Where God can take a church

To end 2007, Perry Noble, preached on the great things God did for the Jews as they left Egypt (Exodus) and the great things God has done thru New Spring Church. The primary point of the message was that God is BIG and that God is capable of doing amazing things and did accomplish amazing things thru New Spring Church in 2007. However, Perry points out that it wasn’t all God’s doing. As Perry stated, “If it’s all God, then why isn’t every church accomplishing the same?” Perry goes on to state that it is “all God working thru people who believe God is as big as the Bible says He is and that God can do what the Bible says He can do.” All we have to do is to believe — then God will move.

Perry issues a challenge to the New Spring Church community that each one of us should take on as a challenge to our own church community.

• Intentional invitation — invite people to church
• Connect to community — cares for others in church community and contact them when they miss church
• Strategic service — since we were created to do good works, we are too valuable to God for us not to be involved in our church
• Generous giving – thru generous giving, the resources are available to care for others
• Passionate prayer — bond together thru prayer for the pastor and for the church and ask God to work thru us to see God do amazing things 

My prayer is that my church community will turn to God and ask him to do big things thru our church and to believe that he will.

Confronted by Rudy

I watched Rev. Rudy Rasmus’ sermon on Church of the Resurrection’s website today. He confronted my faith prior to beginning his talk when he pointed out that I was being judgemental. I let myself judge Rudy by his goatee. Fortunately for myself, I realized that I was wrong and willingly listened to his message.

During his message, Rudy claimed that millions are reporting that Jesus (and Paul and Peter) are walking amongst us. These reporters are claiming that by “worshiping” media stars, they have become our gods. I’m not sure that I “worship” a person, but I may be worshiping the Internet.

Speaking about Jesus’ miraculous healing of the man near the Bethzatha pool (John 5:1-15), Rudy associated the pool of water with truth — the Living Word. Rudy said that by letting the “crutches” of our lives keep us from getting into the Word, we couldn’t be healed. His message hit a nerve with me since I haven’t been very diligent in my Bible study lately.

Rudy pointed out that I can experience well-being right where I am, IF i recognize the power of God in Jesus. His challenge was to let go of our crutches and get up and move and to help others do the same. So, what is my crutch? Am Iwilling to let it go?

Lessons from Child Kings

Adam Hamilton’s sermon on “The Three Child-Kings” really touched me today. Having read about Joash, Manasseh and Josiah in the Old Testament, I wasn’t prepared for the spiritual applications contained in their story.

Like Joash, I fell away from God as a young adult. Even though I’ve returned, I will have to be careful to apply the lessons from his story to prevent falling away again by

• Keeping my faith in God and not in a particular person or church
• Go to church to love the Lord — no matter who is preaching
• Listen no matter what and try to learn one spiritual truth from sermon
• Enjoy having been in God’s presence just by being there
• Tune out negative comments / people so that they don’t detract from God and his message

Like Manesseh, I’m seeking God’s forgiveness for my sins. Hopefully, I can be like Manesseh and humble myself before God and receive his forgiveness (2 Chronicles 33:12-13). This story teaches that

• God is rich in mercy
• God welcomed me back
• God forgives no matter what I’ve done
• God is a God of Second Chances

As I walk in Faith, I hope that I can become like Josiah who worshipped the Lord all of his life. To remain in God’s light I will need to

• Boldly and couragesly live for God
• Listen for God’s Word
• Read and study God’s Word and apply it to  my life
• Recomit my life to Jesus Christ and God

Week 3: Way of Life

Follow along with Christ as he begins his ministry. Jesus’ first stop on his mission was the town of Capernaum. Here Jesus confronted the demonic world. Ezekial 28:11-17 gives a portrait of Satan, stating that he was “anointed as a guardian cherub.” As a guardian cherub, Satan was adorned with 9 of the stones found on the breastpiece of the high priest (Exodus 28:17-21).

When Jesus cast out the demons, he commanded them not to speak. Gill’s commentary (from eSword) states that Christ did not need their testimony and that he did not wish to be made known by them. Geneva’s commentary goes on to state that “Satan, who is a continual enemy of the truth, ought not to be heard, not even when he speaks truth.”

