Author Archives: Nicole Vaughn

Names of God: Akrogoniaios

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We continue in our Names of God series…

Today we will see that our Jesus is the Akrogoniaios.

For this is contained in Scripture:

“Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone,

And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.”

1 Peter 2:6

Akrogoniaios is the Greek word for Cornerstone and it means placed at an extreme corner, the corner foundation stone. Jesus is the Cornerstone. He is Akrogoniaios.

As look further at this verse, we also see that He is the choice stone. Choice in the Greek is eklektos and it means picked out, chosen, chosen of God, choice, select, best of its kind, excellence, preeminent. The word stone is lithos and it means a stone, of small stones, of building stones, of Christ.

So Jesus is the Cornerstone. He is the choice stone and He is the tested and costly stone.

Therefore thus says the Lord God,

“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone,

A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed.

He who believes in it will not be disturbed.

Isaiah 28:16

He is the Cornerstone and this Cornerstone comes from the house of Judah…

For the Lord of hosts has visited His flock, the house of Judah,

And will make them like His majestic horse in battle.

“From them will come the cornerstone,

From them the tent peg,

From them the bow of battle,

From them every ruler, all of them together.

Zechariah 10:3-4

Not only the Cornerstone, but also the tent peg… I have a funny, yet pertaining story to share about the tent peg…

I was talking with my husband about some BIG PLANS I had come up with for a children’s ministry event. I was going to take our gym and transform it into an indoor campground. I was going to build a big “campfire” in the middle with lights and tissue paper and logs and limbs and everyone cold bring their tent and pop it in the gym… and while I am expounding in all my excitement in what I thought was a well planned out event… my husband looks at me and says, Nicole how are you going to stake the tents? You can’t drive the stakes in the gym floor…

Ugh! Well, that burst my bubble. The plan would never work because the tents were useless if they could not be properly staked to the ground.

Christ is the Cornerstone and He is the tent peg. Our house, our plans, no matter how grand or greatly connived or conceived will not stand if Christ is not the one that has them held firmly to the ground. He must be the beginning peg from which everything else is popped up and held.

He is the beginning of the tent and He is the beginning of the house, the beginning of the foundation, the Cornerstone, the Akrogoniaios…

 

He is the Cornerstone and for the rest of the house to stand it must be evenly lined up and connected to the first stone, the cornerstone. If we are connected to this cornerstone, this foundational wall, then we too are a part of His house…

Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of ourconfession; He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house. For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. Now Moses was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken later; but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.

Hebrews 3:1-6

Jesus our Cornerstone is the Choice Stone, the Tested stone, the Costly Stone, and He is also the Living Stone. He is the Living Stone and those who come to Him come as living stones and they come to be apart of the building up of His house…

And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men,

but is choice and precious in the sight of God,

you also, as living stones,

are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood,

to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:4-5

Jesus is the Cornerstone of the house of God and if we are to be a part of this house then we must come to Him and through Him… because as we have already learned in our study of His names, not only is He the Rock from which the Cornerstone is hewn by which the house is built and the foundation is begun but He also is the Door of entrance into the house and not only is the Door, but He is the Bridegroom that carries His bride over the threshold of that Door and He not only is the Bridegroom of the house and the Door to the house, but He also is the Light in and of the house… oh my goodness are you shouting yet?!? This is our Jesus!

for through Him

we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens,

but you are fellow citizens with the saints,

and are of God’s household, 

having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,

Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone,

in whom the whole building,

being fitted together,

is growing into a holy temple in the Lord,  

in whom you also are being built together

into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Ephesians 2:18-22

It is only through Jesus that we have access to the house and it is only Jesus who is the Cornerstone of the house… He must be the foundation. It doesn’t matter who lays the next brick or how they lay it as long as it is connected and laid in line with the Cornerstone.

What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:5-11

What then is Baptist? What then is Assembly of God? What then is Church of Christ? What then is Nazarene? What then is Presbyterian? What then is Catholic? Only servants through whom you have been taught and given an opportunity to hear the Word… maybe here the seed was planted, maybe here the seed was watered, maybe here the soil was worked… but only God can cause the seed to grow.

It doesn’t matter who planted. All that matters is that the seed was planted in Christ. If the seed is not planted in Christ, then the seed will rot in the ground. If Jesus is not the foundation’s Cornerstone then it doesn’t matter how strong the building appears, it will collapse.

