Church Blog (Page 11)

No one would have blamed Esau for being angry at Jacob for conning him out of his birthright and later collecting the blessings of that birthright. But Esau’s anger had grown into murderous intent (Genesis 27:41). Thus, assuring that her favourite son would live to see another day, Rebekah sent Jacob north to her brother Laban. By all appearances Jacob took the journey to Haran alone. It was when stopping for the night at Bethel that he had his famous…

If a young woman of God were looking for the perfect husband, she would have found him in Joseph. He was absolutely godly, a man of great dreams, morally pure, selfless, hardworking, forgiving, and with good looks thrown in for good measure. But, as Jesus said, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be expected” (Luke 12:48). If any man will face judgement…

Esau would have been wise to remember why his brother was named Jacob. You can imagine Esau’s dismissive snare when being reminded that his brother came into the world with a firm grasp on his ankle. If he had said at the time, “Supplanter, my foot!” it would have indeed been the most ironic of sayings he could have come out with. But supplanted he was. Jacob was a schemer by name and by nature. Esau did not know how…

We all know men and women who have known the Lord and then turned away from Him. Brethren who spent years in dedicated service to the church, who one day completely cut ties with us. Whether they crossed over into that state of no-return, only the Lord knows. But one thing is obvious, Jesus is no longer their standard of absolute good and evil. It is true that some brethren seem to only see things in terms of Black and…

To hear some speak, you would think that the apostle Paul couldn’t preach very well and that he just got lucky in ministry. They quote Paul’s own words, “But even if I am unskilled in speech” (2 Corinthians 11:6), and suggest that Paul was some sort of patron saint of mediocre preachers. To further support their theory, they then quote Paul’s later statement: “For they say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his…

One of our two-year-old girls at church missed the ‘Orphan Coin Bucket’ as it came by. Thus, she ran forward to deposit her contribution. The five-year-old boy, noticing his oversight, offered her the bucket—in which she placed her coin—and quickly put the bucket back in its place. At which point the little girl filled the auditorium with a scream. Her parent, knowing the problem, ran forward and directed her to the coin bucket…in which she released a second coin that…

I have seen those videos online of forklift accidents causing rows of shelves to collapse like dominos. In fact, every forklift operator I have met knows of those videos and have told me of their own near misses. But behind their embarrassed smiles is that resolve to avoid harm. They speak of the enemies of the job – distractions caused by booze, drugs, anger, and incompetence. They do not want to have their names or consciences marred by such things.…

We do well to stop to bow our heads or fall on our knees in prayer before God; for He is worthy of our worship. But wherever we are, or whatever our posture, it is what fills our heads about God that determines whether we are worshiping before him. In general terms the Lord’s church has referred to “Worship” as the Sunday morning church service of the local congregation. Despite the opinions of some, it is incorrect to assume that…

The meanness of some people may leave a bad taste in your mouth for a very long time if you let it. Many a poor soul carries to their grave the evil wrought against them by neighbour and stranger alike. Scripture assures us that Judgement Day will be severe for those who have injured the lives of the innocent. It is in Christ that we rest in God’s justice. As a believer you find yourself “casting all your anxiety on…

I have never questioned my baptism. It was and always will be the greatest day of my life. However, since that day I have continually gained fresh insight into how great a burden of sin Christ has saved me from. Shame should indeed be an appropriate response. But Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice for our sins even removes that guilt and fills our heart with gratitude. Simon the Pharisee was quick to condemn Jesus for not getting rid of the “sinful” women…