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Choices: Jesus, Barabbas, the Crowd, and the Criminal
Earlier this morning, I was reading about the events leading up to and including Jesus’ crucifixion. Something stood out to me like never before. When given the choice by Pilate, the people chose salvation for a prisoner and criminal (Barabbas) over Jesus (Matthew 27:15-26). Conversely, while hanging on the cross, Jesus chose a criminal for… Continue reading
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It’s Personal – A Series on the Heart of the Father
Part 2: Relationship, Not Religion As I sit here this morning by the Christmas tree, I am reflecting on the birth of Jesus and all He came into the world to do. I understand this better now, more so than I ever did before. I grew up in religion, and from that I understood He… Continue reading
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It’s Personal – A Series on the Heart of Father God
Part 1: Promises Made, Promises Kept We live in a world where promises are often made and not necessarily kept. I know I have made promises and not kept them. The opposite is also true. I have been made promises that were not kept. I think this is due to our human frailties and fickle… Continue reading
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“Follow Me”
Matthew 9:9 I am reading the Gospel According to Matthew right now, and I questioned something I noticed for the first time today and not in my prior readings of it. In Chapter 9, verse 9, Jesus calls Matthew to follow Him: As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting… Continue reading
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Great Expectations in Our Good Father
Psalm 62:5 “Great Expectations” is a 1930’s novel by Charles Dickens about an orphan named Pip who is coming of age and has all these great expectations – hopes, dreams, aspirations – about his life and the people in it. As an orphan with a very modest upbringing, his expectations were of love, wealth, education,… Continue reading
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Making the Unknown God Known
A consequence of religion is not knowing the one true living God as Father. This is because religion causes us to focus on rules, rites, and rituals rather than who God is and who He is meant to be to us. In turn, we may blame religion for being boring, unfulfilling, uninspiring. Consequently, we may… Continue reading