Pharisees are known as the “Pious ones.” Often we put Pharisees down because we see criticism of this sect in the words of Jesus…Mt 23:26; Luke 18:10, however in doing so, we do not see the full picture of who the Pharisees were. The Hebrew word which is at the root of the title Pharisee…
In this blog we visit a wedding, a wedding in Cana of Galilee. Un-named at this wedding are the Groom and the Bride. Some say this is Jesus and the Church. Others indicate the groom is one of the disciples. This is not explained in the story. What is shared is that Jesus, his mother…
Actually, there are two Johns in the passage for this week: John the Baptist and John the Apostle.John the Baptist was the son of a Priest. We read the story of John in Luke 1:5-25, where we find the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth who are to have a child in old age. Zechariah is…
There comes a point when we must examine or evaluate our worship experience. In yesterday’s post it was noted that worship is to serve and pay respect to God because the Lord is worthy. The heart of worship is to please God. Because God is our Master, the Lord gives us instructions. “One of the…
On Sunday Morning our tradition is to come together to “worship” God. We have translated this to what happens during the worship hour relating music and preaching to worship. The problem is worship has become an action rather than an attitude. If we define worship as an action which we do, then we can check…
John 4:24 says, “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” There is a sin which is afflicting our churches today. The sin is exclusionism in our worship services. I do not think we mean to be exclusive. I do not think we intentionally ban people from worship. But in…
This week has been interesting. God has placed us in a fascinating world full of people – each with their own culture. Chelsea was given an assignment relating to racism. As we talked we thought about issues of racism, for we belong to a persecuted people group. One of my grandfathers changed his name –…
God invites us to dine with Him. This is where people often talk. When we sit and eat, we have time to talk. Often we dine with others. And while we eat we talk. God knows this, so He purposely created times we can include Him at our table. I imagine it was this way…
My father is getting older. Because he can not come and see me, I am trying to visit him on a more regular basis. The drive to Knoxville where he lives is four hours long. There is a lot of time to think as I travel in the car. During the spring, a couple years…
