Find yourself in a better story
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Purpose, Identity, and Why We Don’t Start with the Great Commission
Matthew 4:18-22 tells the story of the day Jesus called his first disciples: While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you…
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“If You Are”: What the Temptation of Jesus Reveals About Our Deadliest Trap
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. After He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. Then the tempter approached Him and said, ‘If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.’” (Matthew 4:1-3, HCSB) For years I…
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To “Repent” Is to Hope: The Real Meaning of Jesus’ Call to Repentance
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:1-2, ESV) To many of us I think the word “repent” conjures up visions of angry Baptists picketing funerals or rock concerts, or maybe of old-school preachers raining down fire and brimstone…
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Name Him Jesus; Call Him Immanuel: The Names of Jesus and the Point of Religion
From Rachel: I am kicking off 2019 with three months of rest and seeking God … so I am reposting favorites from the blog. Enjoy! The birth of Jesus Christ came about this way: After Mary his mother had been engaged to Joseph, it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant…
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“I Am”: How We Make God in Our Image … and How to Know Who He Really Is
From Rachel: I am kicking off 2019 with three months of rest and seeking God … so I am reposting favorites from the blog. Enjoy! When the children of Israel came out of the desert and God made a covenant with them, his very first two commands were these: You shall have no other gods…
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The Spirit of Your Father Will Speak: The Revolutionary Promise of the Spirit
You will even be brought before governors and kings because of Me, to bear witness to them and to the nations. But when they hand you over, don’t worry about how or what you should speak. For you will be given what to say at that hour, because you are not speaking, but the Spirit…
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Sheep, Wolves, Serpents, and Doves: How to Be Shrewd and Innocent in a Hostile World
“Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as serpents and as harmless as doves. Because people will hand you over to sanhedrins and flog you in their synagogues, beware of them. (Matthew 10:16-17) Countless saints and missionaries and martyrs can testify to this truth: the gospel is risky. The…
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The Time of Visitation: Dusty Feet, Judgment, and Peace in the Mission of Jesus (Part 2)
Greet a household when you enter it, and if the household is worthy, let your peace be on it. But if it is unworthy, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that house or town. I…
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The Time of Visitation: Dusty Feet, Judgment, and Peace in the Mission of Jesus (Part 1)
When you enter any town or village, find out who is worthy, and stay there until you leave. Greet a household when you enter it, and if the household is worthy, let your peace be on it. But if it is unworthy, let your peace return to you. (Matthew 10:11-15) Thus far we’ve been examining…
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The Things We Get for Free: Looking Again at the Gospel of Grace
You have received free of charge; give free of charge. (Matthew 10:8) Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about consumerism and commodification, and as I work my way through Matthew 10, I find I can’t let go of Jesus’s words here in verse 8. To be clear, I’m not against buying and selling (and neither,…