First off, thanks to all of you for such a great Bible study this evening. We had a great time of discussion (sorry if I talked too much, but I get really excited about this stuff :)) and you all had a lot of great questions and thoughts about tonight's topic. Here's a link to the video, in case you missed it: Why We Believe the Bible, Lesson 1 at DesiringGod.org
In closing, I just want to share a little of what's on my heart....
We live in a society that is constantly seeking...the next diet fad, the "in" spiritual belief system, etc. I have to think that there's a part of each of us that's noticeably empty without Christ and many times it's this same longing for wholeness that the Holy Spirit uses to draw people into a relationship with Christ, who is the only true filling for that hole. The deception that's at work is that this void can be filled by anything a person wants or desires...so many people spend their whole lives "trying to fit a square peg into a round hole" as the saying goes. Everything that is placed in that hole other than Christ leaves at least part of it still empty. The pursuit of wholeness that so many people are searching for IS the search for Christ, whether or not we believe/accept/acknowledge it or not.
As Christians, we have a duty to reflect Christ to those around us...not that we would be seen as holy, but that Christ would be seen as holy and us just a mirror. We have all been created for one ultimate purpose: to glorify God. To me, glorifying God means being a mirror that when people look into it, they see how amazing and wonderful God is. The question that I wrestle with each day is, "How clean am I keeping my mirror?" As we allow sin to be a part of our lives, the reflection of God's glory from our "mirror" is obscured...at first, maybe by just a few specks of dust that we barely notice, but soon specks become smudges and smudges become blotches and soon the reflection that people see is not God, but us. It's no wonder that the unbelieving world has such a hard time believing in Christ when the ones holding the mirrors are reflecting something other than God's glory.
Maybe you find yourself at a crossroads like I have recently, realizing that your walk with Christ will not improve itself...you can't just expect deeper intimacy with someone whom you don't take the time or make the priority to get to know. A piece of advice that was given to me about dating/marriage applies to this: Relationships take time. To enjoy the fruits of a deeper walk with Christ we must put in the time and have the discipline to make it a priority. This work is not so that Christ will love you more (his love is unconditionally perfect), but that we might love him more and express it as an act of worship.
So, here's the question for the week: How clean is your mirror?
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
AudioCast Player is Up and Running
Hey Everyone!
Just a quick note to let you know that I've just added an integrated player for the AudioCasts, so now you can listen to our AudioCasts right from the site!!!
Take a look and let me know what you think!!
http://www.mbc20something.blogspot.com
~J
Just a quick note to let you know that I've just added an integrated player for the AudioCasts, so now you can listen to our AudioCasts right from the site!!!
Take a look and let me know what you think!!
http://www.mbc20something.blogspot.com
~J
Monday, May 19, 2008
(Finally) Sunday School 5/11/08 & 5/18/08
Hey, remember me? I'm the guy who updates the blog. Just thought I should re-introduce myself since it's been a stretch without posting. My apologies.
I have two outlines to post this week...one from 5/11/2008 and one from this week, 5/18/2008. Now, although we did have Sunday School on 5/11, as many of you will remember, we did not have outlines because I fell asleep typing them out on Saturday night. Well, a week and a day later, I finally finished it. You're welcome :)
5/11/2008: The Ten Commandments (Exodus 19-20)
5/18/2008: The Book of the Covenant, Part 1 (Exodus 21-22)
Also, since the last post, we've had 2 Midweek Bible Studies. On 5/8/2008, we had a stand alone study where we read and discussed Louie Giglio's video, Indescribable, which was an amazing video with an even more awesome message. Unfortunately, it's not one I got from the web, so I don't have a link for it, but I'm sure that with everything else that's on YouTube, there's bound to be a bootleg of it out there somewhere (not that I'm approving of bootlegging).
