Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom….So do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand….For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of …
Watergate “Proves” Jesus’ Resurrection
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead….This is my gospel. (2 Timothy 2:8) Charles “Chuck” Colson (1931–2012) suggested that Watergate proves Jesus’ miraculous resurrection. Colson was the first member of President Richard Nixon’s team to be jailed over the Watergate scandal in the 1970s. Colson later became Christ’s follower and his mid-life conversion triggered radical changes in his life and …
Christ Changes the Calendar
If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in …
Christ the Great Reverser
C. S. Lewis’s story The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, imagines a fictional country under the curse of an evil witch. It’s “always winter and never Christmas.” Everything is hopeless until Aslan the noble lion comes to make crooked things straight and rough ways smooth. Aslan represents Jesus, the Son of God, who came to destroy the devil’s works.1 …
Christ’s Way of Mercy
Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. (Proverbs 28:13) From my sermon preached at Iglesia Presbiteriana Oaklawn and other places. This Sermon Outline (handed out in English and Spanish): Christ Delights to Show Mercy Jesus Attaches Conditions to His Mercy We Must Not Conceal Our Sins We Must Confess Our …
Jesus’ Blessing (Part 3)
In Numbers 6:24-26, Jesus commands the priest to pronounce these benefits on His people: Verse 24 The LORD bless you and keep you. Verse 25 The LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. Verse 26 The LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace. When I was younger, I would get homesick for …
Jesus’ Blessing (Part 2)
In Numbers 6:24-26, Jesus commands the priest to pronounce these benefits on His people: Verse 24 The LORD bless you and keep you. Verse 25 The LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. Verse 26 The LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace. I am interpreting these Scriptures in a Christ-centered way, …
Jesus’ Blessing (Part 1)
The Old Testament (”OT”) Book of Numbers is about God (Father, Son, and Spirit) showing His faithfulness to faithless Israel during forty years in the wilderness. Numbers was breathed out by the Spirit through Moses about 1400 BC, but Moses was really writing about Christ in advance of Jesus’ incarnation.1 The New Testament Book of Hebrews describes how Jesus’ high …
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Yes, Christmas is past, but I’m still singing this hymn. It’s based on this Scripture: Near Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, there was a multitude of the heavenly host (angels) praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” (Luke 2:13-14) “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is a Christmas …
I Love to Tell The Story (Part 2)
Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel …