Posted on Apr 13, 2017 in Holy Week 2017 |
Big announcements can be a lot of fun. I enjoy watching the video posts on Facebook of all the creative ways people make their pregnancy announcements, engagement announcements, and other exciting announcements. Sometimes big announcements are best made with much flair and drama, like several “It’s a Boy” or “It’s a Girl” reveals that some couples in our church had this year. Sometimes, big announcements can just as effectively be made with a little more subtlety. The first public announcement of Dana and my engagement was made by our pastor at church who nonchalantly said, with a little grin, “And, by the way, you all might want to take a look at a little something on Dana’s finger.” No matter the form they take, big announcements have a way of changing the lives of everyone around them!
Posted on Apr 12, 2017 in Holy Week 2017 |
Read Mark 15:22-39.
“All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.”
Isaiah 53: 6
“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received,
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.”
1 Corinthians 14:3
That was God’s plan. Jesus would do for man what mankind could not do for themselves. To redeem mankind, God sent His Son to pay the penalty mankind couldn’t pay. But what a sacrifice. Philippians 2: 6-8 tells us that Jesus
“was truly God”. Read more…
Posted on Apr 11, 2017 in Holy Week 2017 |
Read Mark 14:32-42
This year as I began to really contemplate what Jesus did for me over 2,000 years ago. I kept getting drawn to the passage in Mark 14 where we see the real purpose Jesus came to earth. Yes, Jesus did some incredible miracles during His short time here on earth, He shared the most amazing sermons ever spoken, showed love and compassion in a way no one had ever done before. In just three years of ministry, Jesus created a following like no one had ever seen before, but all of this would be nothing if He didn’t experience what He did in the Garden.
Read more…
Posted on Apr 10, 2017 in Holy Week 2017 |
God, in his infinite wisdom, had an amazing plan. This plan would involve a sinful people who rejected him and turned their back on him. As we move closer to Easter, we reflect on the incarnation, when God himself became human. In doing so, we come face to face with a God who loved us so much that He was willing to pay the ultimate price. Isaiah 53:5 says in reference to Jesus, “But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.“ God’s amazing purpose of redeeming his people is fulfilled through Jesus Christ!
Posted on Apr 9, 2017 in Holy Week 2017 |
I love looking at bridges. Old bridges. Covered bridges. Famous bridges. Small, quaint bridges. The architecture of bridges has always fascinated me. So many different designs, sizes, materials used. A matter of fact, the very identity of many towns and cities are tied to their bridges—think San Francisco or Brooklyn. However, no matter how different every bridge may be, no matter how unique the architecture, no matter how diverse the building material, each and every bridge has a common purpose: to get people from one side to the other. Every bridge exists to be the connection point from where someone is to where he or she needs to go. In a very real sense, Easter, the death and resurrection of Jesus, is the bridge that connects Heaven and Earth. That incredible moment in history 2000 years ago fulfilled God’s plan and purpose to make a way for His fallen, sinful creation to pass from spiritual death to spiritual life. Jesus’ finished work on the cross and His glorious resurrection was Jesus’ definitive fulfillment of His proclamation that He is “…the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 NIV)