October 11, 2012 SCRIPTURE: Matthew 3:13-17 OBSERVATIONS 1. Baptism was not a honoured sacrament, it was a humbling step, something that sinful people did to turn their lives around. To go to this wild man in the wilderness was a sign of desperation and messiness, an appeal for the mercy and help of God. This explains…
Author: Norm
purge and prune me… really?
October 10, 2012 SCRIPTURE: Matthew 3:7-12 OBSERVATIONS 1. The religious people (Pharisees were the conservatives, Sadducees the liberals) go to John like they go to church, for the performance or for the appearance. They are not there out of deep conviction or desire to change, but to once again show how good (religious) they are. John…
how people repent today
The following prayer offers a satirical look at our shallow view of sin. This superficial prayer is based on a modern “overhaul” of a traditional public confession of sin found in the Book of Common Prayer. Benevolent and easy-going Parent: We have occasionally had some minor errors of judgment, but they’re not really our fault….
crazy man
October 9, 2012 SCRIPTURE: Matthew 3:1-6 OBSERVATIONS 1. This guy was a crazy man. I’ve seen guys like him in downtown Toronto, preaching repent or perish or turn or burn. And yet John must have been different; people were drawn to him in crowds, but people avoid these guys downtown. If someone came like John today,…
despised
October 8, 2012 SCRIPTURE: Matthew 2:19-23 OBSERVATIONS 1. It is striking to think that the eternal Son of God, the LOGOS (Word, John 1:1) through Whom God created all things is now weak, vulnerable, dependent and at risk of being murdered. You would think that when God enters the world He created, there would be a warmer…
kiss or spit?
October 7, 2012 SCRIPTURE: Psalm 2 OBSERVATIONS 1. This psalm has a double focus. It speaks to David’s kingship in Israel, but also to the future Messiah’s reign. David is a pattern of the future messiah, who will be attacked, rejected, yet ultimately victorious. ”When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I…
a call to worship
Imagine being a witness to the creation. The YouTube video below gives you a limited sense of what Genesis 1 describes. We need to remember that there is no way our puny minds could grasp HOW God created the world. Moses may have received this as a vision or a dream, and I can imagine him…
Genesis 1:1-6:8
I know this is a lot to read, take your time and enjoy, it is very interesting! October 5-6, 2012 SCRIPTURE: Genesis 1:1-6:8 OBSERVATIONS What do you notice in this passage? APPLICATION What do you sense the Lord saying to you? PRAYER
praying for… refugees, abusers, victims of violence
Today as I read Matthew 2:13-18, I felt the Lord prompting me to pray. To pray for refugees (like Jesus and His family), for abusers (like Herod) and for victims of violence (like the parents of the slaughtered children). The following prayers are adapted from prayers I found on the internet. Please join in prayer as…
dreams lead to Jesus!
I am reflecting on Matthew 2, where God uses dreams to speak to people. And it reminded me of something that I once heard years ago (in the early 90s), which is apparently still true today. Jesus is appearing to Muslims in dreams, and leading them to reach out to them. Not Christians, not the church,…