Israel Lessons

by Mitch Hershey | Jul 3, 2023

A study of the nation of Israel provides plenty of material that parallels my own life. One of these is from Exodus 16 where God begins to send manna as they wander through the desert after their departure from Egypt.

In Exodus 16:2-3, the whole congregation grumbles against Moses and Aaron, going so far as to say, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

This is at least the third occurrence since the Exodus in which the Israelites voiced their displeasure and complained to Moses, which was effectively complaining against God.

Shod Your Feet With the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace

by Craig McAndrews | Jun 19, 2023

In Ephesians 6:10-18, the apostle Paul points out to the Christians at Ephesus, they are fighting a spiritual war. Therefore, it’s essential to equip themselves with a spiritual arsenal to “stand firm.” Paul highlights six components of the spiritual armor of God, each designed to prepare, protect, or play offense against the “schemes of the devil.”

Shodding our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace is one part of the full armor that includes two dimensions for Christians to understand.

The most understood dimension of this verse is about taking the gospel to others. In Romans 10:15, Paul writes, “But how are they to preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news of good things.” The gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ. The gospel brings others a message of peace, grace, and salvation. Satan doesn’t want any of those life-giving words to get to people.

Attitude of Gratitude

by Trevor McDowell | Jun 6, 2023

I believe one of the most important characteristics that a Christian must live out in their life is gratitude. It is a key component to a healthy Christian life and must be present in our lives if we are going to live out the fruits of the Spirit. Gratitude in Websters’ Dictionary is defined as “the quality of being thankful, readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness”.

Jesus seems to up the ante when He tells His followers to “love your enemies”. I suggest to you that we are also to return kindness even when someone may inflict us with evil.

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests by made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Are You Listening?

by Jim Gustafson | May 9, 2023

Listening seems to be a simple enough concept. We have ears to facilitate one of our senses — we use them regularly. We know all about it. Hear and respond with our mouth. It is important in our everyday activity. We converse with others and realize that without hearing our ability to communicate is severely diminished. So it is with God.

But the scripture takes us to a different understanding. James writes, “Be quick to listen, slow to speak” (James 1:19).

God said, “This is my beloved Son, listen to Him.” (Luke 9:35).

The relationship with God is rooted in listening to Him through His Word.

The Resurrection And The Trinity

by Bill McCurine | Apr 11, 2023

“I and the Father are One.” John 10:30 (ESV)

God is three Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. They are One. God exists in the perfect unity of One. There is never conflict between the three Persons of the Godhead. God is always in perfect harmony with Himself. He is always in perfect unity with Himself. So, after the crucifixion, God raised Jesus from the dead. This was the action of one God in three persons.

Concerning the Father’s role in the resurrection, the Bible teaches: “the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” (Ephesians 1:19–21)

The Nearness of God

by Craig McAndrews | Mar 28, 2023

I never put much thought into the impact of nearness until recently. Over the past six months, my wife and I have transitioned into the empty-nester phase of life as our youngest son went off to college. The early part of the transition was fun and exciting as we started to have a bit more time for the two of us. There were fewer activities to navigate, less managing curfews, and a dramatically lower grocery bill.

However, as time has passed, we have wrestled with our sons being away. We miss them and often look for ways to get together. There is something about having them near that brings a sense of peace and comfort.

These words describe a similar sense we may experience when God is near, however, in Psalm 73:28 the topic of nearness goes deeper and should more profoundly impact how we respond.

A New Creation

by Mitch Hershey | Mar 13, 2023

Recently my kids discovered a caterpillar on a bush outside of our house. They are at ages where curiosity is abounding and so we brought it inside and borrowed an insect net from some friends. Soon after, the caterpillar spun its chrysalis for its transition to a butterfly. We did some searching on the internet and found out that the chrysalis stage typically lasts for 11-12 days. Unfortunately for the kids, this meant that we were going to be on vacation when the butterfly emerged, so we took the insect net to a friend’s house and had them send some pictures and videos of the butterfly.

Soon after we arrived home from vacation, we found several more caterpillars on the bush and ended up with 13 caterpillars, some of which we “blessed” other families with by giving the caterpillars away so they could have the opportunity to watch this amazing process. We ended up with 7 of our own, and over the last few days we have watched them closely as they have matured into butterflies and completed the biological process of metamorphosis. It has been a truly fun experience to watch my kids’ excitement, and it also reminds me of the metamorphosis that occurs in the life of the believer.

Is Your Path Narrow Enough?

by Jim Gustafson | Nov 23, 2022

The men referenced in Matthew 7:21-24 had selected too wide a path to enter the Kingdom. The path is narrow to enter; too wide a path leads to destruction (v13). They seemed to think that their chosen path was narrow enough, but Jesus said, “I never knew you, depart from me you evil doers.” (v23)

What a terrifying thought. To make a choice so important as what it means to follow God, to expect to be approved by the Judge Jesus Christ, to expect an eternity in Heaven and then be rejected by God. To their horror, they had misconstrued the expectation, misjudged the target or worse, they willfully followed Him on their own terms, resulting in payment of an unimaginable, devastating price.

He termed their path as one of “lawlessness” (v23). According to the apostle John in 1 John 3:4, lawlessness is defined as sin or work of iniquity. It is the defection from God’s law, His standard and command on how we are to do things.