Note—This article is part of a series entitled “In Search of Church.” To go to the beginning of the series, click here.
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In our search for the church of the New Testament, we have returned to the beginning of the church to examine the foundation upon which it was built, and have discovered that it is Jesus, the Christ—He is the foundation. As the Christ, He has been given supreme authority so that He might …
Note—This article is part of a series entitled “In Search of Church.” To go to the beginning of the series, click here.
(Previous article)
It is the First Century, AD—at least that is what this time will come to be known as—and God’s people have been in a perpetual state of expectation for most of their existence.
For thousands of years, Abraham’s descendants have been waiting and watching—looking for the Promised One—the One Who will bring blessing into this …
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As we resume the story of the Rich Young Ruler, we recall that the main character came to Jesus with a strong confidence in man’s ability to merit eternal life. And we saw Jesus repudiate that very notion. If the young man wanted to find Life, he would have to completely abandon everything on which that confidence was founded, renouncing it all to follow Jesus. That was the path to eternal life.
Unfortunately, this young …
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As we have followed Jesus’ teaching and the training of the Twelve through the Gospels, we have seen Him emphasize this issue of dependence. Having taught the concept in the Sermon on the Mount, He sent the disciples out in pairs to proclaim the Kingdom, and to experience God’s daily provision for their personal needs. In feeding the multitudes, He stretched them further, putting them in positions where they had to trust Him, not …
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So, how seriously should we take Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount?
When He said not to worry about food, drink, or covering (Matthew 6:25, 31), was He speaking of worry as distinct from concern? Is it ok to be concerned about these things, as long as we are not worried?
When He said to seek His Kingdom instead of worrying about food, drink and clothing (Matthew 6:32-33), did He really expect us to …
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As we began to explore the issue of our dependence on God in the last article, we set out the notion that, as Christians, we tend to be ok with the idea of this dependence in theory, but practically manifest an ongoing desire to live independently of God. Perhaps this is most evident in the area of provision and protection. The fact that we see money as the most immediate path to provision and …
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In our pursuit of God’s pleasure, which is to say, our pursuit of His will, I have tried to make two important points these past two weeks. First, God’s will is not, at it’s core, about a list of predetermined decisions that we have to get right. It’s about representing Him and reflecting His character.
Second, God does not score us against some standardized scale of performance. He is not our Examiner, He is our …
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Seven months ago, we began a journey to understand what it means to love what God loves and hate what He hates. That journey has brought us to the discovery that God’s soul has no pleasure in those who pursue life according to their own agenda. While I doubt we have arrived at our final destination, the place we now find ourselves is surprising. Not so much in the description of those with whom …
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So, we have spent the last 11 weeks reviewing the The Story, to understand the background of the warning of Hebrews 10.
As the story unfolded, we found three key developments.
Life
When The Story began, we had Life. That is, our existence had meaning.
We had an identity. We were created to represent God – to bear His image. When you look at us, you were to see Him. We were somebody.
We also had significance. As His …
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So, if I get to go to heaven simply by trusting Jesus for forgiveness, and if this discipleship-thing is so demanding, why go to all the trouble? Sure, it might make me a “better person,” but I’d rather do my own thing. And, if we’re Christians, we’re all going to end up in the same place anyway. Yeah, a really committed Christian might get a few extra perks, but the difference is not really …
