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CHRIST, CORNER STONERock of my SalvationDate: 12/2008.101 Personal - grand Canyon We drove to Grand Canyon on a road trip to California in 2008. Climb down to a pointed cliff and walked right onto it. I was feeling a little nervous as I sat down on the edge, feet dangling over. I didn't dare to walk to the pointed end, so I sat down on the side edge of the cliff. My wife came along and walked till the very edge and sat down. Now I was really nervous. I cried out, "Be careful OK?" Suddenly my world seem to be collapsing. I was so paranoid that she would fall over and my world would end. I suddenly realize how important she was to me. Even though rationally, I know it wouldn't happen and the cliff had enough space, it was about 2 feet wide right at the tip. The chances of her falling over is really really slim, though possible. But I was so afraid and yet didn’t want to make her afraid, so in the end I just walked away and didn’t want to see her sitting there, all the while, heat beating quickly. finally she came back and I sighed in relief. I asked her, "Aren’t you afraid?" "Yes, initially. Then I thought, I am standing a on a solid rock and it won't shake our anything. As long as I had faith in the rock I won't fall over. I am ok!" :That's easy for you to say!" I retorted. But later as I reflected on what she said. It makes perfect sense. She wasn't trembling as much as me because she had full faith in the rock, while I did not. Isn't this what the Psalmist said, "The Lord has planted my feet on the rock of my salvation" The image is of the psalmist standing at the edge of a deep muddy pit which was formerly used to collect water. If he falls, over, he can't get out. But around the edge of this pit, they put solid rocks so that one would not lose one's footing easily. The Lord is akin to this rock. Steady & sure. As long as we have faith in Him, it is fine. In life, Christ is my rock of salvation. I have sure footing on Him. he is the Lord that bears my daily burdens (Psalms 69)
Governors/ Crucifixion of ChristWhen Jesus was handed over to Pilate, his fate was sealed. Two factors ensure Pilate will execute Jesus. One factor concerns keeping his allies happy by respecting their wished. The second factor concerns the content of the charge. To claim to be King of the Jews without Rome’s assent is to pose a political threat and to be guilty of treason. But to execute a kingly pretender was risky. Pilate knows that it may provoke an uprising. So he conducts a poll to assess the strength of his support. He offers a public bait and switch with Barabbas. His allies manipulate the crowd to shout for Barabbas’s release. Pilate tests their support by asking several times. The crowd calls for Jesus’ execution. This is a masterful piece of work by Pilate. Aided by his Jerusalem allies, Pilate manipulates the crowd into demanding what he already intended to do, thereby disguising his will as theirs (Matt 27:24-26). But the narrative is equally skillful in exposing Pilate’s work. (1) Mrs. Pilate testifies that she has learned in a dream that Jesus is righteous or just. The word in Matthew’s Gospel attests faithfulness to God’s purposes. She ironically announces that Jesus’ faithful challenge to Rome’s way of structuring the world accounts for his death. (2) Pilate washes his hands of Jesus, blaming the people and having them take responsibility. But the narrative’s references to Pilate’s questioning of Jesus as king of the Jews, to the Jerusalem elite’s manipulation of the crowd to Pilate’s polling of the crowd reveal the self serving nature of Pilate’s and Rome’s rule.
In the shadow of the CrossDate: 7/2008.101 31 August 2008 DCFC English - Heb 11:24-29 - Moses the Man who withstood Pharaoh 2009 OK Retreat - Heb 11:28-31 Faith 2 Finish: Choose, See, Do 2011 FCCD Retreat - Heb 11:28-31 Faith 2 Finish: Choose, See, Do
In the years of Communist domination of East Germany there was a symbol which brought hope and comfort to believers in Jesus. A huge TV tower had been erected to broadcast atheistic propaganda. Near the top of the building was a globe-shaped structure housing a restaurant. The remarkable thing was that the sunlight always reflected off the globe in the shape of a cross. The authorities were embarrassed and tried everything they could think of to prevent this optical phenomenon, even covering the dome with paint. But nothing worked. A pastor commented wryly, "No matter how hard they try, they can’t get rid of the Cross!" Paul would agree and would say, "God forbid that we even try to do that!" Where to take it: Even the greatest human system, lives in the shadow of the Cross. man will pass away but not Christ. Sometimes like the communist, we are well pleased with the plan of salvation until we discern that in it is the cross of self-denial.
1809Date: 4/2007.101 Youth Specialties - Hot Illustrations Had you picked up a daily newspaper in 1809, you would have read the big news that Napoleon I, emperor of France, had conquered Austria at Wagram, annexed the Illyrian Provinces (now part of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia), and abolished the Papal States. But in that same year, in France... Louis Braille, who devised a way for the blind to read, was born. And in Germany... Felix Mendelssohn, the great composer of symphonies, was born. And in England... William Gladstone, the four-time Prime Minister and the father of public education, was born. Alfred Lord Tennyson, the poet laureate of Great Britain, was born. Charles Darwin, the most influential scientist of the nineteenth century, was born. And in America ... Edgar Allen Poe, the master poet and storyteller, was born. Oliver Wendell Holmes, the writer and physician who developed surgical techniques still in use today, was born. Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President of the United States, was born. But at the end of the year 1809, the only event anyone thought to be important was Napoleons conquest of Austria. That was the big news. Today, who remembers the big news of 1809? Hardly anyone. Napoleons conquest is just a tiny blip on the big screen of history. But the world was changed forever by a few seemingly insignificant births which took place that same year. Where to Take It from Here... The year Jesus was born, most people missed it. Only a few were aware of the cosmic implications of his presence in a manger in Bethlehem. And so it is with all of God's work. Most of it is behind the scenes hardly ever visible. It rarely make headlines; instead it makes a huge difference in the lives of people because it is eternal. CHRIST, GREATNESS SalvationDate: 3/1998.1781 22 Feb 2009 DCFC English Worship - [Heart for the Nations] Acts 9:1-22 What is so amazing about grace? 07 Mar 2010 DCFC English Worship – [Building a Community in Christ] Eph 3:1-13 What is the Church called to do? 2-4 Apr 2010 ACBC Revival Meeting (Mandarin) – [Growing in Love, Building the Church] Eph 3:1-13 The Calling of the Church 10 July 2011 DCFC Chinese Worship – Eph 3:1-13 What is the Church called to do? Jan 10 2016 QBC Chinese Col 2:6-15 – The new walk: Christ centered identity Feb 07 2016 DCFC English Col 2:6-15 – The new walk: Christ centered identity John Newton is remembered for his hymn "Amazing Grace." In his later years, he often lost his memory in the pulpit and had to be reminded of the subject about which he had been preaching. He said, "My memory is nearly gone; but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner and that Jesus is a great Savior." -- Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997). See: Philippians 2:9-10; 1 Timothy 1:15; Titus 2:11-13
Directory: cfs-filesystemfile.ashx -> key -> CommunityServer.Components.PostAttachments CommunityServer.Components.PostAttachments -> General editors john baillie key -> Eternity! Eternity key -> Annotated Bibliography key -> [The first seventeen verses of Matthew consists of Jesus' family tree CommunityServer.Components.PostAttachments -> Apr 24 2011 dcfc english Worship [The Master & The Disciple] Luke 24: 28-36 CommunityServer.Components.PostAttachments -> A box of treasure by beverly carradine key -> The life and times — of — benjamin franklin, — by — joseph franklin, and key -> The flying inn Download 1.22 Mb. Share with your friends:
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