There is a lot of material in these two chapters that we will be covering in some detail when we get to Ephesians 4-6 in our current sermon series. Therefore, I’m not going to steal my own thunder, but rather, will point out a couple of interesting principles to keep us all on the path […]
When Wil Owens became the pastor of Clovis Evangelical Free Church (where Cheryl and I previously attended), his first sermon series was from the book of Colossians and from that series, the church developed its new mission statement: In all things, Christ supreme! In a nutshell, that is the theme of this amazing letter. There […]
I wanted to get a post out to everyone before leaving to attend the Hope for Addiction meeting tonight in Gilbert. Please be in prayer for our leadership team, for those from our community who could use this ministry, and for those in our church who need to see how the gospel is relevant to […]
As I alluded to yesterday, the greatest temptation I have in posting these entries to assist our church in reading through the bible this year is to avoid writing a running commentary on each passage. There are better resources than me for that, so what I’m trying to do is share a key thought or […]
The first book that I preached from after Cheryl and I arrived in Mayer was Philippians. There may be books that are more exhaustive in their theology, but Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi has always been one of my favorites. As I blog this week through Philippians and Colossians, it will be difficult […]
When I was in the Navy in 1979, I got word that Bob Dylan had converted to Christianity. As it turns out, it was a short-lived, and therefore, false conversion. But during his “spiritual” period, Dylan released an album called Slow Train Coming and one of the top songs from the album was “Gotta Serve […]
As we come to chapter 23, we can’t be sure how long the conquest has been going on but we know that Joshua was 110 when he died (Joshua 24:29). Just as Moses gave final instructions to the nation before he died (Deuteronomy), so Joshua gathers the leaders of Israel and gives them his final […]
If chapters 22-24 are a summary warning to Israel to be faithful to God now that they are settling in the Promised Land (and I believe they are), then chapter 22 is a perfect introduction to this section. A little background for those who may not recall the details: Before Israel crossed the Jordan, the […]
The writer finishes the account of land distribution to the 12 tribes in chapters 18 and 19. It is interesting that this whole section concerning the inheritance on the west side of the Jordan running from chapter 14 to chapter 19 is bracketed by the fulfillment of the land promise to Caleb and Joshua. I […]
There may be some folks confused about the tribal designations used as the land is given to Israel. Chapter 16 begins by talking about the allotment to Joseph and then shifts to Ephraim and Manasseh. The tribe of Joseph was divided into 2 tribes, named after his two sons, because the tribe of Levi would […]