DO WE WORSHIP A DEAD OR A LIVING GOD?
We enter into the divine discussion and interrupt the flow of the cosmic conversation only by the intercession of another. The work Jesus Christ engages in on a daily basis since his ascension is to intercede for his people in the courts of heaven.
Revelation 5 - Some notes
Today I want to share some observations from Revelation 5 (this week our suggested reading as a church is Revelation chapters 5 through 8). These notes may make more sense if you have your Bible out in front of you
The Hallmark of False Teaching in Christianity
One of the serious ancient threats to the church was false teaching. Amidst all the other very real threats to early Christians (such as persecution from Roman government officials, Jewish leaders, poverty, food shortages, geographically dispersed, racial tension, distinct cultural values, spiritual uncertainty and language differences) the propagation of misinformation was most grave.
Reading Revelation - 1:1-2
A single read through will "start the wheels" turning in our mind regarding Revelation as a book given to us by God, through Christ, to John. I'm not promising to write comments on each verse, or each chapter. But today, as we get started reading Revelation, here are some comments to share with you that I'll share with my family as we read Revelation 1 today.
5 Tips for Learning Hymns
There is something about singing hymns that is intimidating. Learning multiple verses to different hymns can be time consuming and difficult. How can we as parents lead family worship and teach our children hymns when we do not know them ourselves? One of the great things we get to do as parents is to grow closer to God through the discipling of our children. Lets check out some ways that we can learn hymns ourselves, and then teach them to our children.
Quick Thought - Representing God's Word Faithfully
The trademark ploy of the serpent was to twist God's word. A failure to faithfully represent God's Word as God intended has led to all of the evil that we presently now know, experience, and do. Had Adam and Eve faithfully recounted and proclaimed God's Word there would be no curse, no death, no broken relationships, no war, no famine, no disease, no evil or any of evil's byproducts.
Interpreting Revelation - Four Views: Historicist
This view sees Revelation as a preview of the entirety of history after the Incarnation of Christ. According to this approach events that occur throughout history have been previewed in Revelation. In this way there are parts of Revelation that are viewed by Historicist interpreters as having already taken place, and other parts that have not yet taken place. Steve Gregg provides some examples of the historicist approach:
Interpreting Revelation - Four Views: Idealist
The Idealist approach avoids any particular ties to specific events in the past, present, or future. If I was to suggest a meme to summarize the Idealist approach to Revelation, it would have to be from Pirates of the Caribbean since the Idealist interpretive framework looks for the grand lessons of Revelation rather than getting caught up in all the details. In this way the Idealist interpreter sees historical events (and future events) more like guidelines for interpretation rather than rules for interpreting Revelation.
Interpreting Revelation - Four Views: Preterist
Today we are taking a look at the interpretive opposite of the futurist view called the "Preterist" view. The word for this view comes from Latin word "praeter" which means "past". While the futurist view sees Revelation as mostly in the future, the preterist view sees Revelation as mostly in the past. While the futurist sees John's testimony as referring to signs and events that are in our future, preterist interpreters view John's prophecy as either symbolic retelling of events in John's past or prophetic forecasts of things which were in John's future, but our past.
10 Simple Hymns to Teach our Children
One of the problems I find with teaching hymns to young children is that the words are not repetitive. This is great for adults and older kids who can read but becomes more difficult with younger children. Below ,you can find hymns that are simple to learn and fun for your children.
Interpreting Revelation - Four Views: Futurist
The most popular view of Revelation in contemporary western Christianity is called the "Futurist view". For many of you reading this series the futurist view will be the only view you've ever heard of or considered. In which case much of this may sound familiar to you.
A Preface to Interpreting Revelation - Four Views
Because of the multiple approaches to interpreting Revelation that have been held by Christians throughout the centuries I've decided to give a bit of background on Revelation here for anyone interested in "going deeper". This week the next few posts will be detailing a few quotes describing different approaches to interpreting Revelation.
3 Mistakes Made When Reading Prophecy in the Bible
Beyond simply being a book with much interest, Revelation gives the Bible reader a chance to reflect on their own interpretive methods and habits. There is no book in the Bible which requires more self-awareness of what baggage, assumptions, and frameworks we bring to the text. Since we all have baggage, assumptions, and frameworks through which we view the Bible today I'm going to poke a bit (like a doctor or a parent, asking "where does it hurt?") at 3 mistakes which injure our ability to read a prophetic passage in scripture.
52 Hymns to Learn this Year
Here are 52 hymns for your family to sing during family worship. Our family sings one hymn a week, and then we listen to hymns while we are driving and working around the house to help us and our children learn even more. Chose to sing one or more a week to learn all 52 hymns in one year.
Knowing -> Obeying -> Growing
We cannot obey something that we have no knowledge about. We cannot grow in something if we have no devotion to it. First, a person must come to know. Second, a person then lives a life that is in accordance with that knowledge. Third, the more a person lives life in accordance with what they know, the more they grow in that new life. These three steps then become a cyclical pattern:
Revelation is a book about Triumph
In general, we need to remember that the Bible should inform our thinking about God's plan more than the news. When we read about tragedies in the world, we need to search the scriptures and seriously consider what the emphasis and messages written in the Bible convey.
Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done
This week in preparing to preach on 1 John 3:21-24 I've been led to consider two phrases in the Lord's Prayer: "your kingdom come" and "your will be done". Below are some of the resources and quotes that I've found helpful in considering these two phrases:
Some Notes on Colossians
Today I'm sharing some notes about Paul's letter to the Colossian church. You can read a little bit about the Colossian church and how they first came to hear the gospel of Jesus in Colossians 1:7-12. Colossae was a city in what today is Turkey. In writing to this church, the Apostle Paul along with his ministry team, had a great many instructions, and encouragements. Below are some of my notes in studying Colossians for a Bible Overview class I'm honored to teach.
Cowardice and Courage
The first passage details a moment of great cowardice. A moment in time when one of the followers of Jesus refused to be connected in any way to the recently arrested Christ. The second passage details a few months later when the same person who earlier refused any affiliation with Jesus, would not stop proclaiming Jesus even in the face of overwhelming pressure. In these two passages we see an experience of great cowardice and then an experience of great courage.