I got this from The Gospel Coalition. Here’s a video telling the resurrection story by using the art from the Jesus Storybook Bible and David Suchet’s narration. This would be great to watch with your kids. The intro is long (45 seconds) so you can just skip ahead.
01 April, 2010
31 March, 2010
Sometimes I wonder about Jesus
- I wonder what His conversations with God were like when He was 4 years old. I wonder how much Mary and Joseph must have laughed at their little bundle of joy and energy behind closed doors at their house when he was a little guy.
- I wonder who his best friends were when he was a teenager and if they ever thought he was "a little odd." I wonder if there was a point when they decided not to like Him. Or if their parents warned their kids to stay away from Jesus- He was too dangerous.
- I wonder what Jesus thought about when He laid down at night and drifted off to sleep. I wonder what He dreamed about. Did He have nightmares about His future? I wonder if He dreamed about Heaven.
- I think about how it must have been obvious that He had so much love in His heart when he hung out with his buddies. I wonder how Jesus would have responded and how his body language must have changed when his buddies would sin (against Him!).
- I wonder how teenagers today could live like the teenager that Jesus was.
- I wonder how often Jesus went out of his way to specifically tell people "I love you."
- I wonder how old Jesus was when people who were staring Him in the face started wondering "Is that man, or is that God talking?"
- Was He a 15 year-old causing people behind closed doors to ask "Seriously, who is that kid?"?
- I wonder if Jesus would have ever hung out with me. I wonder, had I been alive then, if I would have wanted to hang out with Him.
- I wonder if there were certain children who knew Jesus well and saw Him as kind of their "God-father." I wonder if they ran to Him when they would see Him. I wonder if they ever tackled Him with big hugs or covered his eyes from behind and played the "Guess who?" game. And I wonder if He always got it right.
- I wonder if the children who loved Jesus understood what happened to Him when He was suddenly gone. Mere babes trying to figure out where Jesus went . . . And I wonder how their moms and dads tried to explain to their children why Jesus was arrested and "went to heaven."
- I wonder what they thought when they gathered with Him the day that He ascended back into Heaven.
- I wonder if there were any who followed Jesus from a distance for months who decided that He was not legit. I wonder if they second-guessed themselves even when they were old, gray, and wrinkly.
- I wonder if the blind man who received the gift of sight followed Jesus long enough to lay his eyes on the mangled body of Jesus.
- I wonder what it would have been like to be the son of one of the guys that met Jesus on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24)- sitting in the living room listening to him speak with tears about the time that Jesus walked and talked with them. I wonder if his non-verbals and the fire in his eyes would carry me to that special road and that special conversation that he had with Jesus. I wonder if Hudson will ever be able to see the same fire in my eyes that I imagine those 2 guys had after meeting Jesus.
- I wonder what it would have been like to walk into the empty tomb while it was still early in the morning on that day, wipe the sleep from my eyes, and lose my breath.
When your heart beats faster when you think of Jesus, that means something. This is what it means to truly be alive.
- I wonder who his best friends were when he was a teenager and if they ever thought he was "a little odd." I wonder if there was a point when they decided not to like Him. Or if their parents warned their kids to stay away from Jesus- He was too dangerous.
- I wonder what Jesus thought about when He laid down at night and drifted off to sleep. I wonder what He dreamed about. Did He have nightmares about His future? I wonder if He dreamed about Heaven.
- I think about how it must have been obvious that He had so much love in His heart when he hung out with his buddies. I wonder how Jesus would have responded and how his body language must have changed when his buddies would sin (against Him!).
- I wonder how teenagers today could live like the teenager that Jesus was.
- I wonder how often Jesus went out of his way to specifically tell people "I love you."
- I wonder how old Jesus was when people who were staring Him in the face started wondering "Is that man, or is that God talking?"
- Was He a 15 year-old causing people behind closed doors to ask "Seriously, who is that kid?"?
- I wonder if Jesus would have ever hung out with me. I wonder, had I been alive then, if I would have wanted to hang out with Him.
