The Truth about Seminary Seminary doesn’t prepare people for ministry; it merely meets manmade expectations I know many people who have gone to seminary. And I have friends who are going to seminary. I encourage them, pray for them, and once even...
Elisha Goes All in to Follow Elijah Elisha’s Total Commitment to Follow Elijah Leaves No Option to Go Back After Elijah has a meltdown of sorts, God reassures him that he is not alone and gives him several things to do. One of those tasks is to...
Do You See Visions from Go? Once Reserved for Prophets, Now All People Can Have Visions from God A friend asked me about hearing from God and of visions from God. I often think about hearing from the Holy Spirit, but I infrequently consider...
A Great Sermon (Visiting Church #46) I struggle through the first half of the service. I can’t identify what’s wrong. Despite their efforts at excellence, something turns me off. Now is the minister’s turn. An affable man, with combed-back hair...
Do You Know What Your Mission Is? How closely do you do the things God tells you to do? Paul travels to Ephesus to tell people about Jesus. As a Jew it seems logical that he would go to his own people first to share this good news. He does. He...
The Four Parts of the Great Commission A few weeks ago we looked at Jesus’s final instructions as found in each of the Bible’s four biographies of him. Melding these together, we came up with three steps. First is to follow Jesus, second is to...
Where Did Baptism Come From? In Baptism, We Turn from Sin, Follow Jesus, and Receive the Holy Spirit Another concept that only appears in the New Testament is baptize and baptism. Baptize occurs fifty times, and its counterpart baptism appears...
Breakfast and a Doubleheader (Visiting Church #45) Today is a doubleheader: a traditional service followed by a contemporary one. Aside from an older crowd, there’s little to suggest a traditional service is about to occur. Everything gives off a...
How to Deal with Religious Opposition Paul and Barnabas respond to hostile nonbelievers with boldness and perseverance In the Old Testament, the Israelites, God’s chosen people, are a set apart nation. They are to keep separate from the other...
About Jesus: The Bible Points Us to Jesus Though the Gospels focus on Jesus, we see him throughout the Old and New Testaments In reading the Bible, we see that God the Father is the star of the Old Testament. In parallel fashion, Jesus is the...
