Is Your Church in Alignment?
The Message driven Church By message we are not talking about The Message, but the sub-message. The message of Jesus is usually always preached and does not change, but what about the sub-message or how the message is stated? Is the sub-message, Jesus says... or how to fix a broken world... or help for hurting people? Does your church center around the Sunday service, is this where it happens? The down side of a message driven Church is that is least likely to change and could be least flexible. The up side of a message driven Church is that it is a strong voice as long as the person in charge is around, but may struggle when the leader dies or moves on.
Is it Time to Rewrite the Holy Books? 2
For years afterwards I pondered on what kind of religion thrives on perpetual, personal unhappiness for its gratification. What kind of godliness seeks merely to cause pain and anguish when one's time on earth is so short? What kind of worship concentrates only on the negative and nasty things of life so that confessions of sins take precedence over confessions of goodness? What kind of god prefers someone living in a hell of a marriage, or in 'sin', and depriving themselves of love and affection in preference to starting all over again with a new partner in mutual blessing and spiritual joy?
Love Your Neighbor - Can We?
When we attempt to love our neighbor, it seems to be us vs. them - it doesn"t quite work. If our neighbor is good looking, then of course we might love him or her in another way, but that really isn"t love, that"s something else! Actually, loving our neighbor as ourselves takes a lot of.. . something. It"s not simplistic at all. Without deep feelings of empathy, of compassion, we can never hope to love our neighbors, because in this shrinking world, our neighbors now include all of humanity. In order to love our neighbors, we must get over things such as jealousy, fear, and hatred.
Respect Begets Respect
In life, two important things matter the most - love and respect. Jesus, in the Bible, tells us to "love the Lord your God" and "love your neighbor as yourself." These are the most crucial of the ten commandments. True enough, they are admirable virtues in a person who aims to follow God"s way. If only people practice these traits every day, the world will be a much better place to live in. Love and respect usually go hand in hand. Although love including Christian love may have varied meanings, it generally entails respect, affection, good-will and concern for the well-being of the one you love.
In Defense Of Jesus? The Secret And The True Followers Of Jesus
You may not know it, but the "The Secret" DVD, the on going buzz online is generating lots of controversy between those who cannot see the rational behind the principles espoused by "The Secret" and those who see it. Wow, folks, the truth has never been told, it is with the Master-mind. But some of our assumptions may be truths, and even outright lies become truths without evidence. This is why it is quite difficult to accept a proven principle that can be used to turn a life around for the best. Therefore "truths" flourish. The Christian truths, which are averse to the "The Secret"s" truth, can be likened to the "truth" told by the three friends of Job while the truth in the "The Secret" is akin to the truth of Job himself in challenging God to prove him (Job) unworthy.
What Are You Worth?
What do you mean what am I worth? Are you talking about my net worth? How much money do I have in the bank? Or how many stock certificates I own, or how many mutual funds, or how much is in my IRA or 401k? No, to all of these. No, I am asking you if you know what you are worth to God. Most people don"t think they are worth very much or they have a false sense of humility when it comes to their own self worth. When they are out in the world they are full of themselves, but when they come to church they bawl and squall and tell God what an lowly worm they are. First of all they don"t truly mean it and secondly they don"t know what the word of God has to say about it, or they wouldn"t act that way.
A Bintel Brief
Recently an "open letter" from a young rabbinical student appeared in the Jewish Press. Without the endorsement at the end of this "open letter" it could easily have been mistaken for "A Bintel Brief" published in the Jewish Forward in the 1920"s. (The Bintel Brief, in the format of questions and answers, was a weekly column appearing in the Yiddish Forward, depicting the struggles and tribulations of the Jewish immigrants on the lower east side of Manhattan). The note at the end of the article stated the following: "Endorsed by these Gedolei Hatorah( Torah Sages): Moshe Wolfson, Yaakov Perlow, Aryeh Kutler and Yechezchel Ratah.
The Law Of Sowing And Reaping Pt. 3
In the first 2 parts of this study we defined sowing and the purpose of the seed, as well as the purpose of the harvest. In the third part of this study I would like to talk about obedience in giving and how God supernaturally increases our seed. Let's start again with the words of Jesus. Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. And again using the Young's Bible Translation. Luke 6:38 'Give, and it shall be given to you;
Jesus Autobiography
All philosophical, theological and political discourse issues from a presuppositional matrix. The communicator's ideas are characterized, influenced, and motivated by such a preexisting corpus of antecedent ideas, or embraced truth. I begin with the presupposition that Jesus understood perfectly and clearly who he was.His auto-noetic frame was accurate and complete. From such a substratum his ipssissima verba would proceed. Filtered through an Occidental mindset, in particular, a pragmatic philosophy, the words of Jesus have been denuded of their intrinsic authority and regenerative power.
Memory Cross Coloring Cards - Unique Christian Homeschool Easter Craft
Are you looking for an exciting new craft for your homeschool group to do for Easter? You may want to consider Memory Cross Easter Coloring cards! A Memory Cross is a four panel interactive card that is designed origami style. They unfold to reveal selected bible verses. Most are bright and colorful and are used to share the gospel and aide in Scripture memorization. The creator, Pastor Andy Lambert, originally intended them to be used in children"s sermons to tell bible stories. He was searching for a tool that would help capture the attention of the children and help them to memorize verses.