This morning, in Bible Study, we finished up Matthew's first chapter, discussing particularly the birth of Christ. We had a great discussion about the humility of Christ in emptying Himself and being subject to the very creatures He created. Imagine the God of this universe subjecting Himself to being cared for as an infant in every way that an infant must be cared for by His parents! Matthew reminds us of this amazing truth by pointing out that Jesus, in fulfillment of the Old Testament, would be called "Immanuel," which means "God with us." Think on that as we prepare for this holiday season.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Men's Friday Morning Bible Study
This morning, in Bible Study, we finished up Matthew's first chapter, discussing particularly the birth of Christ. We had a great discussion about the humility of Christ in emptying Himself and being subject to the very creatures He created. Imagine the God of this universe subjecting Himself to being cared for as an infant in every way that an infant must be cared for by His parents! Matthew reminds us of this amazing truth by pointing out that Jesus, in fulfillment of the Old Testament, would be called "Immanuel," which means "God with us." Think on that as we prepare for this holiday season.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Camp Hope Tonight
Tonight we had another great evening of fellowship with volunteers from Delaware, New Jersey, Ohio, and Alberta and Ontario, Canada. Many of the folks had been down at least once before. The Canadians are the sixth team that has come down from Word and Deed Ministries! And they will be sending another team in the week after Thanksgiving and then another team in January. What an encouragement to see the commitment of such Christians to the Lord Jesus Christ and His body! The work these folks have been able to get done this week has been amazing. They have kept Lisa Ladner on the run!It's always a blessing to sing and praise the Lord with these brothers and sisters in Christ.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Men's Friday morning Bible Study
On the day that Martin Luther was born (today in 1483 in Eisleben, Germany), we studied the birth of Christ (specifically, His genealogy) in this morning's Bible study. Sadly, many Christians miss out on some real gems by glossing over the opening verses of Matthew's Gospel. Here are some of the things we discussed this morning:
1. We noted the presence of women, and, in particular, sinful women, in the opening verses of Matthew. We contrasted this with the felt need in the Roman Church to purge Mary of all sin in order, as the thinking goes, to protect the sinlessness of Christ.
2. We noted the presence of Gentile women in the genealogy of Christ.
3. We noted the differences between Matthew's account of the genealogy of Christ and Luke's and discussed some of the likely reasons for this. We pointed out that Matthew mentions the regal lineage of Christ, showing that Jesus is the heir to the throne of David in fulfillment of God's promise to David in 2 Samuel 7 (to establish David's throne forever). And that Luke seems most concerned with tracing Christ's genealogy back to Adam and, thereby, establishing that He is a savior for the entire world, not just for the Jews (whose father was Abraham), and that He is the second and final Adam. (Luke interestingly follows the account of the genealogy, which ends with Adam, with the account of the temptation of Christ, which parallels the prior temptation of Adam.)
4. We talked about Jesus' earthly family and the relationship between Mary and Joseph and whether or not Jesus had brothers and sisters (Matt. 12:47-8; 13:55-6).
5. The genealogies also point to another fact: the historical reality of Jesus' birth and existence on earth. Matthew and Luke wrote their Gospels sometime around the early- to mid-60s A.D. This would mean that there would still have been people alive at the time they wrote of Jesus' genealogy. These folk could have (and surely would have, if there was cause to do so) pointed out errors in these genealogies if there were any. There are complications with our understandings of the genealogies, to be sure. But there don't appear to have been many such in the time when Matthew and Luke wrote them. Interestingly, Eusebius records instance of relatives of Jesus being called before the Roman Emperor Domitian as part of Rome's continuing effort to stamp out the line of David.
That should be enough to get your head spinning for the weekend, if it isn't already!
1. We noted the presence of women, and, in particular, sinful women, in the opening verses of Matthew. We contrasted this with the felt need in the Roman Church to purge Mary of all sin in order, as the thinking goes, to protect the sinlessness of Christ.
2. We noted the presence of Gentile women in the genealogy of Christ.
3. We noted the differences between Matthew's account of the genealogy of Christ and Luke's and discussed some of the likely reasons for this. We pointed out that Matthew mentions the regal lineage of Christ, showing that Jesus is the heir to the throne of David in fulfillment of God's promise to David in 2 Samuel 7 (to establish David's throne forever). And that Luke seems most concerned with tracing Christ's genealogy back to Adam and, thereby, establishing that He is a savior for the entire world, not just for the Jews (whose father was Abraham), and that He is the second and final Adam. (Luke interestingly follows the account of the genealogy, which ends with Adam, with the account of the temptation of Christ, which parallels the prior temptation of Adam.)
4. We talked about Jesus' earthly family and the relationship between Mary and Joseph and whether or not Jesus had brothers and sisters (Matt. 12:47-8; 13:55-6).
5. The genealogies also point to another fact: the historical reality of Jesus' birth and existence on earth. Matthew and Luke wrote their Gospels sometime around the early- to mid-60s A.D. This would mean that there would still have been people alive at the time they wrote of Jesus' genealogy. These folk could have (and surely would have, if there was cause to do so) pointed out errors in these genealogies if there were any. There are complications with our understandings of the genealogies, to be sure. But there don't appear to have been many such in the time when Matthew and Luke wrote them. Interestingly, Eusebius records instance of relatives of Jesus being called before the Roman Emperor Domitian as part of Rome's continuing effort to stamp out the line of David.
