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Shiny Rocks

A 1986 movie entitled, “The Mission” tells a story of violence, tragedy, sin, penance, forgiveness, conversion and restoration. In one iconic scene the character, mercenary and slaver Rodrigo Mendoza, played by Robert De Niro, must carry a large bag filled with weighted items wherever he went, to signify his sin and his punishment. The burden was excruciating, especially as they journeyed through the harsh rainforest and up the side of a slippery and ferocious waterfall. The climactic scene of the story is when Mendoza is released of his burdens and forgiven for his murderous behavior in view of his enemies by […]

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Beware of Religious Hypocrisy

Did you know that the most significant matters of the Mosaic law (even man’s law) are judgment, mercy and faith? Yes, this fact is substantiated in Matthew 23:23 by our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus. In Matthew 23:23, we find Christ Jesus criticizing the scribes and Pharisees, who were the biblical conservative leaders of the Jewish people, for omitting the weightier matters of the law, which are judgment, mercy and faith. Again, this fact is substantiated in Matthew 23:23, where Christ Jesus said, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin […]

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Franklin Graham: Evil Never Has the Last Word

Our nation was shocked on a spring day in March, when a shooter broke into a Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, and slaughtered three students and three staff members. The three students at The Covenant School, run by Covenant Presbyterian Church, were just 9 years old, and the three adults who died included the headmaster, a custodian and a substitute teacher. One of the students was the daughter of the church’s pastor. Thanks to the heroic actions of officers from the Metro Nashville Police Department, further bloodshed was avoided. They responded within 13 minutes, swept through classrooms and ran toward […]

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The Chosen

The motley crew left a cloud of dust as they walked down the narrow road donning their tired robes and worn sandals. Leading the pack were the spokesman, his brother, the sons of thunder and the recruiter. Following them a short distance behind were the true Israelite, the skeptic, the tax man, followed by anonymity and humility, while trailing them came the “human caboose” consisting of the terrorist and the betrayer. The leader of the “peloton” walked several yards in front of the pack with all the ease and grace of someone in total control of the situation. Unexpected companions […]

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The Prayer that Gets Results

“O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies. Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with […]

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Come, Holy Spirit!

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). This famous opening verse in the Gospel According to John tells us the Word of God was always there.  The Greek word “logos” is the term for “word” in this scripture, and it is often applied to Jesus himself as the Word of God revealed. We rely on scripture to give us the terms, or “words” to use to describe God. Of course, Jesus was the long-expected Messiah, and the prophets of old used words like, “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting […]

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God’s Mandate to Teach Our Children

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:4-9 God’s Mandate for Parent and Child It is difficult to imagine any […]

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The Ministry of Moses’ Mom

As we honor motherhood this month, I want to offer a word of encouragement to all moms everywhere by taking a brief look at the mighty ministry that Moses’ mom had in her son’s life. “A man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a find child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basked for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it […]

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Leadership

I am fascinated by leadership and always have been. It’s no wonder I seem to be asking with more and more frequency as my frustration mounts, who and how many are going to step up as Jesus Christ disciples and as boldly? Christ is certainly held up as a supreme example of leadership and exalted for the undeterred openness of righteousness, inspired by Father God. Remember, Jesus called the Pharisees a “brood of vipers” (Matthew 12:34). Harsh words. The Pharisees had great religious influence — wouldn’t it have been a better strategy to tone it down a bit? But Jesus […]

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