“Wise to History” Daniel 11 & 12

Without a working knowledge of history, especially the empires and kings of Persia, Greece, and Rome, it is tough to make heads or tails of the events related to Daniel in chapter 11.  What is described is vague enough that it would have been nigh unto impossible to predict what was going to happen in [...]

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“Receiving the Word of God” Daniel 10

“I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.  His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound [...]

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“There is a God in heaven” Dan 2 & 9

When asked if he is able to interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, Daniel responds, “…there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries” (2:28).
After hearing Daniel tell him his own dream and interpret it, Nebuchadnezzar exclaims, “Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries” (2:47).
One reason God [...]

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“Funerals” Colossians 3:1-11

Yesterday Dr. Custer said that this passage (Colossians 3) was just for dead people.  If you haven’t died, he said, don’t worry about this passage.  He even said that we needed to go to more funerals.
What was he talking about?
We like to talk about the fact that Christ has come to bring us life–eternal life.  [...]

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“All Things New” Isaiah 65:17-25

For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. Isaiah 65:17
 
Written to a people facing exile, these words provide hope, a hope for the future that all things would be made new.  God is a god of restoration, of re-creation and He [...]

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“With Me Where I Am” John 14:1-7

“I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am,” said Jesus to his followers.  A few minutes later, he expressed the same desire to his Father,  “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my [...]

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“Sharing in Christ’s Glory” Colossians 3:1-3; Ezekiel 1:22-29

The Spirit doesn’t tell us in Colossians to set our hearts and minds on heaven without giving us something to visualize.  What does “Christ seated at the right hand of God” look like?  Ezekiel gives us some word pictures to describe the “figure like that of a man” who was seated “high above on the throne.” 

“glowing [...]

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“A Bold Prayer – For Us” John 17&18

I confess that when I read John 17 & 18, my mind focuses on the events in 18 – Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, being charged before Annas, Peter’s three-fold denial, and His appearance before Pilate. But, today, my heart has focused on Jesus’ bold prayer for us. That night, just before his [...]

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“Stay here and keep watch with me.” Matthew 26 & 27

“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
This is an amazing statement from Jesus.  Here, the One through whom all things were created, who is head over every power and authority, in whom the fullness of deity lives in bodily form, and who holds [...]

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“He’s Coming Back” Matthew 24 & 25

“Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?”  (Matthew 24:3)  
It started as an intimate gathering on the Mount of Olives; just Jesus and his disciples resting after a stroll through town.  One seemingly simple question by a curious disciple [...]

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