Jesus was God when men were willingly handing over their donkey, when men were laying down their cloaks and branches, as well as when men were nailing him to a cross. Do we worship Christ as though He were only God on Sundays? Additional Scripture References: Genesis 49:8-12; Zechariah 9:9; Hebrews 2:8-9
Jesus shows His disciples what success, influence, and power really look like. How will the church impact culture and society? Additional Scripture References: Jeremiah 29:7; Romans 12:1-2; Acts 17:32-34; 18:5-8; Mark 4:11
Additional Scripture References: Romans 8:17; 1 Peter 4:13; 2 Timothy 2:12
It will always be difficult for our sinful flesh to truly understand grace. In terms of salvation, Jesus plainly tells us that it is something ONLY POSSIBLE WITH GOD. We can’t earn it, purchase it, or trade for it. Grace is hard to swallow because it forces you and me to give full credit and glory to God. If there is ANY room for us to boast then we are not speaking of biblical salvation. Additional Scripture References: John 8:19; John 15:16; Mark 3:13
It will always be difficult for our sinful flesh to truly understand grace. In terms of salvation, Jesus plainly tells us that it is something received on our part. We can’t earn it, purchase it, or trade for it. Grace is hard to swallow because it forces you and me to give full credit and glory to God. If there is ANY room for us to boast then we are not speaking of Biblical salvation. Additional Scripture References: Luke 2:22; Proverbs 22:6; 1 Timothy 2:15; Ephesians 6:4; Deuteronomy 4:9; 11:...
The beauty of the Word of God is that it is God’s revelation to us. The Word is God revealing Himself TO US. More than just great principles to live by, we have the opportunity seek and know the very heart of God. This is what we are called to pursue…not just an understanding of His rules, but to know and understand Him! Jesus, in the flesh, leads us to this with regards to our own marriages. Additional Scripture References: Deuteronomy 24:1-4; Leviticus 20:10; Malachi 2:16; Genesis 1:26-28; Mat...
To be a member of the Body of Christ is to be invited into a marvelous dance…a divine romance, an epic adventure with triumph and failure, good and evil, peace and war, with a glorious, splendid, holy, without blemish ending. Are we, as men, bringing on our wives as bone of our bones and flesh of our flesh into such an adventure? Additional Scripture References: Romans 8:28-30; Philippians 1:6; Romans 8:1; 1 Peter 4:8; Romans 7:17; Genesis 2:23,24; Colossians 3:4; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 3:28;...
The mystery of Christ's relationship with His church is revealed in scripture, from the doctrines therein. So we set out to study the record of the Bible and the Holy Spirit begins to reveal to us who God Is...what He has already done...what He is doing right now...and what He plans to do in the future...all of which Is related to His love for us and the work He invites us into for His glory...including the work of partnering with Him in making an exemplary marriage...or said another way...in pa...
The mystery of Christ's relationship with His church is revealed in scripture, from the doctrines therein. So we set out to study the record of the Bible and the Holy Spirit begins to reveal to us who God Is...what He has already done...what He is doing right now...and what He plans to do in the future...all of which Is related to His love for us and the work He invites us into for His glory...including the work of partnering with Him in making an exemplary marriage...or said another way...in pa...
Through the covenant of marriage, God has ordained that His two image bearers, husband and wife, paint a portrait to the world of the everlasting covenant that Christ has made with His church. Marriage was meant to be a beautiful picture of the relationship between Christ and His redeemed people. In these verses, Paul exhorts the wife to be and play the part that she was designed to play. Scripture is clear that the wife's greatest inspiration is her desire to please Christ and walk faithfully w...
The whole of Ephesians 5 and the first part of 6 is that our existence is to be defined in our imitating God. Paul shows us how this plays itself out in our relationships with one another. The key to imitating God comes through being filled with the Holy Spirit. Only then can our relationships (brothers and sisters in Christ as well as husband and wife) be what God designed them to be. Additional Scripture References: Galatians 6:1-10; Ephesians 2:10; Romans 12:11; Romans 12:1-2;Amos 5:13; John ...
Matthew recounts the horrific story of the slaughtering of the young males in Bethlehem by King Herod. In the midst of this seemingly hopeless text Matthew points us to two Old Testament passages that give an honest response to our pain and suffering. Whether we like what we hear is another story. Additional Scripture References: Matt. 6:19-21; Luke 14:26; Mark 8:35-37; Hosea 11:1-7; 13:4-6; 12:8; 14:3-6; Jer. 31:14-20
Additional Scripture References: 2 Timothy 3:7; 1 Corinthians 1:20-31; Luke 14:26
Christmas Celebration 2012
Each year around December, people everywhere are telling others to remember the "reason for the season." However, these efforts are often still exhorting something less than the Advent of Christ. Perhaps in foresight of this, the Apostle John begins his gospel telling us that the Word, who was in the beginning, became flesh and dwelt among us. To us today, this is a reminder that when Jesus was born, God had come to us. This is the reason, the rest are implications. Additional Scripture Referenc...
The heart of advent is that there truly would be a weightiness and a gravity placed on us as we reflect on the moment Christ made His first appearance in this world. It Is our desire here at ARCC that "advent" season would be a reminder of how truth of Christ's Incarnation and the truth of His expected return is to play Itself outIn our lives every day of our lives.
