How's Your Vision?
Happy Palindrome and Leap Year!
Photo by Jan Baborák on Unsplash
This year and this new decade starts off with a Leap Year and the first Sunday of February was a Palindrome—02/02/2020 ~ 0202/02/02. It’s also Super Bowl Sunday in America.
Of course, the trite thing would be to say something like—How’s your vision in 2020? or Do you have 20-20 vision for 2020? But I won’t bother with such trite stuff.
Instead, this is just to catch you up on what I’ve posted on Medium since the beginning of the year.
So, read on, enjoy, and thanks for reading!
Trouble at the Temple
Some story background
Under the Mosaic Law even when Jesus walked the earth, Jewish men were expected to attend three feasts celebrated at the temple in Jerusalem — the Feasts of Passover (and Unleavened Bread), Pentecost (or Weeks), and Tabernacles (or Booths).
These were important as memorials of God’s faithfulness to His people at pivotal points in their history. These events also held greater meaning and significance for the future of those who trust in the Living God of Israel.
Continue reading– Trouble at the Temple
The Humility of God
I once heard someone say God was conceited because He sought out worship. We say ignorant things when we are ignorant of the truth.
If God is God—the Creator of the universe who is beyond all creation and yet immersed in every particle of it—then He is worthy of all worship.
Shouldn’t the Creator be more worthy of worship than what and who He created?
Continue reading– The Humility of God
A Flawed and Failed Attempt
A vicious cycle
The people of Israel were ruled by judges — rescuers sent by God — for about 340 years. The nation was in a time of moral and spiritual darkness brought on by idolatry, oppression, and slavery.
God would send these judges — leaders who would deliver the people from their oppressors — to restore freedom and stability. But this freedom only lasted for a season. On and on this cycle of slavery and freedom continued for more than 300 years.
Continue reading— A Flawed and Failed Attempt
Reconciling Human Effort with God’s Grace
Since my early days as a young believer, I’ve understood the biblical doctrine of grace. Well, I understood it at a basic level.
The importance of God’s grace solidified even more for me as I learned about the 5 Solas of Protestant Reformation theology.
One of the first Bible verses I memorized was —
For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift. (Ephesians 2:8, NIV)
Continue reading— Reconciling Human Effort with God’s Grace
