ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 13, 2020Scripture: Matthew 9:34But the Pharisees said, “By the ruler of the demons he casts out the demons.” Thought for the Day: This seems to be a common attack on Jesus, suggesting that for Jesus to have the authority to cast out demons, he must have a demon connection himself. I can just imagine people in the crowd saying, “I’ve never thought of that, but it
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 12, 2020Scripture: Matthew 9:18While Jesus was saying these things to them, suddenly a leader of the synagogue came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” Thought for the Day: We tend to typecast the religious leaders at the time of Jesus, viewing them as hypocritical and out to get Jesus,
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 11, 2020Scripture: Matthew 9:14-15Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. Thought for the
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 10, 2020Scripture: Matthew 9:9-10As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And Matthew got up and followed Jesus. And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with Jesus and his disciples. Thought for the Day: A number of years ago, I
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 9, 2020Scripture: Matthew 9:1-3And after getting into a boat Jesus crossed the sea and came to his own town. And just then some people were carrying a paralyzed man lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” Then some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” Thought for the Day:
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 8, 2020Prayer for the Week: If we were to look at the sky today, with patches of blue made even more brilliant by magnificently shaped clouds enticing our imagination, we might deceive our minds into believing that nothing has changed in recent months. Yet when our eyes take a break from the upward focus, it does not take long for us to be jolted by the
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 7, 2020Scripture: Mark 10:51-52Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way. Thought for the Day: Today during my sermon, I reference this story from Mark’s Gospel.
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 6, 2020Scripture: Galatians 1:3-4Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father… Thought for the Day: Though Paul rejected some of his Jewish heritage, he held to other parts of it. In this case, he taught the
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 5, 2020Scripture: Romans 5:5…and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Thought for the Day: Can I be honest? I expect your response to be something along the lines of, “Bruce, we expect you to be honest. You’re a pastor.” Very good! My hope has been met with disappointment
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSJune 4, 2020Scripture: Matthew 5:6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Thought for the Day: For the longest time, I did not like the word righteous or righteousness as I equated such words with self-righteousness. If there was one thing that irritated me within my own religion was the occasional sense of superiority, religious arrogance that bled into self-righteousness. Maybe