Jan 6 2015
The Sword of Christmas
Luke 2:21-40 The manger baby challenged the nations. Let’s pass his message on!
The Christmas story does not end with a baby in a manger, it ends with a baby at the Temple. It also does not end with the confirmation of shepherds and wise men in Bethlehem, but with the confirmation of prophets in Jerusalem. It’s all very well hearing from shepherds, but shepherds had a bad reputation in first century Israel. And as for Gentile astrologers or Magi from the East – well, they were not the kind of people Jews looked to for announcements about the Messiah. So confirmation by the prophets of the Temple is an important part of the Christmas story.
Joseph and Mary had spent 40 days in Bethlehem after the birth of Jesus and now they had to go to Jerusalem. Why? There were two reasons. More
Apr 14 2015
God was ‘One of Us’
John 14:8-11 Jesus said, “If you’ve seen me you’ve seen the Father”
“What if God was one of us?” This was the catch question in the song ‘One of Us’ written by Eric Bazilian and sung by Joan Osborne in 1995. Many people have wondered what motivated the song. And for many Christians the most intriguing question is; did the writer know that the Bible says God was indeed one of us? That is obviously a question only he can answer. But in an interview about ‘One of Us,’ Eric Bazilian said something that interests me; he said
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