Paul describes this situation as “death-dealing sin.” He calls it “the dead-end abyss of separation from God.” The way they put in medieval times was to describe humanity -- listen to this: humanity was portrayed as a wingless bird, stuck in its alluring conditions, too heavy to fly. Does any
...read more
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
In a previous church I served, we had a young couple in our congregation whose names were Barry and Cindy, and both Barry and Cindy were blind. This was an impressive young couple who managed to live a normal life despite their disability. They maintained their own apartment, held down jobs,
...read more
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
Jesus changed all that. And I love the way he did it. Talk about detail! John tells us that Jesus “spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes.” Whenever I read these words, I think about another occasion when God did something remarkable with mud. In Genesis 2:7
...read more
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
Some years ago, I had the sheer joy of seeing the movie adaptation of Fulton Oursler’s novel, The Greatest Story Ever Told. I loved the way Max von Sydow brought the personality of Jesus to the screen; it was perhaps the most natural portrayal of our Lord that I’ve ever seen.
It was a long movie
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
While life is present, it is precious, but, for all its value, it is also fragile. If you take a moment to think about the animation of the human body, I can’t help but believe that you must be in awe. Take the simplest of operations. You are going to open your car door and get inside. You walk
...read more
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
If you have a moment some time, check out the Calvin window on the south side of the sanctuary. If you look near the bottom, we will see an engraving of Calvin’s crest: a flaming heart in an outstretched hand, extended upward to God. Calvin chose this symbol to declare the central core of his
...read more
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
Take special note of the chapel windows. Each window uses symbols to depict the life and destiny of a different apostle. You will see the three money bags that represent Matthew the tax collector. You will see two crossed fish to remind us of Andrew the fisherman who died a martyr's death on an
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
HOW'S BUSINESS?
Peter Drucker, as you probably know, is a management consultant without equal. He says in one of his many books that there are two questions that people in any organization ought to ask themselves -- whether it be a manufacturing plant, the sales division of a large
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
THE GREAT OMISSION
Dallas Willard is a professor at the University of Southern California's School of Philosophy. He is also a Christian lay person. And he writes books. Lots of books. One of his books is entitled The Great Omission. And what he does in that book is this: he shows how the church
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
Jesus compared two builders, one "a wise man," the other "a foolish man." Both these men built houses. One house endured the storm; the other house did not. And the emphasis that we must not overlook is this: that the storm pressed upon the wise man's house as fiercely as it did upon the house
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
The word “obedience” has its origin in the Latin audire, which means “to hear.” Obaudire is the term. As a point of further interest, the word “absurd” comes from a root which means to be deaf. The absurd
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
In his book, Metamorpha, Kyle Strobel tells about a friend of his whose name is Cassie. Cassie was a first-year seminary student whose view of God had never been challenged. Suddenly, she found herself in a setting in which it seemed to her that her image of God was being dismantled. It was as
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
Imagine how surprising Matthew’s life was to him. One day he’s sitting at the tax collector’s booth, busily engaged in taking whatever he can get from people. That night he’s got Jesus in his house, throwing a dance party. And the next day -- the very next day -- he’s in the house of the ruler of
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Presbyterian/Reformed
Contributed by Michael Bird on Jan 15, 2002
based on 4 ratings
| 2,185 views
Abraham Kuyper, put it this way:
“When Jesus looks at his universe from his exalted throne at the right hand of the Father, and he sees the great galaxies whirling in space, the planets and the people upon this planet, and all the minute details of life here including the details
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational
Contributed by Hal Seed on Jul 27, 2007
“The shepherd in his search for the sheep, and the woman in her search for the coin do not do anything out of the ordinary beyond what anyone in their place would do. But the actions the father takes in the third story are unique, marvelous, divine actions which have not been
...read more
Denomination:
Baptist
Contributed by Herman Abrahams on Mar 27, 2003
based on 5 ratings
| 1,744 views
David Brainerd was an American colonial missionary to the Indians who died at the age of twenty-nine. His diary reveals a young man intensely committed to God. Brainerd once said to Jonathan Edwards: “I do not go to heaven to be advanced but to give honor to God. It is no matter where I shall be
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Charismatic
based on 4 ratings
| 1,567 views
A few weeks back, a movie came out entitled, "The Hours." Though the underlying theme of homosexuality may surprise you, the critics declare the movie was thought provoking as it dealt with how individuals handle the stresses of life as each tick of the clock reminds each one how quickly time does
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational
based on 1 rating
| 3,916 views
You remember the singing group Milli Vanilli? They were a big sensation until someone exposed them as a fake because the guys were lip-synching instead of singing themselves.
I’d like to suggest that the lesson to be learned for us is instead of trying to lip-synch the Christian life, faking our
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational
based on 8 ratings
| 2,453 views
The donkey awakened, his mind still savoring the afterglow of the most exciting day of his life. Never before had he felt such a rush of pleasure and pride.
He walked into town and found a group of people by the well. “I’ll show myself to them,” he thought.
But they didn’t notice him. They went
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational