by Ed Allen | Feb 15, 2016 | Articles, What Do You Think?
Luke 21: 34 “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap; 35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth. 36 “But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Observation) The day of the return of the “Son of Man” will come upon the earth “suddenly like a trap.” Jesus warns against allowing one’s heart to be “weighted down” by the world. He also advises prayer for strength to escape the calamities preceding his return and “to stand before the Son of Man.” (Interpretation) Since all will stand for judgment when Jesus returns and since the day of His return has not been revealed to us we are to be prepared as if it will be today. It appears that whatever the distractions and temptations and worries, even calamities that we now face are, it will become worse as the day of His return approaches. Therefore we are to resist the things that will contribute to “dissipation.” As things get worse, we will surely appreciate His good advice to pray “for strength.” There will be no exception, all “men will have to give account on the day of judgment.” (Cross-reference) Romans 14:10 …For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11 For it is written “AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE...
by Micah Olson | Feb 8, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Balaam is an interesting character in the Bible. The biblical narrative about him is mostly confined to 3 chapters – Numbers 22-24 – but his story clearly resonates with numerous authors of the bible. He is referred to in Deuteronomy, Joshua, Nehemiah, Micah, 2 Peter, Jude, and Revelation. I will summarize the story of Balaam, but I mostly want to focus on the New Testament references to Balaam which highlight the importance of Balaam’s story to us today. The New Testament warnings regarding Balaam focus on two things: 1) he loved the wages of unrighteousness, 2) he tempted Israel to commit idolatry and sexual immorality It is the warning regarding sexual immorality that I want to focus this article. God promises to Abraham in the book of Genesis that He will give Abraham’s future descendants the land of Canaan “for an everlasting possession.” From Exodus through the end of Deuteronomy, Scripture describes Israel’s journey from Egypt to the plains east of the Jordan River, where in the book of Joshua the Israelites will launch their attack and eventually conquer the Promised Land. After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the new generation of Israelites were finally on the cusp of entering the Promised Land. In Numbers 22, Balak, the king of Moab, gets nervous that the nation of Israel is making their camp in his land. He becomes fearful of Israel’s military might and hires a famous diviner from Mesopotamia named Balaam. Balak’s goal is that Balaam would curse Israel, which would then allow the Moabites to destroy them. If all we knew about Balaam was what we read in Numbers 22-24, we might be inclined to think that he was a righteous man....
by Walt Henrichsen | Feb 1, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“The LORD endowed Solomon with wisdom and discernment in great measure, with understanding as vast as the sands on the seashore.” 1Kings 4:29 This is one of the most terrifying aspects of walking with Christ. All of your gifts, abilities, assets, and relationships are blessings from God that have the potential of inflicting great harm. To the degree that you are so blessed, at least three things can happen to you, and two of them are bad. The benefit of being richly endowed, as was Solomon, is your ability to glorify God during the years that He gives you. The two dangers are, you can misunderstand what God has given you, and thus misuse your gifts. Evidently Solomon saw himself as someone special in the sight of God, and presumed upon his relationship with Him by ignoring His commandments. You find the second danger in the words of Jesus, “And to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom they commit much, of him will they ask the more.”1 The misuse of God’s blessings can inflict great harm on you, if you are not careful. Rejoice in the blessings God has given, but be very careful in how you steward them. 1 Luke 12:48 for more articles by this...
by Gayle Jackson | Jan 25, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
I have been thinking a lot recently on where we are going as a people and what lies ahead. With a family of 15, I concern myself with things like this. I am not pessimist by nature but I am clearly concerned for what lies ahead. Some of my key concerns are because of: Socially and academically, as a people we embrace a low opinion of the Bible. Both inside & outside the institutional church, biblical standards are frequently violated and these violations are accepted. Our loss of recognition that Israel is at the epicenter of history past and future and our waning support of Israel. After much reflection, I decided the greatest gift I can give my family for their future is a commitment and knowledge of the Bible. Not money but the bible. This should be my legacy. The application of the word in their culture is their only hope. It is the only inheritance that will not betray them in the coming time. It is the only truth document on our relationship to God and others that has lasted 2000 years. Historically when people gather in community for any reason and for a period of time, corruption and debauchery set in. As a people we have gathered and can’t stay away from corruption and a culture that is debauched. Just review Babel. This influence has always taken us down wrong paths and away from the Word’s teaching. My observation historically is that once a social line of standards are drawn we immediately begin to drift downward morally and religiously. All people, professing, Christians included, tend to...
by Ed Allen | Jan 18, 2016 | Articles, What Do You Think?
John 20: 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’” 18 Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her. (Observation) When Jesus appears to Mary, she only recognizes Him when He calls her by name. When she clings to Him, He stops her saying “I have not yet ascended to the Father.” He instructs her to “go to My brethren” and tell them He is about to ascend to the Father. (Interpretation) I suggest to you that verse 17 implies that the time for clinging to Jesus begins after His ascension, for after His ascension believers will cling, hold on, “keeping faith” in Him on whom they have believed. Except for the time Jesus gestures to His disciples and says to a messenger “Behold My mother and My brothers,” I know of no other incidence in the four gospels when Jesus calls His disciples “My brethren.” So, it follows, I further suggest, that once the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus...
by Craig McAndrews | Jan 11, 2016 | Articles, Testimonies
The Bible quotes God as saying, “I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.” (I Samuel 13:14). Do you see yourself as a man after God’s own heart? Another way to think about it is in terms of pursuit. Do you pursue knowing God more and drawing close to Him? I don’t know that I ever fully understood what that could be like until I experienced a nearness to God during a mission trip I took to a foreign country. During the trip, I had countless experiences where I was uncomfortable, nervous, and even a bit afraid. In one specific incident, we were serving lunches at an event we were hosting, and due to the size of the crowd, we ran out of food. In this case, the timing was perfect as each of the attendees received a lunch. Myself, and several members from our group were the only ones who did not receive the meal being served. Since we had prepared our own food before we left the house, it was no big deal as we simply ate the sandwiches we brought with us. However, shortly after lunch, one of the attendees asked our team leader why we did not eat the food that everyone else was eating. He specifically asked if we were unwilling to eat the same food that was provided to those who were participating in the event. As you can imagine, the intensity was high when the question was asked given that we did not intend to insult anyone. I...
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