However, if you come as a living stone to the Living Stone and you are of the house of God then one day…

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The one who spoke with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, and its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square,…

Rev 21:1-4, 9-15

 

You can come to the Cornerstone and become a part of the house… and let me tell you from experience that as the Word declares, you will never be disappointed or you will come to the Cornerstone and you will stumble over Him and He will even offend you by His Word…

For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve, “The stone which the builders rejected, This became the very corner stone,” and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word…

1 Peter 2:4-8

If you stumble over the Cornerstone, it s because you are disobedient to the Word… but those who come to the Word to obey it… they find that the foundation on which has been laid with this Cornerstone is strong, firm, steady, solid, dependent, steady, unwavering, trustworthy, no matter the storm.

Marriage Protection

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A worthless man digs up evil,
While his words are like scorching fire.
A perverse man spreads strife,
And a slanderer separates intimate friends.
A man of violence entices his neighbor
And leads him in a way that is not good.

Proverbs 16:27-29

We live in a day where marriages are falling apart all over the place. I read these words of Scripture and I thought, wow… how many marriages have fallen apart that would have made it had this person described in Proverbs 16:27-29 not interfered?

Let’s break it down.

Whenever I read the warnings in Scripture that pertain to a person I look at them in at least three ways:

1) God, help me to recognize this person

2) God, help me to see if I am this person

3) God, help me to not be this person

We are warned that the person described as a “worthless man” in Proverbs 16:27-29 “digs up evil” and his words are described to be “like a scorching fire”. To scorch something is to cause intense heat or mental anguish,to burn a surface of so as to change its color and texture, to afflict painfully with censure or sarcasm…

Now who is the person as it relates to our marriages?

This is a person who comes up to you and says “you know before you married them I remember the time they...” and this is the person who says “how can you forgive them after they… I would have never been able to forget that” and says, “it doesn’t bother you that your spouse…”  You see this is the person who goes digging for something evil to speak about your spouse. They come at you when you are smiling… and there purpose is to wipe that smile off of your face. Their purpose is to discolor and distort the way you see your spouse. Their purpose is to cause you mental anguish over something that is in the past, or something that is assumed and may very well not even be true. God calls this person worthless.

The next person is said to be a “perverse man” and this person is someone who “spreads strife”

This is the person who sees that you and your spouse might just be on edge today. This person sees the tension and strife and instead of coming to you to help heal and mend and settle the strife… they come to spread it, share it, and increase it. This is the person who says, “oh honey, you don’t have to take that” and says “well you have every right to be mad, you better give back as good as you get!” This is the person that their eyes light up when they see that you and your spouse are fighting and they can’t wait to fan the flame… and God calls this person perverse.

The next person is a “slanderer” and they come to “separate intimate friends”

There is no friend more intimate than your spouse. Anyone who comes at you with words to bring down your spouse, to speak evil of their character, to make accusations against them… you need to walk away. Now please let’s get real and understand that family is family, your spouses mother, father, brothers, and sisters, etc… they grew up with them, they know them, they love them… I am speaking of the person that is especially not family, the “friend” whether they be male or female and comes at you with words to intentional make you disconnect with your spouse. They come to drive a wedge between you and your spouse by drawing attention to small things and making them appear bigger and worse than they truly are. God calls this person a slanderer.

The next person is called “a man of violence” and they come to “entice their neighbor” and lead them “in a way that is not good”

This person is the one who comes and is supposedly the answer to all your issues. They are the one who steps in and draws you to them and away from your spouse. They encourage you to walk away from the marriage. They tell you its not fixable. They tell you that you deserve better than your spouse. They tell you there is no hope, things will never change, they will never get better. They tell you its best to walk away and start over. Salvage what you have left of your life. If you have fallen out of love with them today you won’t fall back in love with them tomorrow.

Why is this person known as a man of violence? Violence is an exertion of physical force so as to injure or abuse (as in warfare effecting illegal entry into a house), injury by or as if by distortion, infringement, or profanation.

This is a person of violence because they are physically and forcefully invading your house for the sole purpose of bringing injury and abuse for their own selfish pleasure or gain. They come into your house, your marriage, your union with this person, this person who you are now one flesh with and they come in to infringe on something that does not belong to them. They come to profane something that God has called holy. If this person succeeds, they kill. They violently rip through and destroy a home from the inside out. You cannot rip something that was once two and now has become one without hurt, pain, and destruction. God calls the person who does this a man of violence.

So let us pay attention to the words and warnings in this passage of Scripture in the Proverbs. Let it be used as our marriage protection and may it be a warning to us, that we be careful to help protect the marriages of others and not be a part of their destruction…

As people of God our desire should be to build up the house not tear it down.

