The House You're Building

      Orient  John 21:1-25 The final chapter of John, the book concludes with an appearance of Jesus to Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James and Joh, and two other unnamed disciples.  The men were fishing and Jesus calls them to shore for a meal.  In this chapter, a well-known dialog between Jesus and Peter occurs where Peter reaffirms his loyalty to Jesus which serves as a parallel to his trice denial.  The book then ends differently than the synoptic gospels, without the resurrection story but a brief conclusion by the disciple John.     Introduction I’m a fan of reality shows.  I think it all started in the early 2000’s with American Idol.  I love seeing non-celebrity reactions to extreme situations.  One I’ve watched for many years is the show Survivor.  A classic scene in most seasons finds the tribe members sitting around a fire eating fish as it is commonly one of the natural food ...

       Orient  John 10:22-42 An unspecified time goes by (from fall to winter) and Jesus is once again engaging in dialog with the religious leaders at a gathering of the Jews in Jerusalem.  This festival was the Feast of Dedication otherwise known as Hanukkah.  We don’t find information about this festival in our Bible as it was established during the intertestamental period (between Malachi and Matthew).  The Jews once again press Jesus to reveal who He is to them and don’t like His answer, of being one with the Father, a claim to diety.  They attempt to stone Him and He once again slips through their hands, ending up across the Jordan, where John the Baptizer started his ministry.  Deep doctrinal statements are found in this section regarding election, eternal security, the plan of salvation, and the unity of the Trinity.     Introduction How do you build trust with someone?  When you ...

        Orient  John 10:1-21 Following restoring the blind man’s vision, Jesus begins a well-known discourse of spiritual leadership.  As the Pharisees had just shown themselves foolish leaders, Jesus teaches about His spiritual guidance through the metaphor of door and shepherd, contrasting Himself against the religious rulers.  Theological elements include His cross and resurrection, as well as His sacrifice bringing in Gentiles to faith.  As we’ve seen as a pattern to Jesus’ teaching, His discourse ends with division among the rulers.     Introduction Recently our family introduced a rescue-cat into our home.  Our other pet is a mild-mannered senior Weimi.  She’s lived with cats before and thinks that every visitor, human or otherwise, is part of her pack.  Last time we brought in an adult cat, they were friends in weeks, even snuggling together on the bathroom rug.  This exp...

  Have you ever thought about what it was like when God created the animals?  I’m a huge Harry Potter fan and one of my favorite parts is seeing how the artists in the films visually recreate some of my favorite magical creatures like hippogriffs and thestrals.  Imagine the whimsy of God, making the massive blue whale, the intricate hummingbird or the pieced-together platypus.  Not only inventing their physical characteristics but choosing their behaviors.  I on team dog because God made them loyal, sweet, and playful.    What was God thinking when He created sheep?  Did you know that sheep are mentioned more than any other animal in the bible [1] ?  Not only were sheep an important part of the ancient world’s economy, but God uses them in the Bible as an analogy of how we act.  It’s almost like God knew us and decided to design an animal that reflects our tendencies to show us our need for Him. Most ar...