1. Volunteer with the Church Greeting TeamThis one is close to my heart, as I was a member of the greeting team for several years at my church. This is a great way to not only meet new people, but also serve the church in a very important way. Your smiling face and warm greeting are usually the first impressions people get when they arrive at churc

Again, the word used here for “servant,” doulos, is synonymous with “slave.”He’s not condoning slavery but rather making a statement about equality; we are all one, all equal, with the Lord God Almighty as our sovereign.What Does the Rest of the New Testament Say about Slavery?The apostles also addressed slavery in their writings. Slavery was commo

Jewish rabbis speak of a concept called thinking with both hands. Writing about apparent contradictions in the Bible, Lois Tverberg points out that “The rabbis simply embrace the two ideas in tension with each other rather than needing to seek resolution. By doing so, they are actually being true to the text by not ignoring passages that don’t fit

The church in Rome, comprised of Jews and Greeks, was divided as well. People argued about the right way to follow Jesus and what and how Gentiles were to participate in religious sacraments. But, while Paul addressed these issues, calling believers to holiness, he didn’t allow their sinful behaviors to overshadow God’s grace.Plus, most of these me

What Is the Purpose of Lent? Lent leads believers into a deeper relationship with Jesus through intentional prayer and fasting. It requires slowing down and making time for prayer, limiting oneself, and reflecting on the road Jesus walked to the cross. When Jesus was in the wilderness, He sacrificed, He prayed to the Father, and He resisted the ene

Maranatha provides a poignant expression of this anticipation and longing for the Lord’s return. It reminds believers that their faith is not limited to the past but extends into the future as they await the ultimate fulfillment of God's plan.In Paul's letter to the Corinthians, maranatha is closely associated with God’s love. Love and devotion to

Unbelief is different than disbelief. Disbelief says, “God doesn’t exist.” That’s not what the Israelites did. Unbelief says, “God exists, but we can’t trust him.” The Israelites didn’t trust God at Meribah and later didn’t at the Jordan when told to invade a land of giants.The book of Hebrews also deals with the dangers of unbelief.Why Does Hebrew

Finally, Jesus completed the Davidic Covenant. He came as the Christ, the Messiah. For this reason, Luke and Matthew take time to trace Jesus’ Davidic lineage. When the nation of Israel first asked the judge/prophet Samuel for a king, God declared they rejected him as their king (1 Samuel 8). The Davidic Covenant, through Jesus, gives us back God a

What Does It Mean to Strengthen Your Faith? What exactly do we desire when we say that we want our faith to be strong during difficult times? Does it mean that we are shiny happy people, who smile in the face of suffering? Or can it mean that we are hanging on, white-knuckled, to a faith that feels like its slipping in the storm?Strengthening your

1. Sabbath Rest“And He said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath’” (Mark 2:27-28).After the dark days of winter, spring brings such refreshment with its longer hours of sunlight and the opportunity to be out of doors. As Christians, we are to take a sabbath rest each week — a

Isaiah 43:18-19 - “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”Ezekiel 11:19 - “I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them

Theme 1 - The Kingdom of God“Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place’” (John 18:36).Jesus often preached about the kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven. The phrase “the kingdom of God” appears over 50 times in the four g

2. ArgumentsArguments here in the Greek is logismos. It is “a reasoning: such as is hostile to the Christian faith.” People were speaking words of attack on believers. They wanted to argue against Jesus. It can feel intimidating to use apologetics (defense of the divine origin and authority of Christianity) but we are called to always be ready to g

Such explanations fail to capture the astounding nature of God’s plan of redemption. Jesus did not go to the cross against His will, but rather He went to the cross willingly because He is the only perfect Son who loves the Father and seeks to carry out His will (Hebrews 12:2). And the Father neither sent His Son to the cross out of an act of cruel

Possible idols to think through include:PhoneTVPopularity/FameSocial MediaMinistriesFamilyFriendsHobbies/SportsCelebritiesFoodComfortFashionCarsPrestige/MoneyGrades/AwardsThe Ten Commandments ListCommandments 1-4Thou shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven images. (Exodus 20:4-6)\Thou shalt not take

Any number of Americans will have to continue working indefinitely owing to the financial landscape. Such individuals are given an opportunity to promote the “peace that surpasses understanding” (Philippians 4:7) and a worldview that understands: God owes us nothing. John Ritenbaugh, discussing Job, explained that Job’s righteousness had not earned

1. Falling into ComplacencyWe often become complacent in areas of our lives where we feel safe and trusted. There is no need to strive anymore, and we may sort of check out or become emotionally unavailable. The term, “it is what it is” comes to mind. Life may become routine, cumbersome, or in some cases boring. While this isn’t a sin in and of its

3 Bad Ways to Give Feedback1. Get PersonalIf we feel the pastor has made an error or we have a personal problem with the sermon, we might feel offended because of the topic or seriousness of the issue. In that situation, people can be tempted to respond by attacking the pastor’s personal life. Generally, this entails questioning the pastor’s motiva

Christmas Eve Prayer Heavenly Father, On this holy night, I come before You with a heart full of awe and gratitude. As I reflect on the gift of Jesus, born so humbly in a manger, I am reminded of Your deep and unending love for me. Thank You for sending Your Son into this world to bring hope, joy, and salvation.Tonight, as I sit in the stillness, I

“Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering” (1 Corinthians 11:13-15).A woman’s hair is her covering, not a piece of cloth. Pau