I can look back on my life and see times when I have fit into one or more of these descriptions and it makes me sick to my stomach. I can look back on my marriage and I can hear the slimy voice of that slinky serpent as he accuses, distorts, and brings up past hurts in the midst of present trials and whispers, “see it will never get any better“. Let me tell you HE IS A LIAR! It can get better. It can get beyond better… it can get fairy tale butterflies in your stomach everyday better. It might not… but let me tell you that it indeed can. Don’t give up on God by giving up on your spouse.

In other words, in marriage you live hour by hour in glad dependence 
on God’s forgiveness and justification and promised future grace, and 
you bend it out toward your spouse hour by hour—as an extension of 
God’s forgiveness and justification and promised help.

~ John Piper

I am beyond thankful for the grace of God and His redeeming arm. I beyond thankful that He doesn’t count ignorance against us. I am beyond thankful that He never turns a deaf ear to a repentant heart and cry for forgiveness. I am beyond thankful that He never stops teaching those who seek Him. He is the God of second chances.

If you looking for a new perspective on your marriage… let me suggest you dig into This Momentary Marriage by John Piper.

 

For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,

And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.

Psalm 86:5

Entertain Me

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As you read through the pages of Scriptures it is painfully obvious that there is absolutely nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). I am back in Ezekiel in my personal study time… I was reading and digging into in Ezekiel 33 when I read,

“But as for you, son of man, your fellow citizens who talk about you by the walls and in the doorways of the houses, speak to one another, each to his brother, saying, ‘Come now and hear what the message is which comes forth from the Lord.’ They come to you as people come, and sit before you as My people and hear your words, but they do not do them, for they do the lustful desires expressed by their mouth, and their heart goes after their gain. Behold, you are to them like a sensual song by one who has a beautiful voice and plays well on an instrument; for they hear your words but they do not practice them.

Ezekiel 33:30-32

This is America… here in America the professing Christians pack out the mega church. We fill stadiums and conference centers to hear the words of Louie Giglio, Beth Moore, John Piper, Joyce Meyer, Kay Arthur, etc… We file into church on Sunday morning in our Sunday best to hear our pastor preach and either leave expounding on how great the message was or complaining because he just didn’t do it for us today and maybe we need to change churches because this guy just doesn’t evoke enough gusto into the performance for us…

We come and we hear… and then we leave.

We leave to go be entertained again…

what race is on?

what game is on?

what movie is playing?

what restaurant can we get in the quickest?

how soon can I get on my couch and take a nap?

They come to you as people come, and sit before you as My people and hear your words, but they do not do them, for they do the lustful desires expressed by their mouth, and their heart goes after their gain. Behold, you are to them like a sensual song by one who has a beautiful voice and plays well on an instrument; for they hear your words but they do not practice them.

It’s quite horrifying actually…

Does it not strike terror in your heart?

It does mine… I am just as guilty.

Have you ever considered how many children you could afford to adopt if you chose to support the orphan instead of Hollywood. Have you ever considered how many starving mouths you could feed if you chose to use your money to put food in the mouths of children instead of drugs in the mouths of the latest pop star? Have you ever considered how many child sex slaves you could rescue if you chose to invest your money in the organizations that work to rescue them instead of the culture that works to build a desire for them through its perversions?

I can’t help but it cross my mind…

I am a teacher and a mother. I know what it feels like to teach and have people come up and say how great the lesson was… and then walk out and do exactly what you just taught against. I have been with the groups that packed out the dome and the conference center… yet when it comes down to making a personal choice how many choose…

the lustful desires expressed by their mouth, and their heart goes after their gain

Why do you go to church on Sunday’s?

When you sit under your Pastor or small group leader are you there listening to the Word of God so that you might go out the door ready to put into action what you have learned?

Or are you there critiquing them? Sitting as their judge to decide if they really “brought it” today.

Do you come to be entertained…

 Behold, you are to them like a sensual song by one who has a beautiful voice and plays well on an instrument; for they hear your words but they do not practice them.

…or are you there to be trained?

Do you come to the Word of God to be changed or do you come to be entertained?

Look at your hands and your feet and examine where you go and what you do and answer honestly. Look at your yesterday and compare it to your today. Are you closer to Christ or further away?

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Somebody Tell Them

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Oh me, the stuff in my head… I have so many ministry opportunities that I see and desire to be a part of, but unfortunately I am a human being that is indeed bound by space and time and my own set apartness by God. I can only do what God will allow me to do at the present time. At this present time my ministries are wife, mother, homeschool mom, children’s ministry director and teacher at my church, homeschool co-op co-administrator and chapel leader, devotional author, blogger… and well all the stuff that entails… and I still have  all these other things floating around in my head that are just not possible for me to do at this present time.

