In all four New Testament gospels, we are given an account of Jesus’ grand entrance into Jerusalem. We commemorate this day by celebrating Palm Sunday. Many churches use palm branches in their worship services in the way the crowds came out in droves to lay their coats and palm branches in the road under the […]
Read More What Changes Between Palm Sunday and Good FridayWe have reached the end of our Series on the Lord’s Prayer. It’s my hope that you have grown in your relationship with God as we’ve looked at how Jesus taught us to pray. The often quoted prayer ends with a declaration of praise much like the closing doxology in the book of Jude. Oddly […]
Read More THE PRAYER: Part 7 “For Yours is the Kingdom…”When Jesus taught His followers the model for prayer in Matthew 6, He taught a deliberate sequencing in order for us to understand the priority of prayer. He begins by teaching us to acknowledge Him first (Our Father,) then moves us to worship (Hallowed be your name.), and then into submission before Him (Your Kingdom/Your […]
Read More The Prayer Part 6: “Lead us not into temptation/deliever us from evil.”Last week we looked at the first part of the Lord’s prayer where Jesus teaches us to ask for forgiveness on a daily basis. Just like asking for “daily bread,” we must seek God’s mercies new each morning. “Forgive us our debts…” Matthew 6:12a (ESV) Yet this isn’t where the prayer for forgiveness ends, though […]
Read More The Prayer Part 5: “…as we forgive our debtors.”Jesus’ model prayer continues to unfold. It begins with worship (Part 1) and flows into our submission to God’s ways and His Kingdom even while living on earth (Part 2), then the prayer shifts to us and our “daily bread” or our needs (Part 3). The next verse moves us to a deeper understanding of […]
Read More The Prayer Part 4: “Forgive us our debts…”