Tag: Christianity

Digging in Deeper: Hebrews 9:22

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“According to the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

A little something different this week seeing as how we are just a few days from the single most significant day in the life of the church. This Sunday morning (at least in the Western church) we will celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave. This one event is the pivot on which the whole of human history swings. There is literally no more significant event in all of recorded history than this one. In order to get us ready for the day when it arrives, let’s do just a bit of thinking about how and why things had to go the way they did in order for the way to a right relationship with God to be made open to us. We’ll start this morning with a bit of context about how to get right with God in the first place.

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Morning Musing: Exodus 21:20-21, 26-27

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“When a man strikes his male or female slaves with a rod, and the slaves dies under his abuse, the owner must be punished. However, if the slave can stand up after a day or two, the owner should not be punished because he is his owner’s property. . .When a man strikes the eye of his male or female slaves and destroys it, he must let the slave go free in compensation for the his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his male or female salve, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his tooth.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

One of the charges leveled against the Scriptures by critical scholars and skeptics is that they condone slavery. To a certain extent, this is an argument from silence. Because none of the various authors ever explicitly say slavery is wrong, and because there are several passages (like this one) in which the instructions assume on the existence and even continuation of the practice, therefore, they collectively support it. There are several reasons why this argument is flawed. LEt’s talk about some of them and what to do with what we see here.

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Jesus Clears the Way

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This past Sunday we kicked off a brand-new teaching series. For the next few weeks, we are going to be taking a journey to the cross with the Gospel of Mark. From now until Easter, we are going to be taking a fresh look at the stories that took Him from a triumphant ride into the city, to hanging on a Roman cross, and finally to an empty tomb. These are perhaps stories you have heard before, but join me in taking another look in order both to remember why they are so good, but also to see what new things the Spirit might have to teach us along the way. We’ll get started today with a walk through Mark 11.

Jesus Clears the Way

Have you ever had someone clear the way for you to do something? Maybe someone who was an advocate for you? I had a guy do that for me several years ago. He took me under his wing and created a number of opportunities for me that I would not have otherwise enjoyed. Having someone like this can be a real blessing. Well, what if I told you that everyone has access to an asset like this who can give us the greatest opportunity imaginable? This person not only can do this for us, He wants to. It probably won’t surprise you to learn that this person’s name is Jesus, and today we are going to take a look at how His efforts to give us the opportunity to have a real relationship with God got started. 

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 20:14

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“Do not commit adultery.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Humans have a complicated relationship with sex. God created it and made it really good and powerful. It is unquestionably a gift from Him. And when we enjoy this gift, it feels really good. If it doesn’t, you’re probably not doing it right. But God also made it to be enjoyed in a single set of circumstances. It is a gift for marriage. But marriage is hard. And in any given moment, sex feels good whether it happens in a marriage or not. It feels good no matter who your partner is even if you happened to be married. Because of all this, and because of a sinful nature in each of us that is profoundly selfish at its core, adultery is a thing that we do. But it’s not a good thing. At all. So, God made clear that it isn’t a thing we should do. Let’s talk about why this was a significant enough thing for us not to do that God included it in the foundational list.

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Morning Musing: Exodus 20:13

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“Do not murder.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I want you to think for just a minute about the number of times you have said to another person, ‘I’m going to kill you.” My guess is that it’s a bunch. At the same time, if you’re like most people, I don’t suspect you’ve ever actually followed through on this threat. Then why have you said it so much? Because that expression has become a culturally acceptable way of (usually playfully) expressing your frustration with another person for whom you generally have a relatively high degree of affection. This context of love is what clues them in on the fact that you don’t really mean it. This is an interesting cultural development in light of the fact that our culture has been pretty thoroughly shaped by the Judeo-Christian worldview, and that God was pretty clear He’s not a big fan of murder. Let’s talk about the sixth commandment, what it means, and what we should do with it today.

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