Christian Paradigm Shifts

This is an older post that I thought I'd share again.... Some of you may be familiar with the following verse - For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16) . You may have seen it on a billboard or at a football game. Maybe you have read it in your Bible. Whichever way you have come across this verse, it is a wonderful truth to be taken to heart. The Gospel of John talks about the world (Greek - Kosmos) 73 times. The basic themes are that Jesus made the world, He came to save the world, and His Kingdom is not of this world. Jesus made stars and calls them by name (Psalm 147:4) and the earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it (Psalm 24:1).  He saved the world by offering Himself as a sacrifice on the cross at Calvary (Hebrews 7:27). This allows people the opportunity to be part of His kingdom - His way of doing and being - ...

Wednesday night begins the celebration of Hanukkah. Many may not realize that Jesus, a Jew, also celebrated this festival. In John 10:22 - 23 [International Standard Version]  it states, "Now Hanukkah (Feast of Dedication)     was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking around in the temple inside the open porch of Solomon." Why is this festival celebrated? Why did Jesus celebrate this festival? The following excerpt from Barnes' Notes on the Bible explains - The Feast of Dedication - Literally, the feast of the renewing, or of the renovation. This feast was instituted by Judas Maccabaeus, in the year 164 b.c. The temple and city were taken by Antiochus Epiphanes in the year 167 b.c. He killed 40,000 inhabitants, and sold 40,000 more as slaves. In addition to this, he sacrificed a sow on the altar of burnt-offerings, and a broth being made of this, he sprinkled it all over the temple. The city and temple ...

Next Sunday begins the season to remember that a Child is born to us and that a Son is given. A time to reflect on all that God has done for us by sending His Son to take on flesh and dwell among us. He is our Redeemer, Savior and Lord.     There are many ways to prepare for the season. One is to set up an Advent wreath like the one pictured. The candles have various significance as follows:   First Candle: Color: Purple Theme: Hope First Sunday in Advent   Second Candle" Color: Purple Theme: Love Second Sunday in Advent   Third Candle: Color:Pink Theme: Joy Third Sunday in Advent Fourth Candle: Color: Purple Theme: Peace Fourth Sunday in Advent Optional Center Candle: Color: White Theme: Christmas Christmas Day Other ways to prepare are reading devotionals to keep one's thoughts focused on Jesus the real reason for the season. Here are a few recommendations: This is a devotional by Paula Whidden. It   includes short reading...

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, Ephesians 2:8 ESV I need the Lord. I seek Him daily. I rely on Him and in Him I put my hope. A blog post at http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/2012/03/grace-upon-gracethe-mystery-of-christ/  reminded me that I am not justified by my performance, by what I do. My justification, being made right in God's sight, is based on Christ and His performance. Christ lived a perfect, sinless life. He kept the entire Law perfectly. He went to the cross as a spotless Lamb. It is His work that is credited to me. There are no works that I can do to make me right in His sight. For that I am truly grateful. I am a sinner in need of a Savior. God met my need in Jesus. The pressure is off. That's so amazing! I remember reading a book by Chuck Swindoll called Grace Awakening. I read it several years ago. It was a radical awakening for me that I am accepted in the Beloved because of JESUS WORK...

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Lenten season. It is a time for reflection and preparation for Easter. There are many wonderful resources to guide us in this journey to the cross and the resurrection. Thirty Days with Jesus  begins with a portion of Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John and concludes with a fresh insight that will draw readers closer to Jesus. This devotional helps one to understand the character of God and the proper attitudes of the Christian life. Another resource is Devotions for Lent from the NLT Mosaic Bible. Each day provides a scripture to meditate on, prayers, poems, and hymns gleaned from every century of Christian history. It is available as a paperback book ($2.99) and as a Kindle download ($1.99 or free for Amazon Prime members). Also, Anne Voskamp of A Holy Experience is offering a free Lenten devotional and activities to make a Jesus Easter tree. It is free to anyone who subscribes to her blog. As this season begins, I wa...

