Stairway to Heaven
In this Easter season, Jesus’ time after the Resurrection gives us clues as to the gift of access to heaven promised us. God WANTS to have us as brothers and sisters, and that opportunity is offered to EVERYONE who chooses to trust God. Let's check out the ramifications of that access.
Is the Bible racist?
Since the concept of races is a misnomer propagated by the theory of evolution, we need to clearly understand the foundation of the human population on the earth – ONE HUMAN race. All people on the earth are actually ONE color – brown! And that brown manifests itself in many varieties from the beginning, when Adam and Eve carried the genetic variables within their genome. Light brown, dark brown, medium brown, and all the tints in between – the earth is full of wonderful and beautiful displays of skin color.
And did you know that Abraham and Mosses both had dark-skinned wives? The only "race", the only "unequally yoked" prohibition according to the Bible is between Believers and Non-Believers. Let’s explore.
FEAR – is it a GOOD thing, or a BAD thing?
The emotion of fear, the quality of being afraid seems to be built in to our character make-up from the beginning. So, it is a good thing, or a bad thing? Does fear protect us? Or is it a hindrance to our well-being?
And, how does the FEAR of God compare to our other fears? Does our fear of authority, or our fear of punishment protect us? Let’s check it out.
Spiritual Battles
Did you know that there are dozens and dozens of verses in the Bible that talk about spiritual beings, unseen forces, principalities and authorities. who are actively fighting against God and our potential relationship with Him?
We do not seem to talk about this much in church settings, but the verses are there. And it seems to be good strategy to KNOW you enemy and the schemes that are being actively used against you.
1 Peter 5:8-9
“But stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the WORLD are going through many of the same kind of sufferings that you yourselves are experiencing.”
Let’s explore some of these spiritual battles, those that Believers in the past experienced, as well as discussing what kind of tools we can used to fight spiritual battles in our own lives.
Why did God allow this?!?
Pilate killed Galileans who were sacrificing in the Temple, and the Tower of Siloam south of the Temple, fell and killed 18 people....why did God allow these things to happen? Was it something that the people did spiritually that caused their demise?
Exactly why IS their pain and suffering in our world? Is there actually PURPOSE behind these horrible tragedies? What should our response be? How can we accurately explain these events to others? How did JESUS explain these events? Let's check it out....
Absolutes
Is there such a thing as an ultimate truth? what did Jesus say about "truth"?
Some say that there is no such thing as absolute truth. Hmmm.
Are they absolutely sure? Let's talk about it.
The Counsel of the Ungodly
It seems that sin is sneaky....first it tries to grab your attention, then it tries to entice you, then it tries to trap you.
What strategies can we utilize to escape this whirlpool of sin that seeks to destroy us? Let's examine....
Unhindered [Thriving in good times and bad]
After the resurrection of Jesus, EVERYBODY was talking about the wild events surrounding that First Fruits Sunday. And then 50 days later, at the Festival of Weeks [Greek word, Pentecost], there were tongues of fire, and a great wind, and strange but familiar languages....what is going on?!?
It says in Acts that 3 THOUSAND folks became Believers that day, and after the 40-year lame guy was HEALED by Peter and John, thousands more embraced this Jewish fulfillment of Scripture, and yet many did not see it as such.
The authorities put disciples in jail, but an angel frees them. The spiritual leaders even BEAT the disciples, but the disciples just seemed happy at suffering like Christ....and now even PRIESTS were converting to Christianity.
Let’s take a look at the how the Believers THRIVED in this year following Jesus’ resurrection.
The Character of God
When we run into, “challenges”....is it easier, or harder, when dealt with in the context of your faith? Not only should you “pray first” but take a minute to consider the context – if you are a Believer in Christ, you actually have one person of the God-head INSIDE of you, helping you with your thought, and actions – your DECISIONS. Let’s explore how the very character of God can put your tests and trials on a whole new level.
BOLD
Boldness.
What is it?
How has it manifested itself in the Old and New Testament?
Can you SEE IT when somebody has it? Can you prayer for it?
Let's look and see how heroes in the Bible displayed the quality trait of boldness in THEIR lives.
The Coarsening of our Language
It seems like it is everywhere – movies, barbershops and nail salons, political leaders and prognosticators, parties and social events – discourse has become more coarse, and an assault on all our ears.
Where is this all coming from? Is there a way to confront this coarsening of our conversations? Is there a pattern here? Are we susceptible to the words around us? What can WE do about our own language? How ARE we supposed to talk? Does this suggest an approaching return of Christ Himself? Let’s talk about it.
Tears
Jesus wept. Yes, He was fully God, but He was also fully human.
What about God the Father? Does He cry tears? Psalm 56 says that God puts our tears in His bottle.....what does that mean?
And what about animals....some say they cry, but some say they do not....lots of interesting questions to explore in this lesson.
And God DOES promise to eventually wipe away every tear, and to rid us of every pain. Let's check it out.
You’re not tolerant!
Okay.....so if we are supposed to be more tolerant, and you say that we are supposed to view all viewpoints as valid, and not be judgmental. But...if you are more tolerant than me, and you say that I am bigoted and intolerant, well, aren't you being intolerant about my intolerance?
Jesus says that we should not judge, but is there not a difference between GOOD judgment and BAD judgment? Put it another way: a difference between condemning, and evaluating?
We can discern a situation; we make evaluations every day. We would not let a 28 year old registered sex-offender baby-sit our 9 year old daughter. Let's explore the difference between judging, and judging.
Overwhelmed? How to deal with this feeling.
Here are 5 areas to think about, when facing anxiety and fear. How can you handle it when your daily challenges surround and seem to smother you? God knows the details of our lives, and He WILL provide answers....let's see what we can find out.
STOP the Stupidness!
You have probably heard stories about buglers who left their wallet or phone behind, so that they could be easily found and prosecuted. How could they be so stupid?
Because, sin, which ALL of us do sometimes, makes us stupid! So, DON'T do it.
Will that help you at some future point when you are deciding whether to sin....or not. We will see. Prayerfully it does. Because, especially these days, when video phones capture SO much that was not intended to be seen, God, as it says in Jeremiah, sees EVERY sin. EVERY action, or THOUGHT, good or bad. So, do good, okay?!?
YOU will be better for it. For real!!