Eternally Minded

" Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof." Matthew 13:31-32 Jesus often spoke in parables to communicate a singular point or truth. A parable is a method of communication like an illustration. The word parable means: to throw something alongside something else. So, Jesus would throw a parable alongside his declarations of truth.  The main thing to keep in mind when trying to interpret a parable is that it isn't usually an allegory. Not every word in a parable has some hidden meaning. In this parable, as in most of His parables, He is communicating a truth about the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, it starts small but it finishes being great. ...

Now the word of the Lord came to Solomon saying, “Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in My statutes and execute My ordinances and keep all My commandments by walking in them, then I will carry out My word with you which I spoke to David your father. I will dwell among the sons of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.” 1 Kings 6:11-13 This is a promise from the L ORD to His chosen people, Israel, while Solomon is building the temple. Intentionally, in chapter 5, we see God fulfilling a promise He made to Solomon,  "The L ORD gave wisdom to Solomon, just as He promised him..." (1 Kings 5:12) But there is a contingency linked to this particular promise in chapter 6: That His people would obey His statutes, rules, and commandments, and to walk in them.  Maybe, if you're like me, this sounds like a lot of what is modernly called 'works religion'.   But the phrase 'walk in them' points to a devotion. ** D...

Has there ever been a moment of passion and zeal where you wish you could do anything and everything for the sake of Christ? Where you've counted the cost and would be willing to loose all, to risk all, to live completely abandoned for Christ? Has eternity ever scorched your mind and make you wonder why you aren't spending every moment pleading with lost? Has the parable of the talents left you striving to make the most every moment (Matthew25)? Does life seem so short, that you feel guilty for resting? Does the promise of eternal rewards make you want to be involved in any ministry, outreach, evangelism available? These are the thoughts that often run through my head, and yet, as much as I try to give up everything and go "all out", I never feel like I'm doing enough. Why? It doesn't seem like I've got bad motives. Yes, I may die younger from exhaustion, but that doesn't seem so bad in light of eternity. Why can't I find fulfilment? The Right ...

I was doing my morning reading through the book of Judges and was shocked at how twisted this man named Micah was. The chapter starts off with him stealing from his mother, then returning the money, then she makes him an idol out of the returned money, and he makes his son the priest of his idols. Later, a Levite comes by and he hires him to be the priest instead of his son and says: "Now know I that the Lord will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest." Judges 17:13 How can this guys definition of right and wrong be so thwarted? How can he think God is pleased with his actions? Sure he hired God's ordained ministers to be his priest (Lev7:35), but he was worshiping a idol! He wasn't even worshiping the one true God! So he wasn't obeying the Levite Priest law, because he broke a much more serious law: "Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in the heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is...

In the last few months at my church ( Cornerstone Church ) my pastor, Chris Sippley, has been going though the Gospel of Mark. There are things I'm seeing for the very first time about the reason for the book of Mark, his teachings about Christ, and Christ's teachings about Himself. Not only what Jesus said matters, but also what He did: what He valued and what He prioritized.  I'd like to share with you - as a sort of informal post - my notes taken from the sermon on Mark 5:1-20, spoken on July 29, 2018. (You can listen to this sermon - and plenty more! - for yourself  HERE ) Demons wrecked this man who lived among the tombs. He was rejected, feared, and insane. They made a living hell in him and immediately falls down when he sees Jesus - when the demons see Jesus . They know their fate to hell - they know and try to do as much as possible before they're put away for eternity. They had to have permission from God to go into the pigs. They left the man...

Hello! This week's post is another audio recording uploaded to YouTube of part 2 in our gospel series. These posts are the foundation of our blog, and therefore we wanted to make them available to you to listen to as well as read. Enjoy! Click here: The Gospel Series: Part 2: The Glory of God not Honoured

This is a question I think everyone has asked at one point or another. (If you haven't, I'm sure you will.) Some ask with personal experience to suffering in mind. Others ask in response to the news they hear in the world. Still others ask, because they have been asked and don't know the answer. So however you may be approaching this question, I pray that you might see the truth, as I try to tactfully share what God has revealed in His word - the Holy Bible. Firstly, we cannot deny that there is great suffering in this world. Death, sickness, war, crimes, relationship breakdowns, poverty, etc. The list could go on! We don't have to look very far to see that we do not live in a perfect world, in fact, we don't have to even look past ourselves. So where does this suffering come from? Ultimately, it is the consequence for sin. Suffering has existed since the fall of mankind in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3). The first two people God created, Adam and Eve, brok...