As John the Baptist looked out amidst the crowd while he was baptizing at the Jordan River, he saw Jesus coming toward him. He stopped, pointed and exclaimed, “Behold, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.” What an amazing response. We are familiar with those words, but in the moment they would have seemed odd. He didn’t call him the king or savior, but an animal that was used for sacrifice. That is, when John looked at Jesus he saw in him the fulfillment of the Old Testament imagery of the sacrificial lambs. By drawing on that one image, John said volumes about what he believed Jesus had come to do and about how he viewed the Old Testament as a whole. For John, the Old Testament, with all of its stories and imagery, was...
"Taking Every Thought Captive" 2 Corinthians 10:5
Bill_Spanjer
New Year's Affirmations
It is funny how we as human beings love the idea of a fresh start. We get excited for the first day of school and convince ourselves that this year it will be different. Fresh notebooks, pens and pencils inspire us as the blank slate of a new school year holds out the possibility of great success. New Year’s provides that same hopeful anticipation, a chance to forget last years failings and start over; and hence the tradition of making resolutions. Unfortunately, our track record is not very good. Just as the new school excitement wears off in about a week and a half, so does the renewed commitment to eat healthy, hit the gym and lose weight in the coming year. Therefore I propose reciting some New Year’s affirmations this year instead of making another set of ill fated resolutions. That is, to be encouraged this year with some of the promises God makes to you rather than setting yourself up for condemnation by making dreamy eyed promises of your own. Perhaps we could take our cue from David in his familiar Psalm 23, a Psalm unfortunately relegated to funerals, but one that has a wealth of encouragement for the flock of God. David makes three affirmations in this Psalm that we would do well to recite to begin this new year. First...