Today is Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday when we commemorate the foot washing (maundy) and the last supper of Jesus Christ. During the meal Jesus institutes the Eucharist by the words of sacrifice: While they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take and eat. This is my body.” He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from this, all of you. This is my…
What do you think? Are you responsible for Jesus’ death? Your answer is important. It defines whether you are ready for Easter or not. We aren’t able to receive God’s grace before we have a need for it. We aren’t ready for Easter before we embrace Good Friday. In order to do that we need to see that Good Friday’s happenings are for us. But we aren’t able to do that if we don’t see our part in the crucifixion….
God looks not at the elegancy of your prayers, to see how neat they are; nor yet at the geometry of your prayers, to see how long they are; nor yet at the arithmetic of your prayers, to see how many they are; nor yet at the music of your prayers, nor yet at the sweetness of your voice, nor yet at the logic of your prayers; but at the sincerity of your prayers, how hearty they are. There is…
An old saying insists that love is blind. I dare to disagree. I think real love is not blind. But that’s the thing. Infatuation is blind. But real love is not. Real love is many things but not blind. Love is patient, love is kind, it isn’t jealous, it doesn’t brag, it isn’t arrogant, it isn’t rude, it doesn’t seek its own advantage, it isn’t irritable, it doesn’t keep a record of complaints, it isn’t happy with injustice, but it…
Have you ever been so broken, shattered into zillion little pieces, that you were sure there was no hope for you? Or are you heart-broken right now? There’s good news for broken people! In Jesus all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies! There’s hope because of Jesus’ blood that poured down from the cross! He [Jesus] was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the…
Do you have engrams, memory traces, of God? Has God touched you in such a way that there’s been a physical alteration in your living neural system? I hope so. Just like the men who fought along Saul: Along with him went courageous men whose hearts God had touched. (1 Sam. 10:26, CEB) When we have been touched by God, we are marked by God for good. When we have experienced God’s love and grace, our brains will always carry…
Too often we just let life happen and we wander without thinking, even without praying. But then we are in danger to get where the flow takes us and not where we want to go. We need to put our faith in action. Because faith is not a sentiment, it is a call for action. We need to start our days by praying for guidance, for wisdom, for direction, for strength. Tommy Barnett explains “I’ve discovered it is not sufficient…
Did you know that there are more biblical prophecies on the second coming of Christ than prophecies on the first coming? The central theme in Christianity is to wait for the second coming of Jesus Christ to complete his saving work. Come, Lord Jesus! Therefore, stay alert! You don’t know what day the Lord is coming. But you understand that if the head of the house knew at what time the thief would come, he would keep alert and wouldn’t…
Just the other day someone on Twitter told me “if you [are] talking to God you are askew. If he talks back you are insane.” That pretty much sums up how the world sees Christians. Praying makes you eccentric but if you claim God is talking back you are crazy. But how else could we be in a relationship with him if we did not communicate with each other? God is alive and well. Why wouldn’t he want to talk…
I have always wondered why people insist that Christianity is about being good. That all decent, good people are going heaven. Hence our salvation would be based on works or our behavior. But the Bible is telling us the polar opposite: You are saved by God’s grace because of your faith.This salvation is God’s gift. It’s not something you possessed. It’s not something you did that you can be proud of. Instead, we are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus…
