book of Nahum as recording history... Read more
Nahum 1:8-2:2 Our Responsibility to Spiritual Growth In our continuing series on the book of Nahum, we want to learn from God’s word the importance of responsibility. Last week we looked at our responsibility toward God. This week, we will look at our responsibility to grow in our faith in God. In this section, we find the prophet Nahum speaking to two different groups of people: Judah and Nineveh. Notice that there are clear, and different instructions given to these... Read more
Nahum 1:1-7 Our Responsibility to God What does Nineveh have in common with major world powers today? God has blessed every nation with their strength. God grants his power to every nation that turn to Him. In the book of Jonah, a reluctant prophet comes and speaks a word of judgment. The people listened and God relented. Now, 150 years later, with the country at least two generations removed from that exciting event, Nineveh again faces judgment from God. What... Read more
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