This Week’s Blog…
How Should We Respond to Conspiracy Theories?
The disciples responded and came to Him on the mountain early in the morning. Let’s go back to the text in verse 14… “Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:” Mark 3:14-15. In spite of their flaws! In spite of their inherited tendencies! In spite of their dysfunction!
A gentile breeze wakes Him up in the stillness of the night at the base of a mountain by the sea of Galilee. Everyone else around Him remained fast asleep, exhausted from the previous days activities. As He gets up, He steps over John whose mat was closest to His. Then He walked past Judas, who is holding the money bag very close to his head. And then He walked over Peter who is snoring so loudly that it’s surprising that none of the other disciples haven’t woken up yet.
Just over 10 years ago I took a trip to the Holy Land Experience in Orlando Florida. It is a theme park owned by the Trinity Broadcasting Network that is sort of like the Bible meets Disney. It was a trip I took with about 100 people from my church. Two pretty amazing things took place while I was there. The first thing was, I proposed to Deedre, my wife. Now I will have to tell you that highly romantic story
And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!” So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel;[a] for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray. And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there.
Already, throughout his life, God had given Jacob evidence that He was with him. And even on the way to his country, Jacob, in verse 1, met the angels of God. Verse 2 says when he saw them he said, “This is God’s camp.” Before Jacob even prayed, God wanted him to know that He was with him to protect him. However, even after Jacob prays, he still tries one more thing. He sends him huge gifts, which suggest to Essau that he has not come to claim his birthright and to hopefully appease his brother. We pick up the story in verse 22...
A CBS reporter sits down to interview Dewey Bozella, a 52 year old man who is about to make his professional boxing debut against a 30 year old professional boxer. But don't bet against Dewey Bozella yet. He's already won the fight of his life. His childhood in Brooklyn would have beaten most people down. He watched his father beat his mother to death and he lost two brothers to the streets. At 19, he was arrested and later convicted for the murder of a 92-year-old woman. He was sentenced to Sing Sing for a crime he maintained he did not commit. When Bozella was offered release if
Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”
Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
I love eating breakfast, don’t you? I especially love having smoothies for breakfast. What is your favorite breakfast food? Now image that you get to sit down and eat breakfast with the one person you love and admire most in the world. It can be a family member, friend, a famous person; it doesn’t matter. Now imagine that the last time you were with them you publicly disrespected them and denied knowing who they were with cursing. Now how do you feel?
Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them. Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.
Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
In 2011 I had one of the best summers ever. I got to know some really amazing people that summer, who also happened to be apart of my small group. One of the things our small group did was go to Cedar Point in Ohio. Now that was fun! Do you like roller coasters? I love roller coasters. Cedar Point had 17 roller coasters. Of course I didn’t get to go on all of them, but we had a great time.
Now Jesus is left alone with the woman standing in the midst. Now watch what happens in verse 10… When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you…”
It was a very turbulent time in the ministry of Jesus. Controversy filled the air as to who this Rabbi from Galilee might be. Many were being drawn to Christ and starting to believe that He might be the long awaited for Messiah, while the Scribes and the Pharisees insisted that He was a demon-possessed deceiver.
I got to be honest with you. I think one of the most boring things to do right now is to watch television. It’s like the same old thing. Like for instance, there is the reality shows. Every other show is some sort of reality show competition. They’ve practically run out of things to make reality shows out of.
It was in March of this year that my wife called out to me from across the apartment. I walked curiously down the hall to discover what my wife was so excited about. I found her in the bathroom with a look of shock on her face. “I’m pregnant” she said. What then began to transpire in me was a mixture of excitement and nervousness.