However, maybe, just maybe, you are reading this and you are wondering “what could I do to serve my Jesus and His people” let me just shoot out some of the things I see that I would love to do if I could take on just one more thing.

Prison ministry: I would love to teach in the prisons… hey they are a captive audience and are no doubt, quite possibly hungry for light and life

Foster care: This is still something that I think will be doable to add to our family where we are at… and is something I hope to do in the near future… but hey what better ministry opportunity than to embrace a hurting, abandoned, little one in your arms and love them with grace and mercy and show them the gospel lived out.

Nursing home ministry: Once again a captive audience, what joy it would be to bring the study of the word of God to those who can no longer go themselves.

Shiftwork Bible study: My husband works a swing shift… I am not sure anything is on our schedule. I would love to begin an at home Bible study for the wives of those on his shift or if you are a shift worker why not begin one in your own home with meeting times that swing with your schedule

Stripclub Bible study: That’s right! I said it. This would be a great one for a 60+ year old FEMALE. Just march yourself right on in there and find a table and open up the Bible and start a study with whatever girl is willing to stop and ask you what in the world you are doing there.

Government housing Bible Study for single moms: Bring a friend to teach the kids and teach the moms!

Pampering Bible study: Do you do hair? Start a study in your home, if you don’t teach partner with someone who does, at the end of the study, whoever finished the course, gets a new do for free?

Princess party: do a weekend preteen Bible study that focuses on teaching these girls what it means to be God’s princess and do nails and junk food and all that slumber party fun as you study through Song of Solomon or Ruth or Esther

First Priority: Be an adult leader in a first priority group at your child’s school

After school Bible study: Do you have the privilege of coming home with your kids after school? Maybe choose one day a week to open your home or church to an after school Bible study and fellowship with food and fun with your kids peer group, and not necessarily the ones that go to church with you, but the one’s who don’t go to church anywhere.

Maybe you are not teacher? That’s okay volunteer. Do you know how many teachers would love to have someone come and serve along side of them who can keep up with paperwork and communication with the people they are teaching. Can you be the one to make sure everyone has a pencil and paper, can you be be the one to send a thank you card and we missed you last week card? Those are HUGE helps to a teacher!

Maybe you can serve as volunteer at a food kitchen or pregnancy resource center or nursing home, be there as friendly face and a helping hand… there are so many things… I know a lady who was a widow, she served as a volunteer at the pregnancy resource center and when a young girl came in pregnant or not with no place to go… well they came home with her and she loved them. She made them go to church with her and they could stay until they got on their feet again.

As the children’s ministry director at my church, let me tell you that if you would just be willing to serve a turn on the extended care rotation at your church, to help take care of the little ones so that their moms and dads can hear the Pastor and attend Bible Study and be strengthened in the Word so that they can in turn teach their children at home… this is huge as well!

These are just a few thoughts, just the things on the tip of my brain, running through my head… friend there is so much to be do, so much that can be done… I talked with a missionary from the Ukraine this past Monday and he shared with me how there is so much work to do in the Ukraine… he works with children in the Ukraine, with the orphans. Not only does he see the work that needs to be done in the Ukraine but he sees the work that needs to be done here.

He shared how he spoke at a church once here in the United States and he shared about his ministry work in the Ukraine… he told me that after he shared a man in the church came up to him with an attitude and wanted to know why he was wanting money for the kids in the Ukraine when there were kids here that needed support, his answer to this man… because I am doing what called me to do, God has called me to the children in Ukraine, what are you doing?

The man had no answer…

My friend there is so much to do for the Kingdom… what are you doing? God has given you an ability, an opportunity, an open door to make a difference in this world if it be only through the life of one that he has placed in your path… what are you doing? May we open our eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest.

“Opportunities to display abilities and gifts come to all kinds of people, Christian or not. We can play it safe and get what we can for ourselves—or we can risk reputation, possessions, and life itself so that God may have what He wants.”

~ Pastor Ray Stedman

 

And I can wonder about the state of my heart all I want, if the arteries and the valves are hardly warmed over —

but give me a break, it’s right there in my hands.

It’s my hands that are content to mindlessly scroll through Pinterest and Facebook and too often it’s escapism and not ministry (and it could be. Anything can be made a ministry to somebody. All things are Big in the Kingdom of God).

