Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 19, 2009
Then there are the thorns which Jesus says are the wealth and cares of the world. Providing for your family, working, spending, the economy, getting more stuff, getting the stuff paid for and so on are all part of the tension of living in this world while being a proper steward of our blessings.
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 19, 2009
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SOIL AND SPIRITUAL SEASONS
Jesus says these people resemble the soil next to the path which in Palestine could look like decent soil but only an inch deep. Because the soil has settled there maybe blown by the wind or pushed there by the run off from the rain, it can be very fertile.
People are
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 27, 2009
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A pastor name Richard Wurmbrand was imprisoned in Communist Romania for being a Christian. He gave this account:
“Hungry, beaten, and rugged, we had forgotten theology and the Bible. We had forgotten the ‘truths about the Truth,’ therefore we lived in ‘the Truth.’ We could not think anymore. In our
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Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 27, 2009
In a letter that was smuggled secretly out of a country full of Christian persecution said, “We don’t pray to be better Christians, but that we may be the only kind of Christians God means us to be: Christlike
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 27, 2009
HONOR OF DEATH
I have had the privilege to be with several people and their families when they have breathed their last breath. It is an incredible privilege to be present for those who make the transition into God’s kingdom.
I also count it a privilege and honor to visit with people and their
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Contributed by Mark Armstrong on Jun 2, 2009
A FEW WORDS
Imagine going into a bank, innocently filling out a withdrawal slip, and within minutes being arrested by the police. When Ron Schatz filled out a withdrawal slip in an American bank, he had no idea that handcuffs would soon be placed upon him. It took a while to straighten out the
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Presbyterian/Reformed
Contributed by Mark Armstrong on Jun 2, 2009
The apostle’s teaching is that life for the non-Christian is a living death. He is spiritually dead […] There is no stronger term than ‘death’. How categorical he is! You cannot say anything beyond saying that a man is dead. It is not ‘almost dead’, he is actually dead; it is not desperately ‘ill’,
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Contributed by Mark Armstrong on Jun 2, 2009
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‘In the face of disappointed world betrayal, a world in which all fixed points have proven illusory, a world in which we are anchorless and adrift. Christ is the foundation, the origin, the way, the truth, the life. In the face of a culture of death, a world of killing fields, a world of the
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Presbyterian/Reformed
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 2, 2009
I’ve been reading a very powerful book, Tortured for Christ, which is a testimony from a follower of Jesus who suffered immensely in Romania after the communist takeover. Originally published 30 years ago, it is still very powerful. Richard Wurmbrand was a faithful servant of Christ in the
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 2, 2009
Evil is still at work. Not all actions are of God. People often use “open door” theology to try to discern God’s will. We are presented with a choice and sometimes wait to see if one door closes. A new job opens up and we apply believing that if God wants me to have it then he will open up that
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 2, 2009
Now the picture Jesus paints is of an enemy sowing some weeds. The plant most think is commonly called darnel or cockle earning the name “false wheat” as it looks so much like wheat especially in the early stages. It is common in Syria and Israel. The problem is that by the time it is developed
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Contributed by Mark Armstrong on Jun 2, 2009
WITHSTANDING THE WINDS
When a house is well-constructed it weathers the storm. A friend of mine owns a house on the northern beaches that simply became run down with age. Its on a headland, exposed to all the elements, especially salt spray and strong winds. When Jim rebuilt the house a couple of
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Presbyterian/Reformed
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 8, 2009
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In communist Romania there was a very young man named Matchevici who had been put into prison because of his faith at the age of 18. Because of the tortures, he was very sick with tuberculosis. Somehow his family found out that he was sick and sent him a hundred bottle so streptomycin, which could
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 8, 2009
Does God calls everybody to sacrifice greatly to follow Jesus? I believe that God does and that we often rationalize in order to justify our choices. You might not see it that way. But I can share with you our experience and I do this not to boast because if I boast it is in the Lord and what Jesus
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 8, 2009
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Roy Whetstine was a rock collector whose two sons each had given him five dollars to buy a rock for them at a rock show. One table had a Tupperware container with a large potato-sized rock surrounded by a lot of agates. The sign read: “Any stone $15.” Roy picked up the big rock and asked, “You want
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Contributed by Mark Armstrong on Jun 10, 2009
SUFFERING=SERVICE
Roger Staubach is an American football player. He was once asked when injured, "How do you keep on keeping on if you’re playing professional football"? Roger said something important, "If you’re not playing hurt, you’re not playing football."
Paul expresses a similar
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Presbyterian/Reformed
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 16, 2009
I want to conclude with a clip. This movie is the story of a POW camp that was forced to build an important and strategic bridge. In this scene, one man unexpectedly decides to intervene on behalf of another. He does it out of his convictions and the love of God in him.
[Show clip: To End All Wars
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 16, 2009
The amazing thing is that when we are broken before God, Jesus takes the broken pieces of our lives and unexpectedly transforms what many people in the world might cast out as trash and creates a thing of beauty that allows his light to shine through. This is called a
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Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jun 23, 2009
Note the contrast between fleeing and pursuing. It is not enough to just stop doing things or at least stop the frequency of those things that do not honor God. Sometimes it is easy to think, “I just do it once in while. What’s the harm?” The problem is that people really do see what you’re saying.
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