52 results for tag: Jesus
The Supremacy of Jesus Christ
Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, Jesus is the one "who is, who was and who is to come" (Revelation 1:8). Jesus is supreme, the author of our salvation, the center of all that we believe and the completion of our faith.
A Jesus Kind of Church — by Greg Albrecht
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." —Luke 4: 18-19
No Country for Old Men
Out in the endless, desolate desert of west Texas, a hunter looking for antelope stumbles on a crime scene. Abandoned cars and trucks are pock marked with bullet holes, and a half dozen or so dead bodies are scattered around.
In that odd and somewhat glib euphemism used by the media, it's apparently a drug deal "gone wrong" (if indeed there was ...
March 2023
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Articles:
Come Out of Her and Come to Me! – pg. 1
Confronted by Christ – pg. 2
Which Thief Are You? – pg. 5
Master Potter – pg. 7
Quotes & Connections – pg. 8
January 2023
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Articles:
Nothing But Jesus – pg. 1
A New Beginning – pg. 2
Loving Doctrine More Than People? – pg. 5
Savannah Bananas – pg. 7
Quotes & Connections – pg. 8
Focus on Christ – Not on Fear – by Greg Albrecht
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself— nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance" (Franklin Delano Roosevelt, first inaugural address, March 4, 1933).
Weltschmerz—a German word meaning world-pain or world-weariness is used to describe mental depression or apathy caused by comparison of the actual state of the world with an ideal state. Based on the anxiety and concern contained in reports and letters we receive from those we serve, as well as a general condition of weltschmerz in our society, there is no doubt that fear, worry, stress and tension are wreaking ...
Q&R – Does Christ ‘deny us’? with Brad Jersak
Question:
I have a question about Matthew 10:33 and 2 Timothy 2:11-12. Both passages describe Jesus denying us. This seems to be contrary to his nature and contrary to most of the theologians I find myself reading. Yet, I see these statements (among others) that seem to paint Jesus has relatively severe.
My task has been to try and see the self-giving God revealed in Jesus and yet not neglect the hard sayings of Jesus. I’ve actually found the task of Christology to be more difficult than I had imagined.
Response:
Let's start with our shared assumptions,
(1) that the God revealed in Jesus Christ is radically inclusive, unfailing Love whose mercy ...
Built to Last – by Ed Dunn
Matthew 7:24-25 (NIV) - “Therefore everyone who hears these
words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built
his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the
winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it
had its foundation on the rock…”
As we’ve all been faced
with the fear and uncertainty caused by recent events, and many of our
normal rhythms and routines of life have been forced to change, at least
for the time-being, I’ve been reflecting on a favorite teaching Jesus
offered for just such a time as this.
In this passage,
Jesus presents the parable ...
May 2022
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(PDF Format)
Articles:
Closer Than You Know – pg. 1
Reflecting on Grace – pg. 2
Scared Prayers – pg. 5
Memories & Mercies – pg. 7
Quotes & Connections – pg. 8
Who Am I — Who Are You?
Chances are you have asked yourself one or more of the following questions: "Why am I living?" "Am I making a real difference?" "How can I be successful in my life?" "When all is said and done, will my life be regarded as significant or insignificant?"
As we try to answer these questions about what is truly important and how we can be a significant person, our world at large offers counterfeit solutions which lead us through a maze of meaningless activities. A famous musician flying in a private jet is worshipped as an idol—and accorded the ultimate honor of being called a "star" —while a farmer who works the land and produces crops for ...
You Ain’t Got No Easter Clothes
When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."—John 11:43-44
Welcome to the party! Easter is the annual celebration Christians around the world anticipate and long for. Once again we savor victory in Christ. As Christians we are celebrating the most triumphant and victorious day in all history.
Let's begin with the words of Peter, who tells us, in 1 Peter 1:3-4:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has ...
When Jesus seems unChristlike – Brad Jersak
What do we do with Scripture when even Jesus seems unChristlike?
I can think of a good number of occasions where Jesus seems to either depict his Father as harsh and brutal (if we incorrectly read the king/master parables as straight-across imagery for God) or seems quite "judgy" himself, to the point of what we imagine as unChristlike. While many such verses can be chalked up to rhetoric, hyperbole or figures of speech, sometimes they do seem over the top, particularly in the letters to the seven churches of Revelation (chapters 2-3).
If Christ reveals the nature of God as love, as cruciform (cross-shaped) and as non-retributive, then ...
Hope in Desperate Times
By Greg Albrecht—
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
—Proverbs 13:12
People often give up on God because they feel he didn't fulfill their expectations. And where, exactly, do people receive their education about what they can expect from God? If you answered "religious institutions" you get to pass "Go"— collect $200 and receive a "get out of religion free" card.
One of the major sources of discontent with God is that many people do what they think God wants them to do because they expect him to make them feel good ("bless" is often used instead of "feel good"). And of course we all want to ...
When the Time Had Fully Come
by Greg Albrecht
You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. He is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. So also, when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. But When the ...
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