- I wonder if there were certain children who knew Jesus well and saw Him as kind of their "God-father." I wonder if they ran to Him when they would see Him. I wonder if they ever tackled Him with big hugs or covered his eyes from behind and played the "Guess who?" game. And I wonder if He always got it right.
- I wonder if the children who loved Jesus understood what happened to Him when He was suddenly gone. Mere babes trying to figure out where Jesus went . . . And I wonder how their moms and dads tried to explain to their children why Jesus was arrested and "went to heaven."
- I wonder what they thought when they gathered with Him the day that He ascended back into Heaven.
- I wonder if there were any who followed Jesus from a distance for months who decided that He was not legit. I wonder if they second-guessed themselves even when they were old, gray, and wrinkly.
- I wonder if the blind man who received the gift of sight followed Jesus long enough to lay his eyes on the mangled body of Jesus.
- I wonder what it would have been like to be the son of one of the guys that met Jesus on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24)- sitting in the living room listening to him speak with tears about the time that Jesus walked and talked with them. I wonder if his non-verbals and the fire in his eyes would carry me to that special road and that special conversation that he had with Jesus. I wonder if Hudson will ever be able to see the same fire in my eyes that I imagine those 2 guys had after meeting Jesus.
- I wonder what it would have been like to walk into the empty tomb while it was still early in the morning on that day, wipe the sleep from my eyes, and lose my breath.
When your heart beats faster when you think of Jesus, that means something. This is what it means to truly be alive.
10 March, 2010
A Conversation between blind people...
I couldn't help but chuckle a little bit when I read this article... up until I realized that these "Christians" are more concerned for their pets after the rapture than they are for the person who will be taking care of them.
Imagine the conversation. Essentially it will go something like this:
"Are you sure you're an atheist?"
"Yes."
"How can I be sure?"
"Well, I think you are an idiot and God definitely does not exist."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! Are you kidding? You guys are nuts!"
"Okay, good. Then take good care of Scruffy when the rapture happens. (I'll be gone and you'll still be here). He likes to eat Fancy Feast Dog Food and I like to give him a treat every night before bed."
"You got it. Have a nice day."
"Thanks. You too."
Win-win-win situation.
The blind talking to the blind.
Don't believe me? Here it is:
Christ died for more than this...
Imagine the conversation. Essentially it will go something like this:
"Are you sure you're an atheist?"
"Yes."
"How can I be sure?"
"Well, I think you are an idiot and God definitely does not exist."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! Are you kidding? You guys are nuts!"
"Okay, good. Then take good care of Scruffy when the rapture happens. (I'll be gone and you'll still be here). He likes to eat Fancy Feast Dog Food and I like to give him a treat every night before bed."
"You got it. Have a nice day."
"Thanks. You too."
Win-win-win situation.
The blind talking to the blind.
Don't believe me? Here it is:
Christ died for more than this...
25 February, 2010
Are you a healthy member or a guilty party?
I am reading through a small book called "What is a Healthy Church Member?" by Thabiti Anyabwile and got my highlighter warmed up. Here are a few things that I highlighted:
- "Just as the pastor's preaching agenda should be determined by the meaning of Scripture, so too should the Christian's listening agenda be driven by the meaning of Scripture." p 19
- "When we listen to the preaching of the Word, we should not listen primarily for "practical how-to advice, " though Scripture teaches us about everyday matters. Nor should we listen for messages that bolster our self-esteem or that rouse us to political and social causes. Rather, as members of Christian churches we should listen primarily for the voice and message of God as revealed in his word." p 19-20
I highly recommend this book for every pastor and member of a Christian church. The reason is that I have found there to be a troubling number of people who have become spiritually emaciated at their church. Many people are quick to blame the pastor and leadership for "not feeding" the people of the church. Just as the leaders are to blame, the members are to blame even more-so. The reason I believe this is because too many people willingly trade in Biblical doctrine and truth for feelings of goodwill and warm fuzzies. And before they know it, the Christian sitting in the audience on Sunday morning has become the epitome of 2 Timothy 4:3-4. "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires (warm fuzzies), they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths." (Parenthesis was added by me).
