The Glory of the Lord
During Christmas we sing “Glo-o-o-o-o-ria”.....but why do we DO that? What exactly IS the GLORY of the Lord? Can you see it? Can you feel it? Do we, as believers, actually share in the glory of the Lord? Can we give it to others? Let's check out just a few of the MANY Bible verses that talk about the Glory of the LORD.
Confidence of the Calling
After spending most of our time for a business meeting last week, we only got started on this weighty subject, and continued it on the 22nd.
Does God call ALL of us to be rescued from eternity in hell? Since He lives OUTSIDE of time, and He knows who will reject His offer, does that make Him a meany?
When Peter says in His letters that God CHOSE us before the world was created, what does that mean? This is a subject that theologians have debated for hundreds of years. We tackle this topic by looking at the exact meaning of the word "chose." Let's check it out.
Slaves: Equity or Equality?
Equity and equality have been buzz words that have been floating around modern culture for quite a few years....but what exactly is the difference?
And how about how it pertains to slaves? Were all slaves equal? There were approximately 30 MILLION slaves in the Romans Empire at the time of Jesus. And what exactly IS a slave? Is it different in American history from what it was during the Roman Empire? How did Jesus, and 1st century Christians deal with the subject of slavery?
Did you know that at the founding of our country, when the Constitution of the 13 United States was written and passed, in 1787-1789, 5 of the original 13 colonies outlawed slavery?
Let's explore....
World’s Largest Rubber Band Ball – Bit by Bit by Bit by Bit
Close to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, in the city of Lauderhill in 2008 the world's largest rubber band ball was completed and verified by Guinness Records. It was nearly 7 feet in diameter, and weighed over 4-1/2 TONS. It was reportedly purchased by Ripley’s Believe or Not in Orlando, where it now resides.
Now this was NOT an overnight project....it took over a couple years, but it first started with one rubber band....coupled together with another.
Just like my 5,000 mile adventure to Alaska in 2021, I estimate it took about 3 million pedals to go that distance in 5 months....but it all started with ONE push of the pedal.
The prophet Zechariah stated that the Lord Himself does not despise small beginnings, but actually has JOY in seeing a good work STARTED. Let's check it out.
Fight Against God’s Nature
It is actually nothing new, but it sill sometimes startles us to see it – when a Jew or a Christian is targeted, despised, or even killed for something they believe with the depth of their being. Christians are being jailed, fined, intimidated, and mocked for choosing to show allegiance to a fact-based, malevolent, and sovereign God.
Sadly, it started with the FIRST family that God created for this planet, and it has continued down throughout world history.
God has again and again revealed Himself as divine, and all-powerful, and yet we are persistently ungrateful and unappreciative for the gift of life that we have been given.
In what ways HAS God revealed Himself in the past, and how SHOULD we respond?
Let's check it out.
The Myth of Neutrality
There was a huge field, with a big, stone fence going right through the middle of it. And there were lots of people on the left side, and a few people on the right side. One man observed that satan came and started collecting folks from the left side, and then he saw God come and start pulling people from the right side.
Well, being a cautious man, he found a way to climb to the very top of the fence, so he could observe what would happen next. Eventually all the people were collected from both sides of the fence, and everybody left, and the man was alone.
Hmmm, he thought.
Then he noticed satan come back to the left side, and it looked like he had dropped something – he kept looking and looking. Finally the man asked satan what he was looking for.
And satan said, “Oh! There you are! Come with me.”
But the man said, “No, I did not make a decision one way or the other, and especially not for you. I'm safe up here on the fence.”
But satan replied, “Silly man. You are coming with me. I OWN the fence!”
It turns out that we CANNOT be neutral when it come to following the WORLD, or following CHRIST. We do NOT know what day satan or God will come calling for us. And we are required to make that decision BEFORE we are ushered into our eternal home. Let's examine Bible verses that corroborate this, and then carefully weigh where we want to spend our ETERNAL future.
The Fear of God
Ran across an interesting verse this past week, from Jeremiah, where God says He will put the fear of Him in His people, so that there will not sin against Him. One translation says "inspire.”