It is a very worthy question to ask. Jesus is implying that to be saved or to be a follower of Him is to be in relationship with God, the rest of the redeemed, and with those who are not redeemed. Jesus gives both our motivation for asking the question in His picture of heaven and hell as well as the benchmarks to come to a satisfactory answer. Additional Scripture References: Rev. 7:9; 1 Co. 12:13, 25-26; Rom. 12:15, 1:8-15; Rom. 8:13; Col. 3:5; Ps. 42:1-2; Ps. 139:23-24; Gal. 6:14-17; Col. 4:6...
Once again we find Jesus sharing with His disciples about His impending death and resurrection. The disciples fail to engage Jesus in this discussion because of their lack of understanding, their fear based on past rebuke, and because there is simply just something else on their mind. Jesus, the great teacher, uses this as an opportunity to teach them the significance of what is going to happen to Him. Jesus is hitting the same nail from a different perspective. What happens to Jesus will have i...
Praise God for seasons. Praise God for new days. We have two constants. The first is that God never changes and the second is that the world is constantly changing. If you are a follower of Christ you should come to expect change. A work has begun in you. God will be faithful to complete it. The reality of this is that difficult times will pass, but the flip side of the coin is that good things pass as well. To embrace this is to embrace the life with Christ! Change in our lives is God’s grace t...
The concept of the sovereignty of God is in no way God forcing unwilling people kicking and screaming to do something they don't want to do. Likewise, God shuts the door on no man who is desiring Him. So, therefore, Jesus isn't dragging anyone into this deal. In fact, Jesus is doing the opposite of a sales pitch. This is just an invitation by One who is sold out to being a part of God's sovereign plan and purpose. The only way a man ever chooses, however, to sell out to following Christ is by Go...
To have our hearts and minds set on the things of God means that we are going to experience the pain and pricking of truth upon our lives. It also means we will possibly experience the consequences of living life previously set on the things of this world. To walk through such humiliating a path is also to end in the open, loving, gracious arms of Christ. It is to be reminded of His everlasting love and acceptance of us. In the end, this is an experience often needed to bring us back to being wh...
On the heels of a great miracle of giving a man his sight back Jesus asks two revealing questions to His disciples. The first question of “who do people say that I am?” leading to the infinitely more important question of “who do you say that I am?”. This section is a very gentle way for the Messiah to introduce that gap between popular belief and reality. What you think of when you think about Jesus Christ is the absolute most important thing about you. It is the difference between life and dea...
We often hear the phrase "seeing is believing". Unfortunately that breaks down in the fact that what you "see" is not always what you get. No matter what your system of thought is or what your worldview is, because we live in finite, fragile bodies we will not be able to "see" and "know" everything there is to know. There will always be inconceivable mysteries about life both inside of us and outside of us. The Biblical worldview, which doesn't always give answers to the mysteries, by putting Ch...
As Jesus' ministry continues to attract many, he performs another feeding miracle. Jesus is then tested by Pharisees for a sign from heaven even though he continues to give one after another. He therefore teaches his disciples to watch out for this type of staunch unbelief. Additional Scripture References: Matthew 15:38, Exodus 1:8-22, 4:21-23, 5:1-9, 12:37-41
It would be difficult for anyone to look around this world and fully accept the claim that God does all things well. The difficulty lies in the fact that we are stuck in the here and now unable to see how everything will play out. At the end of the day scripture doesn’t ask us to be able to see into the future in order to justify that statement. It calls us over and over again to look to what has happened in the past. The cross of Christ brings everything into perspective. The way we feel about ...
For the simple fact that we are in such need of God’s grace it shouldn’t surprise us that we would miss it even if it were right in front of us. Mark states that “HE (Jesus) could not be hidden”. That statement is incredibly far reaching, but what we learn here is that if it weren’t for the grace of God Jesus and His salvation would be hidden from all of us. We must never forget that salvation came because of grace and not because of us. Sadly, over time spent in God’s grace and mercy we can be ...
Not only does Jesus tell us what the problem is (our hearts being far from Him), but He goes ahead and shows us as well. As the great shepherd Jesus exposes the hearts of those around Him. Jesus asks us to identify with two very practical and relevant issues: authority and money. How we deal with and approach these two issues gives us great insight into where our treasure is. Christ, as the great Shepherd opens our chest and allows us to see for ourselves just how close or how far our hearts are...
The Pharisees came a long way to get into an argument with Jesus about the importance of washing your hands before you eat. What we see is a group of people who simply missed the point. It is a great irony that Jesus points out to us the life and freedom wasted when we believe life revolves around us. It is that heart attitude that leads men to create more and more laws and traditions out of arrogance and self justification. Although the church today may not struggle with external washing, we ha...
Scripture alludes to the fact that the disciples missed the point of the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. Scripture says they missed the point because their hearts were hardened. Even in the midst of being a part of the most admirable tasks and ministry we are in danger of having hard hearts. We fall into this when we forget that the entire purpose of our life is to worship God. There is great temptation that comes along that causes us to believe that life is about accomplishing something (e...
