The Rapture has fascinated Christian imaginations since the late 1800’s when an Australian pastor developed the idea. The thought is that at some point in time, God will take all the good people up to heaven while the bad people will remain on earth as it falls to ruin, prey for the myriad apocalyptic disasters mentioned (or even hinted at) in the rest of the bible. Today’s New Testament passage is one of the foundational […]
The Pharisees are the only group Jesus ever treated as enemies. Tax collectors, zealots for Israel, fishermen, prostitutes, widows, lepers, the lame, Roman soldiers… all of these He treated with respect and even friendship. But the teachers of the law, the scribes, and the Pharisees received nothing but wrath on a collective basis. Yesterday and today, we’ve read about the primary issues Jesus has with them. Hypocrisy – acting one way while living another. Jesus’ […]
The Pharisees are the only group Jesus ever treated as enemies. Tax collectors, zealots for Israel, fishermen, prostitutes, widows, lepers, the lame, Roman soldiers… all of these He treated with respect and even friendship. But the teachers of the law, the scribes, and the Pharisees received nothing but wrath on a collective basis. Yesterday and today, we’ve read about the primary issues Jesus has with them. Hypocrisy – acting one way while living another. Jesus’ […]
What would a church do if they received significantly more than they had budgeted for by October? What if they exceeded their budget by $100,000 on October 5th? Would that church put out a call to the congregation to stop giving? In the same way that we send letters near year’s end asking for an increase in giving, would that church send a letter declining any further gifts? “God has given us our budget plus […]
What would a church do if they received significantly more than they had budgeted for by October? What if they exceeded their budget by $100,000 on October 5th? Would that church put out a call to the congregation to stop giving? In the same way that we send letters near year’s end asking for an increase in giving, would that church send a letter declining any further gifts? “God has given us our budget plus […]