Peter, his brother Andrew, along with James and John were fishermen on the Sea of Galilee. The Sea of Galilee was filled with a wide variety of fish in great abundance. Because of the abundance of fish, fish became a staple of the local diet. The area attracted a larger and more varied population than other areas of Palestine. The article, “Cast Your Nets: Fishing at the Time of Christ,” describes the lifestyle of these men prior to being chosen as disciples of Christ. For an understanding of the affect of the weather on the sea, the Sea of Galilee webcam provides a live image of the sea.

Jesus’ healing of the leper was a clear sign to the Jews that he was doing something more miraculous than healing a disease — he was forgiving sins. For a better understanding of the correlation between leprosy and sin, read Gill’s commentary (eSword) where he describes the disease in great detail concluding:

“Between this disease and sin, there is a very great likeness. This disease is a very filthy one, and of a defiling nature, by the ceremonial law; under which it was considered rather as an uncleanness, than as a disease”

In the time of Christ a leper was not treated by a physician but by a priest. By curing the leper, Christ established his role as a priest, a high priest, and proved his Messiaship. The two birds offered by the leper at the temple for his cleansing are also symbolic of Christ. The killing of the first bird symbolizes Christ dying for our sins. The release of the second bird symbolizes Christ’s resurrection. (see Gill on eSword)

While teaching, Jesus again demonstrated that he had the power of the Lord God by forgiving sins, miraculously healing and discerning the thoughts of the Pharisees.

The Pharisees were teachers in the synagogues, religious examples in the eyes of the people and self-appointed guardians of the law and its proper observance. They considred the interpretations and regulations handed down by tradition to be virtually as authoritative as Scripture. (p. 1579 NIV Study Bible)

What the Pharisees viewed as blasphemy, others viewed as a demonstration of the divine power of Jesus.

As keepers of the law, the Pharisees believed Jesus was breaking the Sabbath law when he healed on the Sabbath. As a sign of the covenant between man and God, the Sabbath was to be a period of rest after finished works. By healing on the Sabbath, Christ demonstrated that the power of God present in grace did not allow misery to exist because it was the day of grace. In so doing, Jesus established himself as the Lord of the Sabbath.

That you may know that the Son of Mat has authority on earth to forgive sins.
Luke 5:24

Week 2: The Son of God

God is with us!

During week 2, Beth Moore takes us on a journey through the childhood of Christ, being raised in the Jewish faith and prepared for his ministry to the world.

This childhood journey began with his circumcision and presentation at the temple. The website Judaism 101 provides insight into the heritage of circumcision and redemption of the first born. See the Catholic Encyclopedia, for a more historical discussion of circumcision.

Being raised in a Jewish home, Joseph taught Jesus his trade, the trade of a carpenter. Raymond Exum has published a sermon on the role of carpentry in Jesus’ ministry: Jesus Christ, the Carpenter.

Before beginning his public ministry, Jesus went into the wilderness to pray and meditate on his mission. This was probably the wilderness near Bethany. For a video interpretation of the temptation of Christ, see the YouTube video “The Temptation of Jesus by the Devil in the Wilderness.” Please note that this video is an artists interpretation and not a strict representation of the scriptures. For an animated version of the Matthew text (4:1-11), see The Temptation of Jesus. Jesus described his time of temptation thus:

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has annointed me to preach good news to the poor. (Luke 4:1

Worship in Concert

I had a very enjoyable worship experience Friday evening as my husband and I attended a Phillips Craig & Dean concert in Omaha. They approached the evening as worship leaders — leading us in a songfest of praise and worship. As stated in Under the Radar, an interview with Christian Music Today, Randy Phillips describes their roll:

“For that two-hour window, we see ourselves as ministers who can bring people into the presence of God through music and help them put their burdens aside.”

From the crowd in attendance, it was obvious that their music reaches the young and old alike.

The concert was hosted in the Bellevue Christian Center. Although we had never been there before, it was easy to find and their staff of volunteers was very helpful.

