Tag: Christian obedience

Bible Note #57: Zacchaeus #1–The Real Zacchaeus and That Terrible Children’s Song

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Christians, especially American Christians, can be really good at sanitizing the gospels in order to make Jesus less offensive.  We want a version of Jesus that doesn’t make us uncomfortable, one that fits with our American way of seeing things.  The story of Jesus’ encounter with Zacchaeus is a case in point. One of the … Continue reading Bible Note #57: Zacchaeus #1–The Real Zacchaeus and That Terrible Children’s Song

Pastor Note #139: Learning to Live without Chains in Christ’s Victory

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Here’s a truth that is very dear to me.  When Jesus went to the cross, he did not merely take my guilt with him.  He took my sin.  He died not merely to gain forgiveness for me but to set me free from the power of sin.  In his resurrection from death, he demonstrated not … Continue reading Pastor Note #139: Learning to Live without Chains in Christ’s Victory

Pastor Note #132: Anger and Following Jesus

~ gachorpenning ~ 5 Comments

In my youth, which took place in those dark days before the existence of computers and apps on mobile devices, it was very difficult to say definitively how often, if at all, a given phrase appears in the Bible.  These days, of course, it is a matter of a few moments of thumb typing, and … Continue reading Pastor Note #132: Anger and Following Jesus

Bible Note #43: Peter’s Denial & Following Jesus–A Lenten Meditation

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Peter’s Denial and Following JesusDrawn from Mark 14 Peter was standing by a fire in the middle of the courtyard of the high priest’s compound.  He was standing among a group of men.  He was trying to be inconspicuous, trying to sort of blend in.     He was chilled to the core, so that the … Continue reading Bible Note #43: Peter’s Denial & Following Jesus–A Lenten Meditation

Bible Note #36 — Why Do the Just Suffer? — Ecclesiastes 8:14

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"Here is another enigma that occurs on earth: Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve. I said, “This also is an enigma.”                 Ecclesiastes 8:14 [NET] Who can’t relate to this?  Who hasn’t … Continue reading Bible Note #36 — Why Do the Just Suffer? — Ecclesiastes 8:14

Bible Note #36 — Obeying God — Numbers 9:15-23

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Numbers 9:15-23 Here we have one of the classic summary passages describing how God led the Israelites through the wilderness.  There is a certain drama in the process, because the means of God’s leading was grand and very public.  There was no indication that discerning God’s leading in this process was at all difficult.  The … Continue reading Bible Note #36 — Obeying God — Numbers 9:15-23

Quote of Note #19: Gracious Help to those in Need

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"If anyone . . . appears before you who is in need of your kind services, you have no reason to refuse him your help. Suppose he is a stranger; yet the Lord has pressed his own stamp on him and made him as one of your family, and he forbids you to despise your … Continue reading Quote of Note #19: Gracious Help to those in Need