So who's the guilty party? The teacher? Perhaps- especially if the teacher is willingly doing his job to bolster his ego or his checking account. The listener? Absolutely. Paul tells us that those who are at fault are the ones who gather around those who may make them feel good, give them warm fuzzies, or "say what their itching ears want to hear."
This is absolutely commonplace in our church culture in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Example- a recent text exchange between a teenager and a student pastor (true story): "Hey man, where were you at church this morning?" "I was at so-and-so church." "What did he preach about?" "I'm not sure but it was really good." "Okay, well what passage of Scripture did he preach from?" "I don't remember that. I think he read from Matthew and Corinthians and stuff but he mainly speaks from his heart and not the word."
The tragedy is that speaking from the heart and not the Word has become admirable among Christians today. God help us and God help those who have itching ears! And hide me from the temptation to entertain people with itching ears instead of faithfully loving my God and His people through the intentional, Gospel-saturated, proclamation of the Word of God.
So, Christian, are you a healthy member of a congregation who listens for God's voice in the midst of everything that happens on Sunday morning, or are you a member of a guilty party who has itching ears? Think long and hard about your answer. It's really important.
- "Just as the pastor's preaching agenda should be determined by the meaning of Scripture, so too should the Christian's listening agenda be driven by the meaning of Scripture." p 19
- "When we listen to the preaching of the Word, we should not listen primarily for "practical how-to advice, " though Scripture teaches us about everyday matters. Nor should we listen for messages that bolster our self-esteem or that rouse us to political and social causes. Rather, as members of Christian churches we should listen primarily for the voice and message of God as revealed in his word." p 19-20
I highly recommend this book for every pastor and member of a Christian church. The reason is that I have found there to be a troubling number of people who have become spiritually emaciated at their church. Many people are quick to blame the pastor and leadership for "not feeding" the people of the church. Just as the leaders are to blame, the members are to blame even more-so. The reason I believe this is because too many people willingly trade in Biblical doctrine and truth for feelings of goodwill and warm fuzzies. And before they know it, the Christian sitting in the audience on Sunday morning has become the epitome of 2 Timothy 4:3-4. "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires (warm fuzzies), they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths." (Parenthesis was added by me).
So who's the guilty party? The teacher? Perhaps- especially if the teacher is willingly doing his job to bolster his ego or his checking account. The listener? Absolutely. Paul tells us that those who are at fault are the ones who gather around those who may make them feel good, give them warm fuzzies, or "say what their itching ears want to hear."
This is absolutely commonplace in our church culture in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Example- a recent text exchange between a teenager and a student pastor (true story): "Hey man, where were you at church this morning?" "I was at so-and-so church." "What did he preach about?" "I'm not sure but it was really good." "Okay, well what passage of Scripture did he preach from?" "I don't remember that. I think he read from Matthew and Corinthians and stuff but he mainly speaks from his heart and not the word."
The tragedy is that speaking from the heart and not the Word has become admirable among Christians today. God help us and God help those who have itching ears! And hide me from the temptation to entertain people with itching ears instead of faithfully loving my God and His people through the intentional, Gospel-saturated, proclamation of the Word of God.
So, Christian, are you a healthy member of a congregation who listens for God's voice in the midst of everything that happens on Sunday morning, or are you a member of a guilty party who has itching ears? Think long and hard about your answer. It's really important.
24 February, 2010
The Power of God
Do you believe that the Gospel is the power of God? This video shows us what that means. This video footage was taken during a missionary's first time to explain the Gospel in the native language of this tribe.
The Gospel is Good News and it is the power of God. Do you believe this?
Romans 1:16-17
The Gospel is Good News and it is the power of God. Do you believe this?
Romans 1:16-17
12 February, 2010
My name is Wade Phillips and I like to have a good time
This is good stuff. This is the head football coach of the Dallas Cowboys.
03 February, 2010
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