Week 1: Word Made Flesh

 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah
though you are small among the
clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel
whose origins are from of old
from ancient times.
Micah 5:2

Listed below are some on-line resources to help visualize the Biblical times and events leading up to the birth of Christ.

• Map of 1st Century Israel
• Historic Sites- index of web links to various Biblical places that discusses the geography of the region and the archaeological finds
• Todd Agnew discussing his song Magnificat on YouTube 
• Heaven in a Manger - Scenes from Nativity Story
• Jerusalem’s Temple Mount — video clips showing model reconstruction
• Path of  the Messiah Part 1 — produced by EWTN
• Todd Agnew’s Magnificat - requires Rhapsody’s player
• Judaism 101 - Circumcision
• Nativity Story - trailer

     “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only.”

John 1:1, 14

Dead Sea Scrolls

Today, I had the chance to view some of the Dead Sea Scrolls on display at Union Station in Kansas City. The exhibit was well done and very informative. As a former science teacher, I enjoyed the discussion of how the scrolls were dated and the work to preserve the fragments. The historical time line and displays about the 2nd temple period help me understand the Essene sect. However, my favorite part of the exhibit was the displays regarding the text of the scrolls and their comparison with Biblical texts. The correlation of the texts the Essenes selected to place in the caves and the Biblical texts quoted in the New Testament was most impressive.

After lunch on the Plaza, we took a short drive south to view a sculpture of the Last Supper on display at the Country Club Christian Church (61st and Ward Parkway). The sculpture is magnificent! The detail and artistry of the carvings can only be appreciated by a personal viewing.

Introductory Session

As I watched the video, one of the things that struck me was the number 70 — the translators of the Septuagint. I vaguely remembered that there was a significance to that number in Exodus. Searching the Bible (with eSword), I found the passages:

• Exodus 1:5 – And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls
• Numbers 11:16 — And Jehovah said to Moses, Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people, and the officers over them

To me, it appears that the number 70 is important to God. The Bible Study.org site says that 70 represents perfect spiritual order. A more detailed explanation can be found in Kent Brown’s paper The Seventy in Scripture.

Until starting this study, I never mapped the Bible on a time line to be able to recognize the missing 400 years. Ray Stedman provides further insight into this period of silence from God in his work, The 400 Years between the Old and New Testaments.

We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only,^[a] who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(John 1:14, NIV)

Beth Moore Study to Begin

On March 20th, we will begin a journey of faith as Beth Moore leads us in a quest to develop a more intimate relationship with Jesus.

Facilitating the need for a participant (possibly including the leader) to miss a session due to other obligations is a challenge that must be faced with this study. A group has been created on Google Groups to provide a forum for members to share comments and resources as well as prayer concerns. Hopefully, everyone will feel comfortable participating in the group.

Each Tuesday evening will begin with prayer requests and a time of prayer. A discussion of the week’s homework will follow. According to the leader’s guide we probably won’t discuss every question since it specifies which questions should be discussed. Of course, we can discuss any question a member wishes to have discussed. This portion of the evening is scheudled to last approximately 40 min. The last half of the evening will be viewing the video for that lesson.

So far, I have only watched the introductory video. During that video, I not only learned a little about Biblical history but was challenged to reflect on that history and its importance to Christ. The video was shot in Jerusalem so I’m expecting to actually see the sights of the Bible in future videos. I feel Beth will be an excellent teacher.

The study involves daily “homework.” It’s taking me between 30 and 45 minutes to complete a day’s lesson — partly because I’m stopping to use other resources to gain further insight into the topic. It also doesn’t help when I don’t know how to answer a question and spend quite a bit of time pondering an answer. Like the video’s, Beth’s teaching shines thru the text.

For those of you who enjoy searching for further information, there are a couple of sources that I would recommend. One is a piece of free software called eSword. This software contains a searchable Bible (in multiple translations) and commentary written by several theologians, including John Wesley. The second is The Catholic Encyclopedia. I like the Catholic Encyclopedia since it provides a lot of historical information on a person and/or topic.

Come along on this journey!