Peter Preaches and Then Heals a Listener The second sermon in the book of Acts: Acts 3:1-4:4 (specifically, Acts 3:12-26). After he speaks, Peter heals a lame man. Setting: Jerusalem, in the temple Speaker: Peter Audience: Jews Preceding Events: Peter, through the power of Jesus, heals a lame man who was crippled from birth. Overall […]
When God Calls People to Him, Some Come and Others Run Away As the prophet Hosea wraps up his writings, he gives us some insight into the heart of God. He writes that the more God called his people, the more they ran away from him (Hosea 11:2). When God calls, what is our response? […]
When God needed to turn Saul’s life around, he used a supernatural light, an unseen voice, and temporary blindness to get Saul’s attention (Acts 9:3-9). Some time later, Saul (Paul), under the power of the Holy Spirit, did the same thing to a guy named Elymas. Elymas was supernaturally blinded for a time so God […]
Explore Jesus’s Parting Words A few weeks ago we looked at Jesus’s final instructions as found in each of the Bible’s four biographies of him. Melding these together, we came up with three steps. First is to follow Jesus, second is to wait for Holy Spirit power, and three is to go and tell others. […]
The Kingdom of God Is About Power, Not Words When Paul writes to his friends in the city of Corinth, he encourages them to change their behavior. In the middle of this, he slips in a curious line about the kingdom of God. He says that God’s kingdom isn’t about talk but about power (1 […]
Sometimes We Need to Go Away for Jesus and Other Times We Need to Go Home Before Jesus returns to heaven, he tells his followers to go throughout the world and let others know about him (Matthew 28:19). Does that mean we’re all supposed to travel to a distant country for Jesus? Is that their […]
We should show our gratitude to Jesus for all he has done for us The Bible records many things Jesus did when he was here on earth. A reoccurring action is Jesus healing people from their physical and spiritual maladies. Matthew 8 records several of these instances, and we will focus on one of them: […]
Ananias Obeys God to Heal Saul Who Wants to Arrest Him I like the story of Saul’s conversion in the book of Acts, turning him from a murderous bigot into a passionate follower of Jesus. A flash of light, a voice from heaven. It has all the makings of a great story. In this account, […]
Move from asking “What Would Jesus Do?” to asking “What Did Jesus Do?” The phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” was popularized in the 1990s. Often epitomized by colorful bracelets that bore the acronym WWJD, the concept was intended to serve as a constant reminder for followers of Jesus to act as he would act. Therefore, […]
Spiritual Insights from a Real Shephard By Phillip Keller (reviewed by Peter DeHaan)The idea of a shepherd overseeing his flock is a powerful metaphor of the relationship between God and his people. Unfortunately, today’s world has largely lost touch with its agrarian roots, missing much of the deeper meaning of a shepherd’s watch and care over […]