Was, and Is, and Is to Come In the apocalyptic account in the book of Revelation, it talks about the “beast,” saying that from the point of the end times, he “once was and now is not.” Compare that to the characterization of God, which states that he “was, and is, and is to come.” […]
Reviewed by Peter DeHaan Historically, a “sin eater” is one who ritualistically takes upon himself the sins of a dead person in order to provide absolution. The movie The Last Sin Eater considers this custom in Appalachia circa 1850 amongst a backdrop of superstition and secrets. Although slow starting, those who don’t give up on […]
Six Men Each Have a Different Experience When They Encounter an Elephant Consider the fable of six blind men encountering an elephant for the first time.They have no comprehension of what an elephant is, forming their own understanding based on touch: Yes, an elephant is like a wall, a tree, a spear, a rope, a […]
Key Metaphors that Help Us Better Understand God In recent reflections, we have considered eight word pictures to give us insight into our relationship with God. While none provides a complete picture, each does offer a glimpse into one facet of who God is. We looked at: Putting all of these together, we can begin […]
The numerous Maple tress and Blue Spruce in our yard provide ample and ideal nesting sites for various varieties of birds. Most noticeable are the Robins. This is because they throw a fit if you get anywhere close to their nest. Sometimes they fly full speed, straight at your head, veering off at the last moment. I’m […]
We Are the Bride of Christ The final word picture to help us better understand God, is perhaps the most startling and difficult to comprehend, even shocking. In this word picture, we consider him as the groom (the Bible often uses the word “bridegroom”) and us as his bride (Isaiah 62:5, Jeremiah 2:2, Revelation 19:7, […]
Today it was a tad hot in southern Michigan, surpassing the 100-degree mark at my house. (For the record, I have a digital thermometer that is mounted in the shade.) In these parts, it is not unheard of to hit 100 at some point during the summer; however, those records are typically reached in August or […]
In the next word picture for God, we can consider God as our friend. As our relationship with God grows and progresses, there is an opportunity for us to become friends, perhaps analogous to a parent and their adult child. As friends, we (that is, God and us) spend time together. We communicate with each […]
We Are His Servants The next word picture for God, is him as the master and we as his servants. With God as our master we see him as being in charge. He is the boss and directs our activities (1 Samuel 3:10, Matthew 6:24, Matthew 10:24, and Matthew 25:21). Extending this image to us, […]
I’ve not yet posted any photos of my lawn this year. That’s because I’ve had nothing new or significant to share. My flowering crab apple tree was as beautiful (and fragrant) as ever, but I could have posted last year’s picture and no one would have known the difference. The same goes for the periwinkle, while, […]