January 8, 2021
TURN YOUR INWARD WORRIES INTO UPWARD PRAYERS In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus discussed the sinful and wasteful human activity of worry. Clearly, worry is sinful because it is an expression of anxious doubting. And doubt is the opposite of faith. Three times in this sermon, Jesus said, “Do not worry.” Now, if He
January 7, 2021
DO YOU PRAY “MY WILL” OR “THY WILL” PRAYERS? That which is called the “Lord’s Prayer” might rightly be called the Lord’s teaching prayer or model prayer, for He gives it to us to teach us how to pray. Even the order of the prayer should be considered as we learn to pray. Notice He
January 4, 2021
HAVE YOU SEEN THE LIGHT? After Jesus’ baptism and 40 days in the wilderness, He didn’t return to Nazareth. Instead, He began His public ministry in a town on the Northern shore of the Sea of Galilee called, Capernaum. This was in fulfillment of the prophet Isaiah, who had prophesied that a “great light” would
November 1, 2020 | Matthew 22:37-40 |
Whenever God wants to get a work done, He lays hold of a people who are willing to rise up. In the Old Testament, it was Nehemiah and those returning from Babylonian exile who answered the call of God to Rise Up. Today, God is calling us! In Matthew 28:19, Jesus called us to make disciples. But what should they look like?
In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus said that the greatest commandment was to love God with all your heart and to love your neighbor as yourself. We believe that’s the kind of disciples He wants us to make–– disciples of Jesus who have a heart for God, for each other, and for our world.
February 12, 2020
DO YOU THINK YOURSELF INNOCENT OF CHRIST’S BLOOD? Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor over Judea, made a show of washing his hands and declaring himself “innocent” of Christ’s blood. Yet in reality, he was fully responsible as the ranking representative of Roman law. How strange that the one who condemned the Innocent One to death
February 11, 2020
THE SILENT SAVIOR WHOSE SACRIFICE SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS The Roman governor, Pontius Pilate marveled greatly at Jesus’s silence in the face of His accusers. Surely he had judged and condemned many a man, but never one like this. Who was this man that stood silent with such quiet dignity? Neither Pilate nor the
February 10, 2020
ARE YOU TRYING TO FOLLOW JESUS AT A DISTANCE? On the night when Jesus was arrested, Peter tried to blend in as one of the crowd, following Jesus at a distance. This, after following so close must’ve been unbearable for Peter. Yet, it only took a little distance before denial overtook him. For just as
February 9, 2020
DO YOU REMEMBER THE PLACE YOU FIRST FOLLOWED JESUS? Jesus said this to His disciples to encourage them. For He had already warned them that they would all stumble and scatter that very night. Yet He wanted them to look past His coming betrayal, crucifixion and death, and their own failure to stay with Him,
February 3, 2020
THE GREATEST REDEFINED Jesus not only taught, but modeled the art of servant leadership. He showed that true greatness was not about exalting oneself, but being humble enough to wash another’s feet. This is the Kingdom leadership model that turns the world upside down. The servant leader descends to greatness. By choosing to serve, the
January 28, 2020
WHAT IS THE CALCULUS OF FORGIVENESS? Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive a brother, maybe “seven times?”. Jesus answered, “Up to seventy times seven.” This was another way of saying that Peter should forgive as often as needed, without counting or calculus. To further help Peter understand, Jesus told a parable.