Author Archives: Steve

Exercising Spiritual Gifts: Part 1, The Gift List – 1 Corinthians 12

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Spiritual_Gift_List“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:4-7, NASB).

From these verses we can make the assumption that every Christian has at least one spiritual gift. Yes, each and every Christian has a spiritual gift: “But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit…”

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Taking Care of Sin First – Mark 2:1-11

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first_things_first“Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, Your sins are forgiven, or to say, Rise, take up your bed and walk? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins—he said to the paralytic—I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” (Mark 2:9-11, ESV).

Jesus was at His home in Capernaum (the base for His ministry) where many people were gathered listening to Him teach and preach. Four men carrying a paralytic man tried to bring him to Jesus for healing, but they were unable to get the disabled man near Jesus because there was no more room in the house. Then, they went up on the roof and removed some of the clay roof tiles (see Luke 5:19) and hoisted the paralytic man down near Jesus. 

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Totally Praiseworthy – Psalm 103

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praiseworthy“Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me” (Psalm 103: 1-2, NLT).

This psalm of David celebrates God’s perfection, compassion, forgiveness, and goodness. The structure of the psalm is an acrostic poem with one verse for each letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

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The Glory That Filled the Tabernacle Fills You – Exodus 40:34-38

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Tabernacle-Glory“Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle…The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys.” (Exodus 40:34, 38, NLT).

The climax of the Exodus occurred when the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. God’s intention from the start was not merely to deliver his people from their bondage, but to bring them into a relationship with Himself. The real need for the Israelites was to know God personally in their lives.

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Where Is God Leading You? – Exodus 33:12-34:9

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GodPassingByMoses“For how then can it be known that I have found favor in Your sight, I and Your people? Is it not by Your going with us, so that we, I and Your people, may be distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of the earth?” (Exodus 33:16, NASB).

These are the words Moses spoke to God when he interceded for the Israelites after they had crafted a golden calf to worship while Moses was on Mt. Sinai for forty days receiving the Ten Commandments and other instructions from God. So, God threatened to send the Israelites into the promised land with only an angel to lead them and without His presence among them.

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The Long Way to God’s Will – Acts 25:24-25

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long-road“Then Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are here, this is the man whose death is demanded by all the Jews, both here and in Jerusalem. But in my opinion he has done nothing deserving death. However, since he appealed his case to the emperor, I have decided to send him to Rome” (Acts 25:24-25, NLT).

When the Apostle Paul was arrested in Jerusalem, he had a hearing before the Jewish High Council. During his testimony before the Council, they began to argue among themselves and Paul was remanded back to prison in Jerusalem.

While in prison, God spoke to Paul in a vision and told him he must preach the good news of Jesus in Rome: “That night the Lord appeared to Paul and said, Be encouraged, Paul. Just as you have been a witness to me here in Jerusalem, you must preach the Good News in Rome as well” (vs. 23:11).

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God’s Touch – Exodus 29:43-46

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God'sTouch“I will meet there with the sons of Israel, and it shall be consecrated by My glory. I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar; I will also consecrate Aaron and his sons to minister as priests to Me. I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God. They shall know that I am the Lord their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the Lord their God” (Exodus 29:43-46, NASB).

This chapter gives regulations for the consecration of the priests that would minister to God in the Tabernacle. The priests were to be ordained for service in the Tabernacle through purification rites and the offering of burnt sacrifices for atonement of sin. First, the priests were to be washed with water in the doorway of the Tabernacle. Then their priestly garments were placed on them and anointing oil poured over their heads.

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Determining God’s Will – Exodus 28:30

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Truthrocks“Insert the Urim and Thummim into the sacred chestpiece so they will be carried over Aaron’s heart when he goes into the Lord’s presence. In this way, Aaron will always carry over his heart the objects used to determine the Lord’s will for his people whenever he goes in before the Lord.” (Exodus 28:30, NLT).

One of the primary priestly functions was to determine God’s will for His people. The priest’s chestpiece provided a container for the Urim and Thummim.The Hebrew words descibing the chestpiece literally meant “chestpiece for decision.”

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The Sign of Salvation – Acts 15:8-9

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Gospeltotheworld“God knows people’s hearts, and he confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith” (Acts 15:8-9, NLT).

The first-century Church was at first mainly comprised of Jews and Christianity was, in many respects, a sect of Judaism. So it was not surprising that when Gentiles began to believe the gospel, the Jewish leaders in the Church wanted the Gentile converts to be circumcised.

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There’s Power in the Blood – Exodus 24:8

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PassionMovie_JesusOnCross“Then Moses took the blood from the basins and splattered it over the people, declaring, ‘ Look, this blood confirms the covenant the Lord has made with you in giving you these instructions.'” (Exodus 24:8, NLT).

After God had given the terms of the covenant to Moses, Israel agreed to its terms (vs. 3), which was then ratified in several ceremonial activities. These activities included the formal writing and reading of the covenant (vs. 4, 7), the splattering of blood (vs. 6), a covenant meal (vs. 11), and the appearing of the glory of the Lord on the mountain (vs. 15).

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