THE BLOG
Topic
- Anxiety 2
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- Christian Living 178
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- Satan 1
- Scripture 3
Go or Stay?
This last Thursday morning, Kim and I, along with most of our family, attended our daughter Annie’s graduation from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. It was an emotional time for Mom and Dad to watch our last child walk across the stage to receive her diploma. We felt the joy of her four-year achievement mixed with the tears of seeing her ready to begin a new season of life as a young adult and face the rough and tough world where she wants to make a difference. And then, the president of GCU, Brian Mueller stepped up to the podium and challenged all the freshly-minted graduates to do what God has called us all to do: “Go” and not “stay.” His words not only inspired the graduates, but they motivated me as a parent, grandparent, and disciple of Jesus Christ.
He Is Risen!
He is risen! What an incredible weekend with our Church family!
We had a wonderful Good Friday service focused on the thief on the cross. We had over 100 kids participate in our “Flapjack Feast” and hear the story of the resurrection in our children’s ministry. And over 1000 people attended our Easter services hearing the gospel preached alongside a fantastic time of praise!
Think Deeply About the Cross
Take a moment and read through some very profound words about the incomparable cross work of Jesus Christ.
“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:18
“Come, and see the victories of the cross. Christ’s wounds are thy healings, His agonies thy repose, His conflicts thy conquests, His groans thy songs, His pains thine ease, His shame thy glory, His death thy life, His sufferings thy salvation.” Matthew Henry (1662–1714)
“There is no tribunal so magnificent, no throne so stately, no show of triumph so distinguished, no chariot so elevated, as is the cross on which Christ hath subdued death and the devil.” John Calvin (1509–1564)
Who Do We Boast In?
On Sunday, we sang, “I will not boast in anything–no gifts, no power, no wisdom. But I will boast in Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection.”
The gospel leaves us unable to boast about anything that we can do, but in awe of Jesus Christ so that all we can say is “praise God!”
In 1 Timothy 1:15–16, Paul said,
The “But” Effects
One of the things you do not want to miss when you read and study the Bible is how God uses various conjunctions in His communication to us (e.g., for, and, or, yet, therefore, now, then, so that, because, as, if, etc.).
Conjunctions are crucial for understanding Scripture and they reveal the relationships between ideas, clauses, and sentences. For example, the conjunction “and” connects ideas and clauses of equal importance (Gen. 1:1: “God created the heavens and the earth”), “for” explains or clarifies a preceding statement (Eph. 6:1: “Children, obey your parents I the Lord, for this is right”), and “since” indicates a reason or cause (Heb. 9:17: “a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive").
How Low & High in Your View?
In my message this past Sunday, I shared this thought: One of the problems we have in our theology is that it is not low enough or high enough. We don’t see how low we really are in regard to the pervasive nature of our sin and how much it has corrupted our mind, emotions, will, and body. But also, we don’t see how high our God really is as the only true and living One who is far beyond our total comprehension and perfectly holy, righteous, and just in all His ways.
Reluctant to Forgive
I thought the following was very helpful to reflect upon in light of Jesus’ words: “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions” (Matthew 6:14–15).
Dustin Benge (Managing Director of Unashamed Truth; Associate Professor of Spirituality and Historical Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) shared these insightful truths about why believers sometimes hesitate to forgive others.
Notable Quotes
I have always enjoyed quotes that convict, make you think, and inspire your life. Here are a few of my favorites:
