Back in the early to mid-1930s, Jean Piaget conducted some research in regard to the way that intelligence develops in humans. One of his conclusions dealt with the idea of object permanence. Through his experiments, he decided that children, specifically those under the age of 2, did not have a sense of objects still existing…
Many people are very aware of what they put into their bodies. We have diets of all kinds for all people. You can have a paleo diet, a Mediterranean diet, Atkins, or diabetic. In some cases, these diets are for health reasons, and sometimes they are about how we feel about ourselves. Throughout the years,…
Throughout the ages, God has called many messengers to speak to those who are near and to those who are far off. Still today, the Lord calls us to spread his message. There are days and times when we feel unfit for this calling. We do not know enough, we are not eloquent enough. In this we are not alone. Isaiah knew that he was an unfit messenger. Jeremiah protested that he was too young. It is a normal thing for those whom God chooses to feel as though they are not worthy of this calling.
This is appropriate. For most of history, the inheritance has gone first to the firstborn son, then there has been a distribution amongst the other sons. Daughters were left with a dowry and whatever their husbands could provide. So seeing Jesus as the Son of God is a reminder that he is the one who will inherit his father’s kingdom. As Psalm 2 reminds us, the nations are his inheritance.
It is not an uncommon experience for me to be asked a thousand questions a day. This is part of being a parent, a teacher, and having a reputation for always having an answer. I know that I’m not alone in having to field all these questions, and most of us don’t like to say, “I don’t know.” Though, sometimes that is the best answer we can give. A small example of this came up recently during a class. We were discussing the Tabernacle and what was used to make it. Exodus 25:3-5 gives a small part of this list:
Long ago, the children of Israel were given the opportunity to hear the very words of God. The Lord God Almighty spoke to them and declared to them his commandments. The mountain shook, the lightning flashed, the voice of the Lord boomed out as smoke billowed from the mountain that the people surrounded. All the…
I have often sung a song with the line, “this world is not my home, I’m just a passing through,” or another one, “here we are but straying pilgrims.” Both of these songs embody an ideal that it is sometimes hard for us to remember and grasp. Scripturally we can look at verses such as…
Just recently, I had the honor of paying $90 to have my mechanic look over my car and tell me there was nothing wrong with it. He kept it overnight, because the battery had just died and he wanted to be sure. In the end the problem turned out to be an old 150W Inverter…
At the very beginning of humanity, God declared that it is not good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18). It is important for us to have companionship and help that we cannot receive from any beast of the earth or bird of the air. This was one of the first things that Adam learned…
The Church as a whole suffers from an assault on two fronts. As Christians, we need to be aware of these two fronts and how to turn back these assaults so that they do the Church no harm. The first line of assault is always from an external source. The world would happily overrun us,…