Acts 19:1-10Cessation is a Christian doctrine. It says the spiritual gifts of the apostles ceased after their work. That is, prophecy, healing and speaking in tongues did not continue after the apostolic age. People wonder why we don't often see the miracles and signs today that we read about in Acts. One answer is cessation. Now, if you believe the gifts are still available to the church today, you lean more toward continuationism. The gifts continue.In...
Acts 10:44-48Some time ago, I did some research and registered on an academic website. I was looking for resources on John Fletcher, the early Methodist leader. That search and registration put my name into a system. Since then, I've gotten emails, almost daily, asking if I'm "the John Fletcher that wrote...." Apparently, there are some pretty smart and gifted John Fletchers out there. Each time I see the email subject line, I think to myself, "No, I'm...
Luke 4:38-44The incarnation of Jesus only means as much to us as we're willing to share it. That is, if everything we celebrate at Christmas is true, that God came to us in the form of a child, that reality must become a part of our shared experience. We share the experience of God with us in worship, of course. But we're also called to share that experience beyond our sanctuaries and holy meeting places.When many of us Christians talk about...
Jeremiah 36:1-10A.W. Tozer noted, "What is needed desperately today is prophetic insight. Scholars can interpret the past; it takes prophets to interpret the present."Reflect more on that quote and you can discern what prophecy is. It's not fortune telling. Instead, it's understanding and seeing how what's happening today may impact us later. Not everyone can see that, mind you. Most of us are comfortable with what is. Maybe that's why there's always...
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Stay blessed...john
Day 1: Satan Binds, But the Spirit Releases
Scripture Reading: Luke 4:1-14
Devotional: The essential theme of today's reading is the freedom that comes from God's Spirit. As we examine Luke 4, notice that Jesus enters the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit and emerges empowered by the Spirit. Jesus, though tempted by Satan, does not succumb to the binding that Satan attempts. Instead, Jesus embodies...
Isaiah 61:1-7As a pastor, I'm guided by Ephesians 4. The reminder there is that the Holy Spirit has equipped the church. Among all God's saints, some carry the designation as apostle, prophet, evangelist, teacher or pastor. Whatever the title, the work is the same. To "equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ." So, if you've ever wondered to yourself (or to someone else) why I did what I did, I guarantee you I thought...
Luke 5:33-39I was in a meeting with several other pastors. One of them began talking about someone they once knew from their church. What was impactful was that the pastor hadn't mentioned the congregant's name. And I had forgotten we both served the same church. As it turned out, who the pastor was speaking of is who came to my mind as the pastor's story unfolded. With great joy I remembered the person they were talking about. I could affirm everything...
1 Corinthians 1:3-9The preacher stood before the congregation and said, "There's good news and bad news. The good news is we have all the money we need to meet our budget. The bad news is it's still in your pockets."That's an old preacher joke. I'm not sure I've ever told it before. But what if I told you your church already has everything it needs to be faithful and fruitful? Would you believe me? Could you believe me? No joking! Your church has what...
I couldn't help but think of the old Cheers theme song as I prepared for this message. We still don't have a spot like that. We have places we like to go, but I still can't ask the waiter for "my ush." Watch on YouTube
Stay blessed...john Day 1: Finding Your "Spot" with JesusReflection:Pastor John talks about always wanting a "spot"—a familiar place of community and comfort. Reflect on how Jesus can be that "spot" in your life, a place of safety and...
Romans 12:9-21So much about our faith in God and discipleship comes down to choice. First, and foremost, of course, we understand that God has acted. The Lord is Creator of all. In Christ, God has redeemed us and the Holy Spirit sustains us. Everything begins and ends with the Alpha and Omega. Even still, we choose to believe that. We choose to accept the reality of those truths.As we choose to live in imitation of Christ, we make other choices every...
Jeremiah 3:19-25Here's how The Message translates Jeremiah 3:23: "All that popular religion was a cheap lie, duped crowds buying up the latest in gods."People often criticize translations like The Message Bible. I suppose paraphrasing scripture doesn't sit well for some. But I appreciate the attempt to connect our modern understandings to ancient hearts and struggles. What we discover is that we're not all that different. People are people and people...
Acts 8:18-24There's kingdom work. And there's church work. When those two combine, faithful and fruitful ministry grows. To be sure, though, you can have one without the other.Everyone knows the modern church is experiencing a dilemma. Communities around our local churches have changed in ways we didn't prepare for. At speeds we tried to ignore. The larger culture has moved away from the church at its center. That has impacted church attendance, church...
Luke 11:33-36"Good eye!"That's the encouragement echoed countless times around Little League ballparks. You hear it when a batter doesn't swing at a bad pitch. Never mind that, often, they don't swing because they're nervous or scared. But the idea is your good eye kept you from swinging at a bad ball. You still have a chance to make a good play.I have no idea what kind of athlete Jesus was. But he had something to say about having a good eye."If your...
Someone sent me the pilot episode of The Promised Land Series.It's hilarious. Think The Office meets Moses. I didn't even finish watching before I sent it to a few people I thought might enjoy it. So far, only the pilot episode is available. I'll be looking forward to a full season.Check it out:
Stay blessed...j...
Psalm 106Psalm 106 offers a national confession of sin. "Both we and our ancestors have sinned" (106:6). Reaching through his peoples' history, the psalmist acknowledges what we read in scripture. Israel is full of contradiction. Saved by God only to turn from God. For about thirty verses, the psalmist recounts various episodes of this. It's a reminder that Israel's faithful memory was always short.The psalmist also includes God's faithfulness in this...
It's been quite some time since I've done a Music Monday. So, let me stop talking about how long it's been and share a song with you.It's called "God Does" by The Red Clay Strays.Watch on YouTube
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Who knew I'd be preaching about Y2K all these years later? I hope that doesn't make me one of them old preachers 😧😂I will say I didn't call back the looking-out-the-window gesture at the end. The point would've been to acknowledge the church's struggles. Yes, we have struggles and we have faith and we have struggles. So, it would've been a good way to tie together the entire message.Well, that's what happens when you're still learning how to preach.Stay...
Judges 4:1-16Deborah, the prophet, seems to call into question the course of Barak, the military leader (Deborah 4:9). The prophet told Barak to take his men into battle and the enemy's army would fall. Barak responded, "If you go with me, I will go; but if you don't go with me, I won't go" (4:8).So, we assume "the course" Barak took was to only follow Deborah's charge if she went with him. He would still be victorious over his enemy. But "the honor"...
1 Corinthians 2:1-10Apparently, you could've discounted Paul's presentation. But you couldn't deny the power he preached. By his own admission, the apostle didn't go to Corinth to wow anyone with his words. He didn't prop himself up as the prominent teacher and Christian so many of us regard him as. Instead, he kept making tents, and relied on the "demonstration of the Spirit and of power" God gave him.And what was the result? There's no denying...
Ecclesiastes 1:1-11I've always enjoyed a good movie. Well, not always. At one point, I learned something that disillusioned me for a bit. Apparently, there are six, maybe seven, basic story plots. Consider any movie or novel genre you want. No matter how different the characters seem or what's unique about the setting, we've already seen it. The story itself is not new. It's following a basic, human story telling trajectory we've heard in every story.That...
