Eating is a form of thanksgiving and table fellowship is sacred. Jewish table grace went something like this: “Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” When we eat we are acknowledging that God has provided for our needs. When we sit down at table […]
Peter, James, and John knew how to catch fish, but Jesus challenged them to fish for people. And when it comes to fishing, this principle applies: The smaller the net, the smaller the catch. Jesus cast a large net when he told his disciples, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on […]
Disciple-making starts with prayer! I sat in front of the funeral chapel three minutes before addressing a packed house. Every seat was filled and people were standing around the room. It was a funeral for a 23-year-old mother of two small children. I had been asked by her grandparents to conduct the funeral and knew […]
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:22, 23, English Standard Version). Perhaps more than any of its fellow traits, goodness is a tricky attribute to pin down. It’s one of those things we know when we see […]
God is sovereign over his kingdom. He decides who gets in and who is put out. Still he invites, entices, and pleads with people to accept the invitation into his kingdom. It is his good pleasure to give his people the kingdom (Luke 12:32). But those who are invited must respond. Our text comes once […]
