In the Old Testament God wanted to be Israel’s king, but in 1 Samuel 8:5-7 Israel rejected God as their king and said they wanted to have a king like all the other nations have. Centuries later, Pilate asks the Israelites, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. … Continue reading –>
They call me Simon the Pharisee. “Simon” means “hearing.” In accordance with my name, I heard the call of Jesus and became a disciple after He healed me of leprosy. Candidly, the physical disease symbolized the deeper spiritual disease from which Jesus also delivered me. I was guilty of clergy sexual abuse, a practice that … Continue reading –>
A family I know bought a huge home years ago, and their daughter invited her friends over for their first get-together at the new home. Unfortunately jealousy set it in with one of the daughter’s friends who made a comment about the home and her thinking she is “so rich.” The daughter was hurt because … Continue reading –>
Would Jesus hang out with homosexuals? Is there a way we can know?1 We know that Jesus associated with the outcasts of his day. Luke 15:1-2 is very clear that he not only associated with tax collectors and sinners, he ate with them. He went to their dinner parties (Matt 11: 19) to such an … Continue reading –>
History is full of the stories of great people who have had a monumental influence on the history of their church, their country or the world. But what about ordinary people – people like you and me? Most of us probably know at least intellectually that Christ would have died for just one sinner – … Continue reading –>
“And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity.” Acts 2:44-46 NLT As a … Continue reading –>
I was sitting at a funeral dinner with the grown children of a dear woman whose service I had just conducted. One of her sons was talking about adding a patio to the back of his house. Her daughter was talking about doing some work on her home. I thought to myself, “This mother has … Continue reading –>
Since this interesting question came up in our comments, I did a little research. And it leads me to conclude that the contemporaries of Christ were far more literate than we like to give them credit for. Now I’m not an expert in history or biblical languages, nor a mathematician, but I’m thinking that we … Continue reading –>
While flipping through the channels on my TV the other day, I ran across a “law and order” show in which a detective was saying how abusers always seek the trust of the person they want to abuse. I have heard similar things in pastor group meetings, and this has prompted me to share what … Continue reading –>
The Sabbath School lesson on discipling children reminded me of a post someone shared with me on Facebook that really hit home. The article, “Youth Groups Driving Christian Teens to Abandon Faith” mentions that many (not all) church youth groups help teens connect with each other, but fail to connect teens with the church or with God. When … Continue reading –>
