The Gospel of IDD

  The Promise of Communion                  When the hour came, he took his place at the table, and the apostles with him.    He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;   for I tell you, I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”    Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”    Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”    And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Luke 22:14-20       ...

Promises                        Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.”    So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.  What can anyone do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6              I thought that this was going to be an easy entry to write.  I really did.   “I will never leave you or forsake you.”   God promises that He will always be with us.  Always.  In the face of darkness and despair, sleepless nights and drama-filled days, He will always be by our side.  How could that certainty be anything but heart-warming and encouraging?             Here’s what I find:  That amazing promise is linked to a ...

  Jesus, the Son of Man                        “But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another,   ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;   we wailed, and you did not mourn.’  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” Matthew 11:16-19              One of the favorite titles that Jesus uses to refer to himself, especially in the book of Matthew, is “The Son of Man.”  For most of us, that strikes us as an odd title…very humble and self-deprecating.  For the Ancient Jews, however, that title carried incredible signif...

  Daniel’s Vision                        As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat.  His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool.  His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.  A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him.  Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.  The court was seated, and the books were opened.  Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking.  I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)  In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heav...

  Psalm 12                        Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore; those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.  Everyone lies to their neighbor; they flatter with their lips but harbor deception in their hearts.  May the Lord silence all flattering lips and every boastful tongue-those who say, “By our tongues we will prevail; our own lips will defend us-who is lord over us?” “Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord.  “I will protect them from those who malign them.”  And the words of the Lord are pure, like silver purified in a crucible, like gold refined seven times.  You, Lord, will keep the needy safe and will protect us forever from the wicked, who freely strut about when what is vile is honored by the human race. Psalm 12:1-8           ...

  Abraham’s Faith                        What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter?  If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about-but not before God.  What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”  Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation.  However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. Romans 4:1-5              We know that it is Faith that saves us.  We know.  We know that we cannot earn our way into Heaven.  We cannot impress God with our outstanding Spiritual Resume so much that He cannot stop Himself from ushering us through the Pearly ...

  Ishmael                        Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian slave-girl whose name was Hagar, and Sarai said to Abram, “You see that the  Lord  has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my slave-girl; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.    So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her slave-girl, and gave her to her husband Abram as a wife.    He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress.    Then Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my slave-girl to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the  Lord  judge between you...

  God’s call to Abraham                        Now the  Lord  said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.    I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.    I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”    So Abram went, as the  Lord  had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.    Abram took his wife Sarai and his brother’s son Lot, and all the possessions that they had gathered, and the persons whom they had acquired in Haran; and they set forth to go to the land of Canaan. When they had come to the land of Canaan, Abram passed through the la...

  Do not put God to the test                    Be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.  Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name.  Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land.  Do not put the Lord your God to the test. Deuteronomy 6:12-16              This is the type of passage that turns people off from Christianity.  At first glance, God comes across looking like an abusive spouse.  The Israelites are told to fear Him and obey or else He will get jealous and He will get angry and then He will wipe them out.  Nothing in there sounds like unconditional love or re...

  Man does not live by bread alone                    Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these 40 years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.  He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.  Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these 40 years.  Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.  Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him.  For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; a lan...

The Temptation of Jesus                    Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”  But he answered, “It is written,  ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple,   saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written,  ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”   Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”   Again, the devil took him to a very high m...