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pastorjohnb
- Jun 23, 2020
- 2 min
Put to the Test
Reading: Genesis 22: 1-14 Verse 5: “We will worship and then we will come back to you”. In yesterday’s reading, we focused on Abraham’s trust and obedience. There is also a second person who demonstrates a great deal of trust and obedience. Isaac accompanies his father Abraham and plays his role as son, obedient to the father. In other ways we see Isaac as an example of the kind of faith and trust that Jesus modeled on his way to death. Only then, the son was not spared. Thro
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pastorjohnb
- Jun 23, 2020
- 2 min
Put to the Test
Reading: Genesis 22: 1-14 Verse 5: “We will worship and then we will come back to you”. In yesterday’s reading, we focused on Abraham’s trust and obedience. There is also a second person who demonstrates a great deal of trust and obedience. Isaac accompanies his father Abraham and plays his role as son, obedient to the father. In other ways we see Isaac as an example of the kind of faith and trust that Jesus modeled on his way to death. Only then, the son was not spared. Thro
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pastorjohnb
- May 28, 2020
- 2 min
Ears to Hear
Reading: Acts 2: 14-18 Verse 17: “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my spirit on all people”. For the followers of Jesus Christ, the giving of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost was a game changer. After his death and resurrection Jesus appeared for forty days as he continued to teach. Those that had orchestrated Jesus’ death felt pretty good about the outcome. There were some rumors of resurrection and appearing again, but all seems quiet now. The followers themselves ar
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pastorjohnb
- May 26, 2020
- 2 min
Speaking and Hearing
Reading: Acts 2: 1-11 Verse 11: “We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues”. Today and for the next two days we will focus on Pentecost – the day largely accepted as the birthday of the church. A small group of Jesus’ followers were gathered together for worship. A loud and powerful wind announced the arrival of the Holy Spirit. Represented by what appeared to be “tongues of fire” that lit on each one, the followers were filled by the Holy Spirit. Meanwhile
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pastorjohnb
- May 21, 2020
- 2 min
To All the World
Reading: Luke 24: 44-53 Verse 48: “You are witnesses of these things”. Today is Ascension day. We are forty days after Easter and Jesus is returning to the Father. Just as his own earthly ministry began with forty days of preparation and testing in the wilderness, so too does he prepare his own with forty days of teaching and challenge. In today’s passage Jesus begins by reminding the disciples of his eternity. One can trace the fingerprints of Jesus from Malachi right back t
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pastorjohnb
- May 20, 2020
- 2 min
Suffering with Jesus
Reading: 1 Peter 4:12-14 and 5:6-11 Verse 10: “The God of grace… after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast”. Peter is writing to encourage the followers of Jesus Christ who are in trials and sufferings. As foreign as this sounds to us, suffering for their faith was a regular event. For much of the first 300 years of the church, it was dangerous to be a Christian. The Jews and the Romans were both openly hostile t
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pastorjohnb
- May 19, 2020
- 2 min
As One
Reading: John 17: 1-11 Verse 11: “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name… so that they may be one as we are one”. Sometimes people think a trial or time of hardship will draw a group closer together. Someone may cite a sacrifice made by someone to save a dear friend or fellow soldiers. Another may tell of how this church surrounded a family that experienced that traumatic event. While all of these things do occur, they are predicated on one fact: there was a bon
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pastorjohnb
- May 8, 2020
- 2 min
Out There
Reading: 1st Peter 2: 4-10 Verse 5: “You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house, to be a royal priesthood”. Peter establishes a connection in today’s passage between THE living stone and the followers of Jesus. He opens with these words: “as you come to him”. Our process of becoming like the living stone begins by establishing a relationship with Jesus Christ. We must take the first step towards Jesus. As we choose to walk with the one who was precio
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pastorjohnb
- Apr 23, 2020
- 2 min
Vows to All Peoples
Reading: Psalm 116: 12-19 Verse 14: “I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people”. Today’s reading begins with a question: “How can I repay the Lord for his goodness to me”? It is a good question to consider. The psalmist’s answer is the fulfillment of his vows to the Lord. Like the psalmist, we too are in relationship with God. And like all relationships, this relationship with God involves a commitment and some expectations. In verse thirteen t
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