We also started our new series by John Piper entitled, "Why We Believe the Bible," a very pertinent, yet overlooked question by many Christians today. Even in the short 30 minutes we watched, we were faced with some really great nuggets that made for great discussion. Thanks to all of you who participated and made that discussion so valuable. Keep it up!!!
OK, so I'm all posted out now, but there's one last thing. Some of you may have noticed the AudioPosts section at the top of the blog. Well, be patient, because I'm still working out some of the bugs, but my goal is to provide some supplemental content via phone/voice that will allow just be a few minutes of my thoughts as I try to live out what we're learning. This is not intended to be a "look at me" type of feature, but more a real, open, and honest sharing of my life with you. Hopefully it will be something that you (and maybe others who frequent our blog) will find thought-provoking or at least encouraging. More on that to come...just bear with me while I work our the bugs....
See you all next time!!!
I have two outlines to post this week...one from 5/11/2008 and one from this week, 5/18/2008. Now, although we did have Sunday School on 5/11, as many of you will remember, we did not have outlines because I fell asleep typing them out on Saturday night. Well, a week and a day later, I finally finished it. You're welcome :)
5/11/2008: The Ten Commandments (Exodus 19-20)
5/18/2008: The Book of the Covenant, Part 1 (Exodus 21-22)
Also, since the last post, we've had 2 Midweek Bible Studies. On 5/8/2008, we had a stand alone study where we read and discussed Louie Giglio's video, Indescribable, which was an amazing video with an even more awesome message. Unfortunately, it's not one I got from the web, so I don't have a link for it, but I'm sure that with everything else that's on YouTube, there's bound to be a bootleg of it out there somewhere (not that I'm approving of bootlegging).
We also started our new series by John Piper entitled, "Why We Believe the Bible," a very pertinent, yet overlooked question by many Christians today. Even in the short 30 minutes we watched, we were faced with some really great nuggets that made for great discussion. Thanks to all of you who participated and made that discussion so valuable. Keep it up!!!
OK, so I'm all posted out now, but there's one last thing. Some of you may have noticed the AudioPosts section at the top of the blog. Well, be patient, because I'm still working out some of the bugs, but my goal is to provide some supplemental content via phone/voice that will allow just be a few minutes of my thoughts as I try to live out what we're learning. This is not intended to be a "look at me" type of feature, but more a real, open, and honest sharing of my life with you. Hopefully it will be something that you (and maybe others who frequent our blog) will find thought-provoking or at least encouraging. More on that to come...just bear with me while I work our the bugs....
See you all next time!!!
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Sunday School: 5/4/2008
Happy May to everyone!!!
Well, it's hard to believe that it's already May! We had our class fellowship on Thursday night and it was a great time of food and fellowship...even though there were some minor challenges with the grill (thanks for your patience...I hope that the food was worth the wait). We had a lot of fun and plan to have more fellowships like this in the future.
This morning in Sunday School, we continued our study of Exodus with Chapters 17-18, the attack of the Amalekites and Moses' delegation of his judging duties to other worthy men of Israel. We realized that, just like Moses, we can often get to a point where we're in danger of burning out and in those times, God often provides help with what he has given us to do. Ultimately, it is a walk of faith that enables us to hold what God has entrusted to us with open hands and trust God to provide the means for accomplishing his will.
Outline: Exodus 17-18
Well, it's hard to believe that it's already May! We had our class fellowship on Thursday night and it was a great time of food and fellowship...even though there were some minor challenges with the grill (thanks for your patience...I hope that the food was worth the wait). We had a lot of fun and plan to have more fellowships like this in the future.
This morning in Sunday School, we continued our study of Exodus with Chapters 17-18, the attack of the Amalekites and Moses' delegation of his judging duties to other worthy men of Israel. We realized that, just like Moses, we can often get to a point where we're in danger of burning out and in those times, God often provides help with what he has given us to do. Ultimately, it is a walk of faith that enables us to hold what God has entrusted to us with open hands and trust God to provide the means for accomplishing his will.
Outline: Exodus 17-18
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