It’s my hands that grow numb and cold and refuse to fold around God in prayer, refuse to fold hope around all this bleeding everywhere.

Hands are the thermometer of the heart.

And a heart that burns for it’s First Love — it flows like mercury to the hands that then reach out to warm a numbed world.

~ Ann Voskamp

Romans Study For Kids (Romans 1:1-7)

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The Gospel in Math Terms :

If you are like me, you might just not have the time or the patience to figure out the Scripture Typer thing. I tried several times and well… I must move on or my heart is not going to be in the right “spirit” for memorizing the Word of God. Memorizing Scripture kind of loses its oompf when it is accompanied by growls and huffs of frustration…

Today is January 30th. If you are with me on the pursuit of memorizing the first chapter of Romans by the end of February then we should be on Romans 1:3 today. Now I must admit that I have not been as pro-active as I want to be in memorizing these first three verses… I just have them memorized because I have read them so many times in teaching through this book.

Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 

which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 

concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh

Romans 1:1-3

One recommendation of memorizing Scripture is to begin with making a list of the first letter of every word…

P, a b o C J, c a a a, s a f t g, w H p b t H p i t h S, c H S, w w b o a d o D a t t f

Another recommendation is to hand write the verse or passage down on a card and read it out loud at least three times a day… I would think you could also take it and type it out three times in a day… maybe get three or four friends to join you in this memorization challenge and text the verses to each other… then you are not only texting them three times a day, but receiving them as well.

The next step is to take it past memorizing the words and discovering what these words mean… this will imbed these words in your heart and mind and soul. I am working on the study for kids… Here are some of the things I shared with the kids as we looked at these verses last Sunday:

I began the lesson with a reminder of our who, what, when, where, why, and how strategy. Then we started with the who, who wrote the book of Romans and then we looked a little at the why it was written to help set the context with a small background lesson into what was going on in the church in Rome. Since we had just finished studying the book of Revelation I took the kids back to Revelation 22…

 I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.

 Revelation 22:18-19
I explained to them that Paul was writing this letter to the church in Rome because of two groups that were causing problems in the church. One group was called the Judaizers. This group taught that yes, Jesus saved you, but you were kept saved by keeping all the laws of Judaism. The other group was the Antinomians. This group taught that since salvation was all about grace and Jesus had died and paid for our sins, then we could just sin all we wanted to and that just made His grace look even greater.
I drew a line chart on a dry erase board to illustrate how the Judaizers added to the Word and well the Antinomians took away. Once I shared what the two groups stood for the kids answered correctly when I asked who added to and who took away. (The kids thought it was quite funny that God used math). I then shared with them that the whole book of Romans is to teach us that the righteous shall live by faith… 
                 _____________________________________________
Judaizers                                                   Faith                                                         Antinomians

 

After this little background we began to look at Romans 1:1-7, but we really only got through verse 1 🙂

Here’s a copy and pasted version of the handouts I am working on as I teach through this book, maybe you can use them with your own children.

 

Read Romans 1:1, what do we learn about Paul?

 

He’s a  __ __ __ __-__ __ __ __ __ __ __  of Jesus Christ

He’s an __ __ __ __ __ __ __

He’s been __ __ __  apart for the __ __ __ __ __ __ of God

 

 

The word bond-servant is “doulos” in the Greek. Read Deuteronomy 15:12-17 to find out what it means to be a bond-servant.

 

It shall come about if he says to you, “__   __ __ __ __   __ __ __    __ __    __ __ __   __ __ __ __    __ __ __” because he  __ __ __ __ __  you and your household.

 

 

Read Galatians 1:1, 11-12 what is an apostle?

 

not sent from __ __ __ nor through the agency of __ __ __

but through J __ __ __ __  C __ __ __ __ __  and G __ __ the Father, who raised him from the dead.

 

 

Read Acts 9:1-17 and then look closely at Acts 9:15, what did God say about Paul, how was he set apart?

 

he is a __ __ __ __ __ __ instrument of M __ __ __, to bear My __ __ __ __  among the

G __ __ __ __ __ __ __  and k __ __ __ __  and the  __ __ __ __  of Israel.

 

Read Ephesians 2:10:

 

  what have you been set apart for?

 

__ __ __ __     __ __ __ __ __

 

  who prepared them for you?

 

__ __ __

 

   when did He prepare them for you?

 

__ __ __ __ __ __ hand

 

 

THINK ABOUT IT…

 

If Paul was a bond-servant he was completely dependent upon his master. His Master gives him his orders and his Master gives him everything he needs to fulfill those orders. If we are a bond-servant of Jesus we must must do what our Master commands and we can do it because we know that our Master will give us what we need to do what He commands. Do your parents tell you to do something that they know you are unable to do? No, they give you chores and instructions that they know that you can do because they have given you the knowledge and tools to complete the task. If your parents do this, do you think that God will too?

Power Walking

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“And I will strengthen them in the Lord,
And in His name they will walk,” declares the Lord.

Zechariah 10:12

Do you know in whose name you walk? Oh precious one if you want to do some real power walking then walk in the Name of the Lord.

I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me. I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours; and all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them. I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are.While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me…

John 17:6

 

Today do not walk around in defeat…

Today do not walk around in the failures of yesterday…

Today do not walk about in fear of what might come…

Today do not be downcast by your past or the ruin of your name due to a myriad of wrong life choices.

Today be strengthened by the One who came to bring you victory, forgiveness, peace, and future and a hope.

Today be strengthened by the One who came to give you His name and He doesn’t care where you came from or what you have done…

He wants you and to I walk in His name and in all that beautiful Name means!

So precious one start power walking today.

Teaching Romans to Kids

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The Lord willing, I will begin teaching the children of Shiloh Baptist through the book of Romans. I have googled and web browsed and haven’t found a study on the  entire book of Romans for children. So as I teach I will also be working on writing a study to share with others who would like to teach this book verse by verse to their kids.

I am not an artist nor am I a computer wiz… so get ready for some silly pictures, uneven graphs, and unconventional visual aids… but hopefully by the end of the study the kids will have a solid foundation on the book of Romans as a whole. Hopefully one that God can continue to build upon for years to come.

This coming Sunday we will be digging into Romans 1:1-17. We will also begin with an overview of the whole book. I call this building the filing cabinet (or I guess the file folder these days) and designating the files. This way as the kids learn they know where to the store the information that they learn… they know which file to put what they are learning in.

The name of our Children’s Church Room is the OIA room. It’s the place where we Observe the text by asking who, what, when, where, why, and how. It’s the place where we Interpret the text according to what we have observed and by keeping our observations within the context of the whole counsel of God. It’s the place where we see the Application of what we have learned to our everyday lives. How does what we have learned from our study change how we live and think?

I put together this chart…

I call it my Romans foundation chart.

 

I believe that Romans 1, 15, and 16 are the cornerstone of the book of Romans because in these chapters we find out who wrote it, who it was written to, the circumstances in which it was written, and the purpose for which it was written. These three chapters set the context in which the entire book must be interpreted if we won’t a true understanding of this beautiful doctrinal treatise.

The kids will begin here.

Now the goal is to let them see how exciting it is to discover truth as we study the Bible… it certainly is not a stuffy old book full of out of date rules… it’s living and active and absolutely EXCITING!

You see I don’t want them just to think coming to church is fun… I want them to see that studying the Word of God is fun!

And as we study and as we learn I will also be working on memorizing the entire 1st chapter of Romans… 🙂

 

 

Names of God: Petra

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Today we continue our study in our Names of God series. Last week we looked into the title of our Christ that illustrates to us that He is our Friend. The name we will be studying today relates to this title as well. I say this because a true friend is also a petra in our lives. Petra is the Greek word for Rock.

We are told that Christ is our Petra, our Rock.

For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren,

that our fathers were all under the cloud

and all passed through the sea;

and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

and all ate the same spiritual food;

and all drank the same spiritual drink, 

for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them;

and the rock was Christ.

1 Corinthians 10:1-4

As Paul shares these words to the church at Corinth he is reminding them of the words in Exodus…

Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink.  Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “What shall I do to this people? Alittle more and they will stone me.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Exodus 17:1-6

Notice that the children of Israel were in this waterless place according to the command of the Lord. It was God that led them to place with no water. However it is not God they cry out to for water. They instead complain and grumble to Moses. So God has brought them to this place. They are here at His command. He purposely has brought them to this place where they were completely and utterly unable to sustain their own life. They were thirsty and they had no water and so they blamed Moses.

Then Moses turns to God and seeks help from the Lord. This is where the Lord has Moses strike the rock and when the rock is struck out flows water. Life is supplied to all those who came to the rock. Their thirst is quenched…

We know that Christ is the rock…

We also know that Moses represents the Law of God.

It was the Law that struck the rock… but when the rock was struck out flowed living water!

 

Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death; and they bound Him, and led Him away and delivered Him to Pilate the governor.

Matthew 27:1-2

Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” For he knew that because of envy they had handed Him over. While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to put Jesus to death. But the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Crucify Him!” And he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”

Matthew 27:15-23

It was at the command of the Lord that the children of Israel where brought to this point of great thirst.

It was at the command of the Lord that the Law struck the Rock.

It was at the command of the Lord that life flowed out from this Rock.

Why?

Why did it need to be the Jews, the carriers and teachers of the Law of God, who cried “Crucify!”

Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made. Now a mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one. Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith inChrist Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Galatians 3:19-27

I see it like this…

In 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 Paul tells us that our fathers were all under the cloud. Have you every been in a fog? Have you ever driven in a fog? The only thing you can see is what is right in front of you. You can’t tell what is up ahead. You can’t see what is to the left or to the right. You can’t see the dangers ahead or around you or coming up behind you. You are only concerned about where you are at that very moment.

We all begin life in this cloud. We also, like the Israelites, find ourselves doing a lot of complaining and grumbling while in this cloud.

So God brought the children of Israel under the cloud and He brought them to the Law.

SLAM!

Now they could see. When we come to the Law we begin to see the consequences of our choices and actions. We begin to see ourselves through the eyes of God, the fog is lifted from our eyes. We start to see past ourselves and then we realize we don’t like what we see. We see our sin. We then see we can’t stop our sin. We see ourselves coming out of the cloud and about to plunge to our death because we now see that the road we are traveling ends at a cliff that we are about to go off.

So we cry out…

Wretched man that I am!

Who will set me free from the body of this death?

Romans 7:24

and our God says…

“Take the rod; and you and your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus bring forth water for them out of the rock and let the congregation and their beasts drink.”

Numbers 20:8

Oh precious one, the Rock has already been struck… He doesn’t need to be struck again or over and over. Once was sufficient. Have you come to the Rock? Have you spoke to the Rock that you might have the Living Water?

And if you say yes… yes you have… do you understand what all this Rock provides?

The definition of rock, petra, in 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 is: a rock, cliff or ledge, a projecting rock, crag, rocky ground, a rock, a large stone, metaphorically: a man like a rock, by reason of his firmness and strength of soul

A rock is something solid, firm, and lasting. I struggle with keeping plants alive in my flowerbeds. However if I put a beautiful decorative rock in that flowerbed I can count on it to look beautiful and not die on me. This rock will weather the storms. It doesn’t matter if it’s 100 degrees out outside or 10 degrees. The rock doesn’t change. Rain, sleet, or snow the rock remains the same. We call a true friend a “rock”. My husband is my “rock”. I can count on him. I can trust him to hold me up. When we look around the world we can see the reality of the firmness of things that are made from rock.

 

 

These buildings have been around for thousands of years and we marvel at them. We marvel at them because when so many things around our world have changed… these building of rock remain.

So a rock is solid, firm, unchanging, lasting… a rock is also a place of protection.

The Lord said to Moses, “I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight and I have known you by name.” Then Moses said, “I pray You, show me Your glory!” And He said, “I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.” But He said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!” Then the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand there on the rock; and it will come about, while My glory is passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. Then I will take My hand away and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.”

Exodus 33:17-23

God put Moses in the cleft of the rock… and from the safety of the rock he could see the glory of God. How beautiful it is that just as Moses was hidden in the cleft of this rock… we are hidden in the cleft of THE ROCK.

Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.

For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

When Christ, who is our life, is revealed,

then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

Colossians 3:2-4

And in Christ, in the cleft of our Petra, we too can say, “Oh God show me your glory!“

even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:5-7

When in Christ we are in the cleft of the Rock. We are in a place of protection. We are safe. We have a solid foundation. He is firm and their is strength in His soul. And just like the story of the Three Little Pigs if we will build our house out and from the rock and live in the safety of our rock… we will have confidence and boldness to stand against any storm. No matter how many times that big bad wolf comes after us, we will recognize his deception, and no matter how hard he blows… he will never be able to get to us. We are safe in the Rock.

Would You Please

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My second devotional is currently in the editing process. Devotions From Exodus will be available some time in the spring/summer. In the meantime I would love help in gathering reviews on Devotions From Genesis.

Here is the Google books link that will take you to Devotions From Genesis, It’s Not Just Ancient History online. I will send a printed copy of the book to the first ten people who contact me with their written review on Amazon or any other book retailer and/or own personal blog.

Help me spread and share the Word of God!

Just post the link to your review in the comments of this post or on Proven Path Ministries and I will contact you for your mailing address 🙂

Please know that you have no clue how hard posting this and making this request is for me… but I do so because I know my heart is not to promote me, but to preach Christ and Him crucified. Please know that I give away more books than I have ever sold and freely share my complete PDF version at no cost.

If you are interested in using my book as a free gift in your ministry please let me know and I will send you the PDF version at no cost.

My heart truly is to help people learn how to dig into the depths of the Word of God and to see how every word is relevant today. I want people to see the unchanging beauty of our God and the timeless treasure of His Word. Will you help me?

Here are a few of my editor’s comments concerning Devotions From Exodus Learning to Live (or Walk) in Freedom (I haven’t decided yet which one I like best, feel free to share your preference in subtitle with me now :-))

“The most important thing that you have accomplished in your work is that you are able to share to your readers your thorough research on the Old Testament of the Bible, particularly on the life of the pharaoh, Moses, and the people of Israel. You do this by discussing the birth of Moses and how a Hebrew child freed the Lord’s children in Israel and relating this in our modern-day living. The Bible passages that you cited, as well as the personal experiences that you shared, strengthen your argument. The prayers that you provide after each topic discussed also guide your readers on what to be thankful for and what to ask from the Lord.

The typical readers of your book are Christian men and women in their late teens and up. Church leaders could also benefit from reading your book as this would guide them in their sermons. The thorough discussions on what happened during the time of Moses would also give them points that need to be emphasized in their discussions with the flock”

~ Tyler Worsham

Would you please help me?

Standing Strong

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And he said to me,

“Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book,

for the time is near.”

Revelation 22:10

This week the children at Shiloh Baptist Church will possibly be finishing up an in-depth study of the book of Revelation. I have the great joy and honor to teach the Word of God to this wonderful group of 4 year olds – 11 year olds. I have any where between twenty and thirty kids in my group every Sunday morning. As I look out into their faces and know what is being fed into their minds and hearts, not just at church by me, but at home by their families as well, I have hope.

Jesus changed the world with twelve disciples.

Here I am in Alabama, looking in the eyes of these kids and praying that they will take hold of the Word of God just as the twelve disciples did, and that they would be able to stand as strong as these foundational men of the Gospel.

This is what I do know. These kids have spent the past year digging into the book of Revelation. There is not one verse that they have not studied. If they were able to come every Sunday they have dug into every single verse. I don’t skip the uncomfortable ones.

These 4 year olds – 11 year olds have learned the outline of Revelation. They can tell you the three divisions of this great book of prophecy and what chapters are in those divisions. They can tell you how John received the words of the book of Revelation and what he was to do with them. They can tell you about each of the seven churches, what chapters you can find them, what rebukes and encouragements were given them, and what rewards await those who overcome. They can then tell you what it means to overcome.  They can tell you in what order came the seals, trumpets, and bowls and what judgments each of these contained. They can tell you about the woman and child of Revelation 12. They can tell you about the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. They can even tell you about the harlot of Babylon and what all she represents. Then they can tell you about the bride of the New Jerusalem…

They have been given a solid foundation on which to build.

In these last days… these evil days… I have no clue what kind of world these kids will face as adults. Everything has changed so much and become so much darker in just my day. I can complain about it, shake my head over it, rebuke it, get depressed and undone over it… but that helps no one nor does it change anyone or anything.

What these kids at Shiloh know is that yes, darkness will have its day, but here’s the thing GOD WINS.

They have studied. They know. They know that yes, there just might come a time in their life that they might have to die for their faith. They might be cast on to Patmos, or even beheaded because they hold tight to the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ, but they know that death in Christ is far better than cowering at the feet of darkness out of fear of death. They know this now… my prayer is that no one or no thing ever snatches that assurance and confidence away from them. I pray they hold tight to the truth.

The days of teaching our kids “Bible stories” that tickle their ears in an attempt to either scare them into what we deem as right behavior or make them feel good about themselves need to be over. They should have never begun…

Our kids need sound doctrine.

And yes at 4 years old.

Let us not belittle their ability to learn and mine the great truths of our God in His Word.

And adult… if these 4 year olds know more Biblical truth and have a firmer, more solid, foundation than you… well I suggest you put down the easy read of “Jesus Calling” and pick up the Bible and dig into some real studies. It’s time to dig in and start mining the beautiful depths of His Word. Remember that the foundation stones of the holy city are adorned with precious stones and precious stones are found in the depths. They are hidden jewels that take work, time, and perseverance to find. It’s time to put the work clothes on and start laying a foundation that will not crumble out from under you in these dark days ahead.