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Bitter/Sweet
It probably did not take an expert to tell us that milk will spoil a week past its expiration date. The obvious, however, is now not so clearly accepted. Lip-puckering sour fruit may have vibrant colors, but they also come with a punch, e.g., lemons, grapefruit, kumquats, etc. Sweetness holds its own distinction. No one believes sugar is bitter. Milk chocolate is clearly not acidic. No one eats a Red Savina Habanero pepper, which has a 510,000 SHU spice rating, and calls it sweet. Anyone who would pose such a thought must defy the law of the receptor cell which…
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One Faith
Tucked away in the letter to the church at Ephesus is this exclusive verse: Eph 4:5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism. The damage done by this single statement stretches far beyond our modern age. Denominations of all faiths have been deeply offended by Paul’s word to the Ephesians. The reason is apparent: Not everyone believes there is but One Lord and fewer believe in one way to be baptized. Most even consider baptism as an insignificant display or some menial public confession. In fact, equating baptism to salvation has long since been dismissed by the majority of denominational leaders.…
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Continue
Col 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; Acts 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. Some historians point toward the industrial revolution when considering our insatiable appetite for the next “new thing.” Invention and innovation moved the nation into what we know as modernism. These conveniences, from fuel consumption to food preservation, caused a ripple effect in our society. There were things that we lost along the way. We gained the natural assets borne…
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Dedicate The Temple
“As for this temple that you are building…” Places of worship have been established throughout human history. Jacob set up a place, a rock, to commemorate the Presence which he stumbled upon. Abraham committed a high place in the mountainous range of Moriah to offer God a unique sacrifice for worship. Moses constructed a movable tent to exercise sacrifices throughout his time in the wilderness. All of these held the intent of the worshiper in response to the One True God of Israel. These were places of purpose and intentionality. They were reflections of the human effort toward the Creator.…
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Pray
If we look clearly at our present time, we will see the reduction of the holy things of God. Our moral code, once unwritten but held adherence, has shifted into moral decay. Clothing/apparel has become a statement declaring a sub-group mentality or worse yet, a gender preference. We have strayed far from modesty. Language has devolved into innuendos filled with sexualized double meanings. The list goes on. Perhaps the greatest of these changes occurred in the last century when public prayer was challenged in our institutions. The most poplar rebuttal came from the atheist, Madalyn Murray O’Hair, Engle v. Vitale,…
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To Heal and To Save
The first and the second miracles of Jesus are so very different. The first occurred at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. Mary, the mother of Jesus, implored Him to do something on behalf of the bride and her father. Mary’s request came about in a single, nondescript sentence, “They have no more wine.” It was a lack of preparation by the father of the bride. In those days, it would have been a deficit not soon forgotten by the guests and would have stained the reputation of the bride and her ill-prepared father. Jesus performed a miracle by turning…
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Echo
Rev 22:4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. What shall we say about the never dying soul? Heaven and Hell occupy realms unknown to this temporal life. Whatever portrayal the artist may give, nothing can depict their distinct domains. Heaven and Hell are often minimized subjects given to the analytical mind or to the philosopher’s tale. These real and eternal realities are then cast into themes and stories meant to invoke an emotional response rather than lead to the desperate cry from the heart. I feel myself trite today. Perhaps I have…
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Israel At War
Mat 24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. Mat 24:7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. Mat 24:8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. At the risk of looking relevant, I cannot ignore the most glaring prophetic fulfillment of our time. Israel is under attack. The nations are shifting their focus toward the center of the world, which is…
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Build My Heart
To the casual reader, the credit for the first Temple would solely be given to Solomon. The scripture details the work of Solomon; his orders and his conscription of men. Hence, it was referred to as “Solomon’s” Temple. Even in modern times, the recognition of Israel’s most glamorous edifice sits squarely on his name. However, Solomon was in succession of his father David. It was in the heart of David to build a place for the Lord. The last line of I Chronicles 28:2 is a telltale of efforts made long before Solomon entered the scene. David said, “I had…
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Into All The World
At the closing of the gospels, Jesus gave one final instruction to His followers. He said, “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel.” Those who stood in attendance understood the weight of His words. They knew the demand that the Lord had placed upon their lives. To the first church, nothing was higher than delivering the New Birth message of Repentance and Baptisms of Water and Spirit to the world. The Book of Acts reveals such deeds. We too are given the same command: “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel.” However, the greatest majority of…