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THIS WEEK'S BLOG:

Cross of St. Peter

One of the strongest defenses of investigating any situation is making sure that we gather as many facts, witnesses, and information on the subject at hand. We don’t want to jump to any rash decisions or conclusions and find out, later, that we were wrong. The Bible has a very strong passage to support taking the time to gather facts to make a truth-filled decision. Proverbs 18:15 , “An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.” We cannot afford to jump to conclusions on unfounded rumors or quickly repeated gossip. I have witnessed one incident of such false information that has spread like a raging forest fire due to individuals not doing their homework on the subject matter. I am talking about some recent “observances” during the funeral of Pope Francis. During his funeral, several individuals noticed that there were “upside-down crosses” displayed in St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. Many took to social media in a wild frenzy to associa...
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LENT: Are You an Exception?

  Romans 5:8 “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” It is truly amazing to know that God didn’t first put us on a 30-day trial period to see if we could “handle being a Christian” before he would save us. I am glad He didn’t say, “I’ll forgive most of your sins except for these few particular ones."   What is even just as amazing is knowing that God sent his Son, Jesus, to us with the risk knowing there was a good chance that he would be rejected and not one, single person would accept his offer of salvation. It was quite a sacrifice. It is what we focus on during the season of LENT.   LENT comes from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning “Spring.” What happens in Spring? The Winter snows melt away, warmer temperatures, and the robins appear. But, most importantly, the earth comes back to life! Grass becomes green, trees bud and the leaves return, and flowers grow and bloom.   We, like Spring, want our spiritual lives to “come back to life” now and after we die. So...
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Make Disciples

The Great Commission found in Matthew 28:16-20 , is packed full of so many life-changing words that a pastor could write a few months-worth of sermons. It is really fascinating to me what is packed into most of the words Jesus said.   We know the word “go” in “Go and make disciples” in verse nineteen. The word “go” does not imply that we “sit down and plan out” a trip or meeting. The correct translation is that Jesus is telling us we live out the Great Commission “while we are going.”   There is no specific destination given for “where” we are to go. It is simply an issue of living in awareness that this applies to “everywhere” we are at the moment. As you go about your day to be attentive towards living like Jesus and speaking the life-giving words of Jesus.   We go about our day in privacy and out in public on the alert, and fully engaged and prepared to “…give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15).   Howev...
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Wealth in Context

There are hundreds, if not, thousands of video clips that circulate on social media on a daily basis. Some have an agenda while others are manipulated to force a narrative upon us. I have also found that some just speak for themselves. I came across one of those video clips.   I’ll keep it “anonymous” as to who this was because my point is context . I would normally just brush off such a video clip as this, but I couldn’t. The person involved took the Bible out of context and was “forcing a square peg into a round hole” to make it justify his lifestyle.   He was expressing his displeasure with people criticizing him for being very rich. He did not appreciate that people were voicing their displeasure at his owning a mansion and having a private jet to fly him around the world. This television preacher made no apologies for living an “above and beyond” lavish lifestyle. In fact, he claimed them as a blessing from God.   I would have just brushed it off at that point and m...
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Not Rejected

I think we could spend hours, if not days, in just the sixth chapter of John’s Gospel. If there is one thing that is made clear in this writing is that God is passionately pursuing us and bidding us to have a relationship with Him that is restored by His Son, Jesus.   There is one verse, in particular, that stands out to me. John 6:37 , “However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them.” Those that come to Jesus will never be rejected. If you come to Jesus, just as you are now, he will not turn you away. He gladly welcomes you to come to him.   It is not God’s design or plan that we live separated from Him. He makes the way for that relationship to happen. He initiated the plan. He paid the price. He gives freely. He gives us free-will to choose or reject that offer of reconciliation through Jesus, His Son.   God makes His intent clear:  Ezekiel 33:11 , “As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the ...
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Tetelestai!

Just before Jesus gives up His spirit on the cross, He utters a very powerful word. The word that He cries out is “ tetelestai” (tih-tellis-tie). When literally translated, this word means, “It is finished.” It can also refer to something completed or accomplished. The word occurs in  John 19:28  and 19:30 and these are the only two places in all of the New Testament where it is found. In the John19:28 passage, it is translated, “After this, when Jesus knew that all things were now  completed , in order that the scripture might be fulfilled, he said, ‘I thirst.’” Two verses later, he utters the word himself: “Then when he received the sour wine Jesus said, ‘ It is finished ,’ and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.”   Did you know that the word  tetelestai  was also written on business documents or receipts in New Testament times to show indicating that a bill had been paid in full? The Greek-English lexicon (by Moulton and Milligan) sa...
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Thanksgiving

  As we near the Thanksgiving holiday, I can’t help but think of David’s prayer of praise. We find that in the Old Testament.   1 Chronicles 29:10-19 , “David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, Lord, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.   Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.   Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.   Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.”   As we gather with friends and family around the table for our Thanksgiving meal, I pray that we will be reminded of the greatest Thanksgiving of all. However, I am not speaking of the holiday in November! ...
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