One of the things I really noticed this week how at times in the Bible we see the contrast of Jesus’ humanity and His deity in some of the gospel stories. Here are a few examples…

1. During the storm on the lake (Mark 4:35-41)

After spending the day preaching to the multitudes we read that Jesus was tired and fatigued. He fell asleep on the boat. Then the storm blew up and the disciples cried out for help. He stood and calmed the storm. In His humanity he slept, but in His divinity He controlled the forces of nature.

2. At the death of Lazarus (John 11:1-44)

Jesus’ friend Lazarus had died and he had been placed in a tomb for four days. Jesus arrived, spoke to the sisters and wept at his friends death (v35). He then prayed and Lazarus was raised to life. We see Jesus’ humanity in His pain, but His divinity in raising Him to life.

3. In the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:29-51)

In the Garden Jesus was extremely distressed at the thought of going to the cross. We see His human emotion and stress at what He faced. Then as He is about to be arrested one of His followers cuts off the ear of  one of the guards. Jesus then stands and heals his ear (v51). His power and divinity again shine through.

In these three great stories from the gospels we see the contrast of Jesus’ humanity and His deity. He was truly man in that He experienced all the pain, fatigue and anguish we suffer, but He was truly divine in that He showed God’s power to control nature, raised people from the dead and heal those in need.

God Bless,

Dave

I found a free short course on ChristianCourses.com called “Ministering to people in pain“. Something in the course description grabbed hold of me so I am doing it.

One thing I am enjoying about the course is the level of study it is at. It is nice to listen to a lecture, answer some reflections questions on a group forum and do a short multiple choice quiz to see if you understood it all.

This is a lot different from formal Bible College with all the readings, assignments and exams, but I am still learning a lot. I have completed six of the ten lessons and it has been really good so far.

Once I have processed it all I might share some of the key things I have learned from it. If you are interested in doing it yourself you can find it here.

God Bless,

Dave

I can remember being all excited at the getting the vision for PASSION and designing logos and a pictorial vision statement with our vision, goals and supporting verses.

It is an exciting time when things are new. They are so full of potential and can become anything. The sky is the limit!

Looking back to November 1998 I have fond memories. Hours and hours spent in prayer. Hours spent day dreaming. Hours out in the streets spent talking with people in the hope they would come to Christ.

I think it is good to sit back and reflect on your beginnings. Things like logos, vision statements and the way you did things can be a bit dated, but it can also inspire you to press on in the future.

Looking backwards to when you first began can fuel your moving forward.

God Bless,

Dave

Ten Reasons to Believe in the Existence of God

Some have proposed that the belief in God was invented by people who needed a sense of protection and spiritual meaning. Yet despite these kinds of challenges, there are convincing evidences that support a belief in the God of the Bible. Students are guided into examination of the limits of science, the argument for intelligent design in nature, and the claims of Christ relative to deity.

Ten Reasons to Believe in the Bible

In a world full of religious books, all claiming authority over the lives of their followers, is there good reason to believe the Bible is any different? Any better? Any more reliable? The source of spiritual authority we choose to commit our lives to will impact how we live and who we become. Students learn why they can have confidence in the teachings and wisdom of the Bible.

Ten Reasons to Believe in a God Who Allows Suffering

Students are challenged to wrestle with difficult issues of faith. One of those is the reconciliation of the power and love of God with the suffering that occurs in our world. Students discover that difficult questions about unexplained suffering find satisfying and understandable answers in the pages of Scripture.

They are available for free or you can pay a small fee and they count towards a recognised Degree program. You can find more information here.

God Bless,

Dave

1. A steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement.
2. Theology: continuance in a state of grace to the end,leading to eternal salvation.

Both of these ideas are about moving forward regardless of what happens. It is about continuing onwards in life in general and also on our faith journey.

My Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary describes perseverance this way… ”The steadfast effort to follow God’s commands and do His work.” I like solidness of the word “steadfast”.

We see in the Bible that the New Testament alone makes it clear that faith alone can save (Ephesians 2:8-9). However, it makes it clear that perseverance in doing good works is an indication that our faith is genuine and vitally important to us (James 2:14-16).

For the Christian, perseverance grows from a trust that God has always been steadfast and faithful to His people. Through persevering and continuing in God’s work, we show our deep appreciation for God’s saving grace (1 Corinthians 15:57-58).

As a result of perseverance as Christians, we find that we not only build up the church, but we build up and strengthen our own character (Romans 5:3-4). In short, we become closer to God as a result of persevering in our faith walk with Him.

I find the whole topic of perseverance and persevering in our faith very interesting. At the heart of it for me is that God loves me, Jesus died for me and He has blessed me so much. This is the reason why I want to continue to persevere in Him.

God Bless,

Dave

This discipleship process might be done as a part of formal group classes, one-on-one lessons, or by working your way through a book with someone to help if you have questions.

As I have been thinking about this I wondered how many people who were discipled in one of the above ways go on to become Ministers themselves?

I know in my case I had someone who talked to me and prayed for me before coming to Christ. When I did, they gave me a booklet to work through and continued to pray for me and answer questions I had.

It would be interesting to know what percentage of people who are discipled go on to be Ministers. I might see if any studies have been done on this I think.

God Bless,

Dave

• that has stable government with no violent uprisings
• that we have a medical system where most people can get the treatment they need
• that we have a welfare system that helps those who are unemployed or not able to work
• that we have the freedom to practice our faith in our own way
• that we have a strong economy due to the mining sector
• that has good education systems in place to allow people access to learn
• that has lots of wide open spaces to explore
• that we have access to clean drinking water and a wide variety of foods

I love living in Australia. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else in the world. Happy Australia Day everyone.

God Bless,

Dave

As I was thinking about the book of Psalms recently I found that Psalm 1 talks people being blessed if they meditate on God’s Word day and night. It says they are like trees planted by streams of water that produce fruit in season.

Fast forward 149 chapters to Psalm 150. This talks about praising God with dancing and all types of instruments. It finishes with “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD (v6).”

As I pondered this I realised that the more I read about and meditate on God and His ways, the more I want to praise Him with all of my life. It makes me want to dance, sing and make a joyful noise  that Psalm 100:1-5 talks about!

Finding the spiritual bookends of a Bible book can be a great devotional tool to keep you praising God.

God Bless,

Dave

Here is a snippet from their website…

“Wesley Impact! is a fresh, exciting program featuring people whose lives have been transformed; singers who inspire us with the beauty of their talent and practical Christian teaching that encourages and challenges us. Joining Rev Dr Keith V Garner live in the studio are guests from all walks of life – from those who have tasted the heights of success to those who walked in the depths of despair, our guests openly share their amazing life stories. Wesley Impact! can be seen on the Nine Network every Sunday at 5.30am and is also repeated on the Australian Christian Channel on Sunday at 7.30am.”

The thing I really enjoy about it is the simple format. There is a song, an interview, a short message and another song. I have found it to be quite encouraging every time I watched it.

If you would like to find out more about the show or see past episodes you can find them here.

God Bless,

Dave

I recorded a new free MP3 audio today. It is some thoughts I have put together from John 15:1-17 and titled, “Vines and branches”.

I have also added some sermons I did towards the end of last year that were recorded. If you are interested, you can find them here.

God Bless,

Dave