Pastor Gene It’s not a message we hear too often from Christian pulpits today: You have to be harder on yourself! But, here’s what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:27: “I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” Now, I’m not loving this translation! It’s TOO … Read more
Bob Dylan wrote some really great songs during his so-called ‘born-again’ period. Perhaps the most famous was, You Gotta Serve Somebody. The lyrics are pure gold: You may be an ambassador to England or France You may like to gamble, you might like to dance You may be the heavyweight champion of the world You … Read more
As God leads us through the various seasons of life, He wants us to know that there’s always a rest available. Some of life’s seasons are clearly more difficult than others, but God’s rest – and internal Garden of Eden, a place where we can retreat in the calm of His presence – is never … Read more
Ecclesiastes chapter 3 may be one of the most well-known chapters of the Bible, familiar to believers and non-believers alike. It talks about the times and season of life. “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; … Read more
“For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away” (Matthew 25:29). Near the very end of His earthly ministry, Jesus told a story, a parable. It was about a Master who was about to … Read more
I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it” (1 Corinthians 3:2). Mary and I love art! So, recently we took in an exhibition in Boston at the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum called, Fra Angelico: Heaven on Earth. Fra Angelico was a truly breath-taking painter of the early renaissance. … Read more
Like many believers, I always find Holy Week to be exhausting. By the time we get to Resurrection Sunday we’ve walked with Jesus through a thousand highs and lows – through the joyful, if misguided, shouts of ‘Hosanna,’ to the shocking cries of, ‘Crucify Him, let His blood be upon our hands and the hands … Read more
Luke 24:1-9: “But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, … Read more
Today is Holy Saturday. Our Lord’s body is in the tomb, but His soul is in the realm of the dead making a victorious proclamation. At last the saved dead – waiting since Adam – hear that their salvation has finally been perfected and rejoice at the news! Jesus said in John 5:25, “Truly, truly, … Read more
Today is Good Friday – an exhausting day. While we remember it as the day that our Lord was crucified, it’s important to remember that the Jews reckoned the beginning of a new day at sundown. Therefore, Friday actually included all of the events of our Thursday evening: the Last Supper, Gethsemane, Judas’ kiss, the … Read more