The House You're Building

[11] About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. [12] For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, [13] for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. [14] But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.  [1] Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, [2] and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.  Hebrews 5:11–6:2 ESV My kids are young adults now and don’t live at home.   It has been many years since they were needing the care of an infant.   At times, they get curious about...

[12] Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. [13] Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, [14] I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. [15] Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. [16] Only let us hold true to what we have attained. Philippians 3:12–16  (ESV) Human reality is in constant flux.  No state in our present experience is ever permanent.  In the good times, this is a negative characteristic.  Contrastingly, in hard times it is often a benefit to realize that your current circumstances aren’t always going to stay the same.  This has led to a saying “this too shall pass.”   This truism does not come from Scripture, though the...

  Straining Toward the Goal [12] Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. [13] Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, [14] I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. [15] Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. [16] Only let us hold true to what we have attained. (Philippians 3:12–16 ESV) As I reflect on the year, as many of us are prone to do at the changing of the calendar, I was thinking of what 2024 was about for me—the new things that entered in and the things it was time to let go of.  One of my favorite new things was hiking.  Though I’ve always hiked, a group of adventurous ladies who I’ve been doing life with for many years, focused on do...

  22  Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.  23  For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.  24  Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. 25  Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,  26  that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,  27  so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. [ a ]   28  In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.  29  For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church,  30  because...

    Dear Blog Readers,    Thank you for sticking with me through a long series in John.  I hope as you prayed, read, meditated, and reflected on that great gospel God has opened your eyes to know Jesus and to believe in Him.    I’m starting a new series on the book of Ephesians as I’ve just finished teaching it to my small group.  This first post will be an introduction to the book and give you some insight into some of the themes that will emerge as I break down the book section by section.     Ephesus: A Cultural Center First let’s get some information about Ephesus itself.  Ephesus was a port city, contained a vast retail market and was strategically positioned by major land routes.  It was a hub of culture for those in the region boasting the temple of Artemis as well as a sports stadium and buildings to display artistic works. It was one of the top 5 cities in the Roman Empire, much like an ancient...