Tonight my family and I will be celebrating the birth of the Savior. He was born a sacrifice to save us from our sins. Clarke's Commentary on the Bible states, "He shall save his people from their sins - This shall be his great business in the world: the great errand on which he is come, viz. to make an atonement for, and to destroy, sin: deliverance from all the power, guilt, and pollution of sin, is the privilege of every believer in Christ Jesus. Less than this is not spoken of in the Gospel; and less than this would be unbecoming the Gospel. The perfection of the Gospel system is not that it makes allowances for sin, but that it makes an atonement for it: not that it tolerates sin, but that it destroys it." This was His purpose of coming into the world. We see the baby lying in a manger. He is cute and cuddly as any newborn baby. This is all pleasantness and warm feeling. However, we should not forget that this baby will one day grow up to become a man. He wi...

Jesus Clears the Temple Courts - John 2:12-22  When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”  Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”  They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised fro...

As I have already mentioned, Jesus celebrated Chanukah, also known as the Feast of Dedication or the Festival of Lights [John 10:22]. Let's get into the details of this festival as it was celebrated in Jesus' time. This is a post-Mosaic Fesitival. Josephus in his book of antiquities 12:324-325 states, "Nay, they were so very glad at the revival of their customs, when after very long intermission, they unexpectedly had regained the freedom of their worship, that they made it law for their posterity, that they should keep a festival. on account of the restoration of their temple worship for eight days. And from that time to this we celebrate this festival, and call it Lights. Alfred Edersheim, in his book The Temple: Its Ministry and Services, explains the Feast of Dedication this way: The Feast of the Dedication of the Temple "2. The Feast of the Dedication of the Temple, Chanuchah ('the dedication'), called in 1 Maccabees iv. 52-59 'the dedicati...

1 Maccabees 4:36, 37 - Then Judas and his brothers said, "See, our enemies are crushed; let us go up to cleanse the sanctuary and dedicate it."  So all the army assembled and went up to Mount Zion.      1 Maccabees 52-59 - Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, which is the month of Chislev, in the one hundred forty-eighth year,  they rose and offered sacrifice, as the law directs, on the new altar of burnt offering that they had built.  At the very season and on the very day that the Gentiles had profaned it, it was dedicated with songs and harps and lutes and cymbals.  All the people fell on their faces and worshiped and blessed Heaven, who had prospered them.  So they celebrated the dedication of the altar for eight days, and joyfully offered burnt offerings; they offered a sacrifice of well-being and a thanksgiving offering. T hey decorated the front of the temple with golden crowns and s...

The fourth candle represents peace. The only real peace that I have is in the Lord.

Today is the Third Sunday of Advent. Today celebrates joy. Joy to the world the Lord has come!!

Today's lesson is about Jesus. Many consider Him to be a good man or a great prophet. But He is so much more than that. He is Messiah. He is the eternal Son of God who came in the flesh to redeem mankind. Jesus boldly declares, "Before Abraham was, I AM.!" - John 8:25 Jesus made seven I AM statements in the Gospel of John. He said - I AM the bread of  life, I AM the light of the world, I AM the gate, I AM the Good Shepherd, I AM the resurrection and the life, I AM the way, the truth, and the life, and I AM the true vine. For those who believe in him they will never walk in darkness, they will be saved, they will be protected, they will never die, they will know the Father, and they will bear much fruit. In Galatians 3:6-9, 14 we read that God announced the Gospel in advance to Abraham. God told Abraham that "All nations will be blessed through you". Jesus is the blessing who was to come. Jesus is everything. He is the self-existent and self-sufficient on...

Remember in all the hustle and bustle of Christmas the true meaning of Christmas.....

First Candle Color: Purple Theme: Hope First Sunday in Advent Second Candle Color: Purple Theme: Love Second Sunday in Advent Third Candle Color:Pink Theme: Joy Third Sunday in Advent Fourth Candle Color: Purple Theme: Peace Fourth Sunday in Advent Optional Center Candle Color: White Theme: Christmas Christmas Day