There are many things that we can learn and understand in our walk with God when we observe God’s walk with the nation of ancient Israel. There’s much about the nation of Israel that sets a pattern for us to learn from. By covenant, they became a called-out people who were destined to live according to the will of God as expressed by His law. The feature of the special relationship was the fact that God would dwell among them: “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among … [Read more...] about Pentecost, the Spiritual Connection
God
Are You an Unwilling Mustang?
I adopted a mustang from the high desert wilderness in Nevada. He’s a good boy. He has good strong legs. He likes to run and he is affectionate. I can generally make him do what I want him to do. We’ve had our differences. We’ve both had our spills, but I like him. The problem is this horse doesn’t focus. He doesn’t really trust me and so he isn’t really with me when we are working together. If I put a bridle on him, I can make him do mostly what I want him to do. But his … [Read more...] about Are You an Unwilling Mustang?
Three Choices: Good, Evil, or Life
Man has an ability that separates him from all other physical creatures. If he chooses, he can stand outside of his feelings, emotions and even his own thoughts and examine them. However, instead of examining them, he often reacts to life and allows instinct or past conditioning to override the moment of opportunity he has between an experience and a response. Deference is the key to conquering this moment. Author Steven Covey states what distinguishes us as humans is the ability to examine … [Read more...] about Three Choices: Good, Evil, or Life
Leaven and Reconciliation
The original instructions given to ancient Israel regarding the first two Holy Days of the annual Holy Day cycle clearly emphasize the isolation of leaven. This applied to both the restriction of eating it and its removal from their dwellings (Exodus 12:15-20). The fact that the days of Unleavened Bread follow immediately after the Passover is important. Christ’s sacrifice paid the penalty for our sins and opened the way for us to come into a close, reconciled relationship with Christ and the … [Read more...] about Leaven and Reconciliation
Time of Christ’s Death and Resurrection
We know that the Biblical details of Christ’s death and resurrection are central components of the gospel message. The early New Testament Church kept the Passover as a remembrance of Christ's death. The details surrounding His death and resurrection are also an anchor of our faith. To rehearse some of the timing around the events of the week of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection, we need to begin with statements Christ gave us and the prophecies in the Old Testament that say He would be … [Read more...] about Time of Christ’s Death and Resurrection
Godly Unity in The Human Realm
At the level of human existence, we all crave more unity. We would like to see our nations, our local communities and particularly our churches and families more united. Through Christ, we are joined to the Father. Unfortunately, we live in an environment where some particularly key factors are not united, not “joined as a whole”. As followers of Christ, we have been drawn out of the world and our position regarding unity is decidedly different than the common ideas about unity which … [Read more...] about Godly Unity in The Human Realm
Establishing Thoughts
A wonderful aspect of God’s creation is the human mind. Certainly man has a physical brain like animals, but the exceptionalism is in the fact that God has given man an additional spirit that animals do not have. This spiritual component empowers the brain to provide wisdom, knowledge and understanding of the physical environment in which man exists. In other words, an intellect -- the capacity for rational or intelligent thought. While this allows man to achieve unbelievable things, it also … [Read more...] about Establishing Thoughts