Have you ever been afraid? As a young child did the fear of punishment help you to “do better?”
Let’s examine how God in the past has used fear and awe to teach us about His great power, and how His desire and design to grow a relationship with us is evidence of His great love and benevolence.
The Tri-Unity of God
On the right doorpost of even many Jewish homes today is a small box called a MEZUZAH. There is a handwritten piece of paper inside, with a Bible verse from Deuteronomy, called the Shema:
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is ONE. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
And so, the argument is made that Jesus cannot be God, because God is only ONE, not THREE.
But wait! Let's dig beneath the surface, because there are TWO Hebrew words that are translated to the English word, ONE. Which one is used in the Shema? Let’s check it out.
Are you guilty?
Have you ever done something wrong? Have you hurt someone else? Do you still feel guilty about it?....why?
In 2 Corinthians Paul mentions that there is a kind of guilt, a kind of sorrow, that God WANTS us to have. Why? What is its purpose? How do we get rid of it? Let's check it out.....
Amazing Acquiescenses
In 2 Timothy 2, Paul encourages Believers to study God's Word, so that we can present ourselves to God Himself, and won't need to be ashamed when we at some future point stand before Him. Many examples are given to us, in the New AND Old Testament, warning us about our conduct, our speech, and even our thoughts. Like the Bereans in Acts 17, we should be eager to learn things of God, and have the discipline to study what we learn, AND to make sure that what you've learned is really true. Proverbs 3 says that BLESSED are those find wisdom, and gain understanding. Let's examine....
He’ll Do What He Said
Something that is hard for some folks to understand, is how the disciples, being active witnesses to the teachings and miracles of Jesus, still did not comprehend the events that Jesus clearly told His followers were soon to happen.
Did God purposely keep them from comprehension? What would prevent them believing the details that Jesus presented to them?
And take it one more step....do WE see the things that Jesus did, and still doubt? What is the extent of OUR faith in understanding the power and capabilities of a sovereign, all-powerful God? Let's check it out.
It Looks Good, BUT....
The day after Palm Sunday, Jesus had an incident with a fig tree. Later that day, He overturned the money changers’ tables, and cleared out the Temple. The NEXT morning, the disciples noticed that the fig tree had withered. Why?
There is a comparison between the big, beautiful fig leaves and the flowing robes of the Pharisees....let's check it out.
Can Anything PROVE God?
Draw a straight line from Miami to Pensacola (about 500 miles). Then draw a line perpendicular to that line up to Charlotte, NC (about 500 miles0. Make that a box, 500 miles, by 500 miles (250,000 square miles), fill it 2 feet deep with silver dollars, MARK one of the silver dollars, and toss it in the middle of your imaginary box. Now blindfold someone, have them wade out into the sea of silver dollars, and tell them to pick the ONE silver dollar that you've marked.
Those are the chances of EIGHT prophecies about Jesus being fulfilled in Him alone, written HUNDREDS of years before HE was born. Psalm 22 alone has over 8 prophecies. And there are over 3 HUNDRED prophecies about Jesus in the entire Old Testament, all fulfilled in HIM.
Whoa!
Only a God who lives outside of time could inerrantly predict what is going to happen....before it does. And Jesus told His disciples AHEAD OF TIME that He would be arrested, killed, buried, and rise again 3 days later. Let's check it out.
Is there Purpose in Pain?
Okay, okay....yes, I tried to cut off my finger on Tuesday, but amazingly, my God-designed fingernail PROTECTED my finger. Yes, I lost the fingernail, and there was lots of blood, but almost NO pain, and my finger is fine. Just have to wait for the fingernail to grow back in. Whew!
So we got to thinking....is there a PURPOSE in pain? Physical, or mental, or spiritual, pain IS a part of our daily lives. Does God actually USE it for our good? Can it shape our relationship with God? Let's check it out....
The Trinity of People
Bible verses in Isaiah and Matthew, among others, point to the TRINITY of God, a multiple-unity ONE that is our best attempt to explain the nature of God. But do people, who are created in God’s image ALSO share this 3-in-one nature? Here are some verses that define a trinity of people, and others that, well, seem to suggest otherwise. Let's explore....