I did not know until recently that Christmas invitation cards are big businessThere are invitations to visit the home of a family member or friend,– invitations to Christmas din...

But there will be no more room for her who was in anguish; in earlier times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on He shall make it ...

I have been reading Resilience by Rick HansonI don’t like it – the same way I don’t like taking medicine when sick– he said all the same things in a previous book I read• but I’...

Most everyone wants to know the futureIt holds a fascination for us that is hard to escape– fortune telling is an ancient practice that continues today• people still turn to psy...

In chapter 5, A man begged Jesus to heal his daughter,In chapter 6 Jesus is teaching in the countryside,In chapter 7, the Pharisees called out the disciples for a purity violati...

Every Christian I know loves the Psalms, and each person has her or his own reasons. Some of the psalms provide us with reassuring comfort and security, knowing that our God car...

 I wasn’t here last Sunday – spoke to a church in BellflowerAfter I spoke, a woman told me how much she appreciated me being there– I told her that I enjoyed being with them, be...

I had a few extra hours with my grandson, Calum, this week He could not go to school, because he was running a temperature – I get nervous about fevers – two of our sons, when...

I love the Bible and appreciate its diversity of styles (especially its poems and stories) James, however, is not one of my favorite books – there were followers of Jesus w...

Hebrews is a complex book It requires a good knowledge of the Old Testament, or else it’s easy to get lost – but Hebrews is well worth the effort to work our way through it ...

At first it looks like this chapter is going to be about Jesus His compassion and his close connection with sinners – a connection that was very offensive to the religious p...

How did we get started and where are we going? – the first question is easy to answer • in 2004 I visited a friend who had sequestered himself in a monastery ◦ while there, I...

Jesus had announced to his disciples that he was going away He would soon leave them and the world of humans – and return to his Father – the dimension of God’s reality (cf....

This last week I had a conversation with a young woman Afterward, I was impressed by her sincerity and compassion – she had been trying to explain her beliefs to her roomma...

Does John give us a clue that of something special in this chapter? In the stories of Jesus, episodes are marked by a scene changes – for instance, there is usually a shift:...

Last week Moses asked God for the ultimate experience Show me your glory – Let me look at you; see you as you are – he knew the truest way to know someone was to experience ...

from the burning bush on, God has been revealing himself • if that was like sunrise, the light has been getting brighter • now it is so bright as blind ◦ my fear has to do w...

Our story today begins with an example of creativity gone bad – this episode is a mirror image of the previous seven chapters • it runs parallel to God’s instructions for the ...

Moses had climbed Mount Sinai and disappeared into a cloud on the summit – God invited Moses into his presence to assign Israel a task • he gave Moses instructions for constru...

Today we’ll run through God’s instructions for preparing his priests to serve in his tent – a special class of ministers were needed to maintain the tent and perform its servic...

God introduces it by telling Moses to request donations from the people – “offering” refers to a specific sacrifice and how it was presented • it was “lifted” or “raised up” i...

The chapters I asked you to read comprise the covenant-making ritual We want to link the idea of God’s “covenant” with “relationship” – there were other “social covenants”: ...

1-2 Gateway to the Big Ten What is the rationale behind the Ten commandments? – first, their God is–I am Yahweh your God–and second, what he’s done–rescued you • he doesn’t...

Before we jump into the story, here’s what you need to know This is one of the most significant chapters in the Bible – it does not reveal a whole lot about God, • but the...

God sponsored Israel’s spiritual health with three prominent resources: Prophecy, worship and wisdom – think: Isaiah, Psalms and Proverbs – in this chapter we come across tw...

Intro: Why are fastest speed limits in California and Arizona posted on our desert freeways? Most travelers try to get through desert as fast as possible – I would remind my...

I will sing to the LORD for he has triumphed gloriously; he has hurled both horse and rider into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This ...

If you desire God, many religious experts tell us to learn more and do more – are you reading your Bible enough? studying your Bible enough? is your doctrine sound? • praying ...

After ten chapters of conflict and suspense, we come to the final showdown – but instead of rushing into it, the action is interrupted with an interlude (Ex. 12:43-13:16, whic...

Intro: People were constantly coming to Jesus for a miracle Some of them hoped he would heal them – others begged him to heal a friend, a servant, a child • in this same ch...

While the Israelites were still in the land of Egypt, the LORD gave the following instructions to Moses and Aaron: “From now on, this month will be the first month of the year f...

ntro: At this point in the story, Israel is not yet a nation They are a slave people – their identity is tied to Egypt – oppressed and exploited, they cried out for relief ...

The showdown begins The story of the plagues is told in cycles – specific themes (even exact phrases) are repeated Examples include: Let my people go, Pharaoh’s heart was...

Intro: This chapter breaks the flow of the story The scene changes, the pace slows down and the camera moves in for a close-up – we left Moses and Israel last week in a stat...

1-5 Moses and Aaron have their first audience with Pharaoh In the message they delivered, they made slight modifications in the script they were given – it was reasonable fo...

Steve shares his personal experiences

Moses returns to Egypt

We pick up where we left off last week God is recruiting Moses for his life’s mission and Moses is trying to dodge it – the two most serious issues have been settled already...

In the Book of Exodus, Moses has two extended dialogues with God And both are radiant with profound revelations of God

how comfort tempts us to settle in – the plot in today’s episode is keeping Moses alive • suspense is raised at his birth and resolved three months later • then, in his earl...

Recently, an idea has been nagging at me Namely, that I should be taking you through the Old Testament (maybe not the whole thing) – the New Testament (NT) presents itself a...

I had a hard time pulling myself together this morning I’ll just say, yesterday was tough – lingering emotional residue from yesterday – stumbling around in the dark, my fir...

We have some unfinished business before exiting 2017 We have come to the end of the Sermon On the Mount – the question raised in this last lesson is, What will we do with th...

Something ordinary was going on in Bethlehem A woman was giving birth to her first child – a son – she is young, she has made a long journey, and she is far from home • now...