That should be enough to get your head spinning for the weekend, if it isn't already!
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Harvest Festival
I've just returned from our Harvest Festival out at Camp Hope tonight. What a great night! We had super weather, just right for a bonfire. There were hayrides galore, sack races (there will probably be incriminating photos of yours truly winning the adult's race, which unfortunately may be used against me in the church newsletter!), a pie-baking contest (congratulations to Mary Case, whose Apple Pie won first prize), a chili contest (Gail Theiler was tops here), and a bouncy castle and other games and crafts for the kids (thanks to Cece Vallot for her help in organizing this). It really was a great night. Thanks go to Heather Carter, Lisa Ladner, and Jacob Feigl for their work in making everything possible. If you couldn't come out this year, make it a point to come out next year.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Camp Hope Fall Festival
Tomorrow night we will be hosting our 1st Camp Hope Fall Festival. There will be a hay ride beginning at 4pm, I think, and a host of other activities for the entire family, including pumpkin painting, food, and, Lord willing, a bonfire to enjoy. Please make it a point to come out and join the festivities. It could be the perfect end to a busy day!Call or email the church office for more information (www.fpcgulfport.org).
Monday, November 06, 2006
Auburn Weekend
Well, this past Friday night and Saturday we packed up the family and headed to the loveliest village on the plains (a.k.a. Auburn, for you neophytes out there!) for the first time since we left the country over four years ago. What a beautiful weekend! The whole way there, as I drove, I looked out my windshield at the spectacular colors of Fall at its peak. The reds, oranges, and yellows, together with the remnant of green in the trees reminded me that we have a spectacular God, who created all this in its beauty and intricacy! And, to think that this is creation in travail. Just wait until the new heavens and the new earth. How grand that sight will be!We went to the Auburn-Arkansas State game; it was my son's first football game in person. We watched the eagle (Tiger) fly just over our heads (quite a sight really!). But perhaps the most inspirational, for me, was the sound of 87,000 people singing "God bless America." Yes, I know that all were probably not Christians. But it reminded me a little of what heaven will be like, when a great throng, which no man can number, will sing a new song unto the Lord. It won't (for sure) be "God bless America" but singing it on Saturday afternoon made me long for heaven, when we will all sing "worthy is the Lamb to receive glory, honor, riches, and blessing forever!"
Maranatha!
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Proving Christianity is Right
I read this morning on Fox News of a man in Michigan who claims to be a Satanist. This may not sound like anything new; there are plenty of people in our world that are so deluded by their sin that they worship the devil. But the interesting thing about this particular version of devil worship is that it claims not to worship the devil per se but to worship "self." As Fox News reports: "The church doesn't worship Beelzebub, it believes in taking responsibility for your own actions and being your own god." When they interviewed the founder of this "religion," he explained by adding, "I don't care how much fun killing people is...that sort of thing is just not acceptable."
Oh, really! Isn't that interesting? Not only can this guy apparently not see the blatant contradiction in his thinking, he also apparently cannot see that his "religion" gives him absolutely no basis whatsoever for making the claim that he makes.
(1) If everyone is to be their "own god," then that means that everyone is to make their own laws for themselves. You cannot be "your own god" and be subject to following someone else's laws. That someone else would actually be your god and not you yourself. And that means that you cannot have a religion that says: "you are your own god" AND "you must be subject to certain objective laws (like, e.g., not killing people)." This religion is self-defeating; it contradicts itself explicitly.
(2) There is no basis in this guy's religion that allows him to be able to say that "killing people...is just not acceptable." Only the Christian worldview gives him the basis for making that claim (which Christianity actually does, in the 6th commandment). He must "borrow" from the Christian worldview in order to make his claim that murder is wrong. His own worldview does not allow him to say this. So, his comments, rather than commending devil worship, actually prove that Christianity is the only right and true religion.
Think about that!
Oh, really! Isn't that interesting? Not only can this guy apparently not see the blatant contradiction in his thinking, he also apparently cannot see that his "religion" gives him absolutely no basis whatsoever for making the claim that he makes.
(1) If everyone is to be their "own god," then that means that everyone is to make their own laws for themselves. You cannot be "your own god" and be subject to following someone else's laws. That someone else would actually be your god and not you yourself. And that means that you cannot have a religion that says: "you are your own god" AND "you must be subject to certain objective laws (like, e.g., not killing people)." This religion is self-defeating; it contradicts itself explicitly.
(2) There is no basis in this guy's religion that allows him to be able to say that "killing people...is just not acceptable." Only the Christian worldview gives him the basis for making that claim (which Christianity actually does, in the 6th commandment). He must "borrow" from the Christian worldview in order to make his claim that murder is wrong. His own worldview does not allow him to say this. So, his comments, rather than commending devil worship, actually prove that Christianity is the only right and true religion.
Think about that!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
