There is also the issue of what Jesus tells his disciples to say in this passage. He tells them to tell the owner of the house that “The Teacher” needs a space to celebrate the Passover in. In Essene life, the head of the community went by the title “Teacher of Righteousness.”While we cannot say for sure that Jesus was part of the Essene community,

Isaiah 9:6 - Christ Would be Filled with Power, Peace, and the Spirit from BirthProphecy - “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, becaus

Why it Matters that God Is I AM In the Old Testament, a person’s name often reflected his character.Abraham means “Father of a great multitude.”Eve means “Living,” which is fitting because she was the mother of all living people.Jesus means “Savior.”Names were very, very important at that time. It could point to a person’s disposition, mission in l

Arguing with God seems like a crazy thing to do, but it probably sounds familiar to some of us. In those moments when we feel weak, we may grumble and ask God to send someone else, get us out of a situation or to give us a better ability to do a task. There are times to pray such prayers, but the story reminds us that God is our refuge and strength

What Does the Name Jehovah Rapha Mean? Enter the name “Jehovah Rapha.”Also sometimes spelled Jehovah-Rophe; Jehovah Rophecha; and Jehovah-Rafah, this name translates to, “the Lord who Heals.”We do encounter the name Jehovah (Yehovah) a lot in Scripture, often tied with a compound name of some sort. Some instances of these are Jehovah-Jireh (the Lor

“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).Notice how the Lord's Prayer starts with "our Father who art in heaven". This acknowledgment reminds us of two things. First, we have an intimate, loving relationship with our Father. Second, H

1. Jesus Provides Peace with God Romans 5:1 - Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.Ephesians 2:13-16 - But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier o

6. “Enter into His gates with Thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise his name” (Psalm 100:4).When we give thanks and praise to God, we should come to Him with hopeful expectation. Our focus should be to move forward in faith praising God for who He is. As we enter into God’s presence, it should be a time where we exp

1. Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost (Acts 2:28)On the day of Pentecost, 50-days after Easter, and in fulfillment of the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father and the Son and came down upon the disciples in an extraordinary demonstration of heavenly presence and power. On that day the Apostle Peter preached before the

The more we understand our sin, the more we can revel in and understand the depths of God’s grace. In Psalm 51:13-17 David describes the implications of a contrite heart as teaching sinners about the glorious grace of God, rejoicing in God’s righteousness, and declaring His praise. These things take place when we humble ourselves before God in true

Proverbs 21:3 “To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.”Perhaps the most significant use of the name I AM in the Bible comes from Jesus Christ. The religious leaders would often try to catch Jesus in heresy, in a lie, or blaspheming so they could be rid of him. In John 8, the Jewish people challenged his author

Do You Bear Fruit? Sign 1: Love One of the first Bible verses we learn as children is “God is love” (1 John 4:8). God loves us; thus, the seed is planted. A popular description of God’s love can be found in 1 Corinthians 13. When many people speak of love, they are speaking of an emotion or a feeling. But God’s love is a choice. Just as he chose to

Whenever I think of the cross, I’m reminded of the price Christ paid so I could be free. But I’m also reminded of how much I needed that freedom. “For God So Loved the World” Is the First Part of God’s Rescue PlanJesus came so that, though we were guilty and tarnished by sin, we could receive forgiveness and pardon for all we’d done or will do. Bec

What does this mean for us?We may analyze these passages, once past the bizarre imagery, and wonder if this has anything to do with us in the here in now, since these events happened more than 2500 years ago.What do two sisters, who represented two nations, have to do with Christians today?We can actually pluck many spiritual insights from the 23 c

1. Sing When our daughter was about 18-months-old, about to celebrate her second Christmas, I put up the usual decorations for the season. Fascinated with the new items around our home, she made her way to the nativity scene on the fireplace. I figured I’d take this opportunity to share with her. I told her about Mommy Mary, Daddy Joseph, and Baby

Where Is Asa Mentioned in the Bible? We find the story of Asa in 1 Kings 15, starting in verse 9. We also can read about him in 2 Chronicles 14.According to these accounts, the land of Judah experiences peace for 10 years under the reign of Asa.During this time, Asa eradicates anything pagan or idolatrous in the land and they rebuild Judah. Even wh

When we pray in Jesus’ name, we are acknowledging that, without the work of Christ, we would be alienated from God forever.2. Submission to His WillThe Apostle John, who inscribed Jesus’ words regarding prayer in his name, writes something in the book of 1 John that might provide some added clarification to what it means to pray in Jesus’ name.1 Jo

As mentioned before, we won’t always have all the answers. But, when we’ve accepted God as Savior of our lives, his Holy Spirit reveals his character and his plan for our lives through Scripture (1 Corinthians 2:10-15). By spending time with God in his Word every day, we learn more about him, and grow closer in relationship with him. All in all, we

3. Shiphrah and PuahOur third example is two women who decided that God would protect them and His people if they looked toward him, instead of to Pharaoh. Exodus 1:15 states “The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives – the first whose name was Shiphrah and the second whose name was Puah.” Shiprah and Puah were Hebrew midwives living in Egypt a

Their sons, Cain and Abel, also experienced strong emotions. Cain’s jealousy over God’s favor towards Abel’s true sacrifice led Cain to murder Abel in calculated anger.King David’s lust for the beautiful Bathsheba caused not only an innocent man to die (Bathsheba’s husband) but for their first child to succumb to death. It wasn’t until King David r