Podcasts about english christian

“We are Cities Church” means that we take our orders from Jesus, which he gives to us in the Bible. We are who we are and do what we do because of what he says. That's most basically what it means to be his church. We are a band of his disciples — and a disciple, most fundamentally, is a follower or an apprentice. We are apprentices of Jesus, and a couple of weeks ago we saw that means we get our mission from Jesus. Jesus tells us what we're supposed to do: as his disciples, he sends us out to make more of his disciples.Since the very start of our church a decade ago, that's been our goal. Our mission statement has been a direct quote spoken by Jesus himself in Matthew 28:19, “make disciples.” That's what he said, and so that's what we've been about; that's what we're still about — except that now we just want to say more. When we say “make disciples” we mean “make joyful disciples of Jesus who remember his realness in all of life.”And when we talk about disciples, we have in mind a fourfold calling that we find in the New Testament. First and foremost, #1, a disciple of Jesus is a Jesus-worshiper. Pastor David Mathis showed us this last week and Wow, it was good! We are Jesus-worshipers, Pastor Mathis showed us. Jesus Is Super ClearAnd today we're looking at a second part of our calling: We Are Joyful Servants. And I'll be honest with you: this is a softball sermon. And here's why: There are only two places in Scripture where Jesus just says straight up: Hey, look at what I'm doing, now you go and do the same thing.Now Jesus doesn't need to tell us this plainly to imitate him because, again, that's what a disciple does. To be a disciple, or an apprentice, is to follow your master, and that goes for everything about your master. So in all of Jesus's life and character, we should follow him and conform our way of being into his way of being. But for some reason, Jesus wanted to be super clear about two ways in particular that we should be like him, one is in John Chapter 20, but the first we see here is in John Chapter 13. Seeing John 13:15Go ahead and look at verse 15 here. John Chapter 13, verse 15. You've already heard it read, but I want you to see this again. Verse 15 — Jesus says:“For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.”So there's no mystery here to what Jesus is saying, but I just wanna make sure we're all on the same page. The first thing he says is: “I have given you an example.” And what's an example? It's something to imitate. And then Jesus spells it out even more. He says the purpose of the example is … “That you should do just as I have done to you.”See what I mean when I say Jesus is being super clear? He says Here's an example, do what I do. And if we are truly his disciples it means that we're gonna say Okay! I'm in.Are you in? We wanna do what Jesus says! If we're onboard, then it means two things:We're gonna focus on the example of JesusWe're gonna figure out how to do what Jesus does1. Focus on the Example of JesusWhen Jesus mentions his example in verse 15, he's talking about something he just did, which goes back to verse 1. So I'm going to take us back to verse 1, and here's what I'd like to do…Instead of just giving you some bullet-point observations of Jesus's example here, I want to us to try and imagine the scene. Jesus gives an object lesson here. He does a thing that his disciples see, so I want us to try to see it too. I'm gonna ask that you try to use your imagination here as I tell you a story, okay?It had been a crazy week for Jesus (kinda like when we have a crazy week, except this was much crazier). Jesus started the week by coming to Jerusalem. It was the Jewish Passover and the city was packed, but Jesus didn't just enter the city by foot, like he normally does when he enters cities, but this time, he found a young donkey to ride into town, and as he rode it, crowds, who heard he was coming, lined the streets and threw down palm branches, and they said “Hosanna!” (Which is Aramaic for Hooray! Hooray!) “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”And Jesus's disciples are excited. They had just seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead! Jewish people were believing in Jesus! This is big, and Sunday to Wednesday is a blur! Greeks are now seeking Jesus, and Jesus says his time has come!There's some confusion among the people (and the disciples) about this, but Jesus is locked in.And then it's Thursday night. Jesus is having dinner with his 12 disciples, and he knew something nobody else knew: At this dinner he knew that within 24 hours he's going to be brutally killed, and everything about everything will change. And he's with these men, these men who he's spent everyday with for the past three years. Can you imagine how well he knew these guys? They were his friends and he loved them. And now he's at the table and he's looking at them, full of love, and he knows how all of this is gonna play out.He knows about Judas. He knows what Peter will do. He knows all the others are gonna run. There will be so much pain. But he also knows he's going home. Jesus knows that the Father is happy with him, that the Father is going to honor him and exalt him, and make him shine. The Father has given Jesus preeminence over all things, and Jesus knows it. Jesus knows who he is. He knows where he's going. And if we could see with our mind's eye what Jesus was seeing in that moment, it's blinding light. It's unspeakable, blazing joy. He's the freest of kings.But then Jesus gets up from the dinner table and he takes off his nice shirt. And he goes and gets a towel (and it was probably a damp towel — you know we always look for damp towels for things like this).He ties the towel around his waist, fills a basin with water, he kneels down, and he takes the feet of one of these guys, and he's starts washing them. I don't need