Today I completed reading the Bible through for the year. Reading the entire Bible through each year has been a practice I’ve been committed to since I entered the ministry in January, 1984. Granted, I’ve often wrestled with the question as to whether or not I do this out of rote legalism. But as a…
Month: July 2009
This is interesting…
Interesting article in USA Today about atheists who are renounciing their faith by being “de-baptized.” Click here for the article.
Improving Soil Conditions
My wife loves to work in our landscaping. She would consider this one of her hobbies, and she’s very passionate about it. Because she loves working in the flower beds, I get the privilege of helping out. Last week Lisa began working on building another flower bed. Upon its completion we will have completely encircled…
Soil Types
In the Parable of the Sower, one discovers that the farmer is the same and the seed is the same. The soil is the difference, which becomes the focal point of the story. In Jesus’ interpretation of the parable in Matthew 13:18-23, he plainly describes the four soils which are distinguished based on their reception…
The Parable of the Sower
We have a landscaping issue at our house. We have two spots in the flower bed in front of our home that literally won’t grow weeds. Usually the dirt around new construction is not the best, so we thought we needed to simply improve the soil. We did so by adding sand and peat moss,…
Thinking about the Kingdom
In thinking about my present series on the Kingdom of God, Ken Lumley suggested this classic clip from Dead Poet’s Society to help our understanding of how we are to think about the present Kingdom of God in light of all that we have been previously exposed to…
The Reality of the Present Kingdom, Part 3
When our eyes are open to see, and our ears are open to hear, and our minds are attune to conceive and perceive, we are aware of the tangible reality of the present Kingdom of God right now in our midst. We find that Jesus is accessible today as a reality and not merely a…
What is a Parable?
When I began planning the Right Now series on the Kingdom of God, I did what I always do…I took a shopping trip to my favorite store, Amazon.com. When I searched the Amazon site for available resources regarding the Kingdom of God I discovered good news and bad news. The bad news first. I was…
The Reality of the Present Kingdom, Part 2
In yesterday’s post I suggested that God has equipped us to see, hear, and think of the present Kingdom of God in ways that are real and tangible. This begins with our comprehension of the reality of Jesus today versus viewing him as a historical personality. Today I want to discuss our work in the…
The Reality of the Present Kingdom
“No eye has seen, nor ear has heard, and not mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” — 1 Corinthians 2:9 (NLT) When Paul penned these words to the church at Corinth he was not describing the splendor of a heavenly existence that we receive when we die. If you…