to tell you how gross feet are. The water turns brown, and Jesus is wiping these feet with the towel around his waist. This man created Jupiter. He spoke the oceans into existence and now he scrubs the toes of men, and Peter didn't want him to. Peter said No, Lord, not you. You're never gonna wash my feet.And Jesus said, Peter, if you don't let me wash your feet, you're not with me. And it was an amazing moment. Peter said, Fine! Wash my feet! And my hands! And my head!Peter says I am so with you — but he wasn't that with him, because Jesus is about to tell Peter that he'll deny him. Jesus knew Judas was about to leave dinner early to betray him.Jesus knew everything and he washed all the disciples' feet. And when he finished, he took off the towel, now soaked, and he puts back on his nice shirt, and he goes back to his seat at the table, and all the guys are looking at him, and he says: “Do y'all understand what I just did?” And of course they didn't really understand.So Jesus tells them, “You call me your Teacher and Lord, and you're right. That's who I am.” These guys already recognized that Jesus is the one they're supposed to imitate.So Jesus says, “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.”And I think we just need to sit in this for a second. This was the most amazing dinner in human history. How could you be one of these disciples and ever have dinner the same way again? This was an unforgettable dinner, for these disciples and for every disciple of Jesus who has come after them.Jesus gives us an example. He demonstrates how he wants us to be. And we need to figure that out. 2. Figure out how to do what Jesus does.We need to figure out how we do what Jesus did. I don't think Jesus means that we should literally wash feet — I mean, you can — but it's more than that. Jesus wants us to be servants. That's the name we'd put on his example. That's what he's demonstrating by washing feet.He wants us to be servants like him, and if we're keeping his example in mind, to be a servant like Jesus means three things:1. We serve at a cost.I want to start here with the cost of serving because there is a real cost … because we're talking about real serving … It's serving, not partyin'.It's serving, not keeping your hands clean from the grit and grim of difficult things — Jesus had to change his clothes!Serving does not mean finding your happy place. Everything does not go perfectly. That's what makes it serving!William Carey and Sacrifice?I love the legacy of William Carey. He was an English Christian who served as a missionary in India from 1793–1834. He's considered to be the father of modern global missions, and he was a Calvinist Baptist. William Carey is my guy. And toward the end of his life, he made this famous quote about all the work and ministry he had done. He said, “I never made a sacrifice. Of this I am certain. It was no sacrifice. It was a privilege.”In the 41 years that William Carey spent in India he had to rack his brain everyday to learn and translate several local languages and dialects. He experienced frequent illness, including malaria and dysentery, often without good medical care.In 1807, he suffered the tragic death of his wife after she got sick. And of and on, over four decades, he faced constant opposition from Hindus and Muslims and he struggled at times with loneliness and isolation.William Carey made a sacrifice. There was a cost to his serving. Now what he means by “I never made a sacrifice” is that the end reward is so good it eclipses the cost. Like after a mother has given birth to her child (Jesus uses this example). Once the baby is born, it's just joy! — so much joy that you're not even thinking about the intense pain that you were experiencing five minutes ago, which was painful (I've been in the room a few times!) But the reward eventually transcends the cost — that's what William Carey is saying. But there's still a cost, and while you're paying, it's not a party.Troubled in SpiritIt is amazing that in this narrative of Jesus serving we're reminded constantly of what these disciples are gonna do. Judas's betrayal is mentioned in verse 2, then again in verse 11 and verse 18, and the whole passage is about Judas from verses 21–30, and then this chapter ends with Jesus foretelling Peter's denial. All of this in this chapter about Jesus serving — do you think Jesus was giddy about all this? You think Jesus would say none of this hurt? That there was no cost? Is that what we see when Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane? Already here, at this last supper, John tells us in verse 21 that Jesus was “troubled in his spirit.” And John knows, because, remember, John was sitting right beside Jesus! There was a cost here.Brothers and sisters, if we serve like Jesus we serve at a cost too. And so if I could say so gently, when it comes to serving, some of us need to stop trying to be more spiritual than Jesus — don't ignore the cost; count the cost. And then tell Jesus he's worth it. #2 — to be a servant like Jesus means …2. We serve from freedom. There's something here we need to clarify: Jesus was a servant, we're called to follow his example and be servants too — but servants of who exactly? Are we servants of Jesus or servants of others?And the answer is both. And that might be obvious to you, but I think it's important how this comes through in the text. Jesus doesn't use a lot of servant language in the Gospel of John. The first time he mentions us being servants is one chapter before this one, in Chapter 12, and then there's a few key places in Chapters 13, 15, and 18, and in all these uses — every time Jesus talks about us being “servants” — he's talking about us being his servants (see 12:26; 13:16; 15:15, 20; 18:36). We serve him.And of course we serve others too — that's the whole point of our passage today — when Jesus says “you should do just as I have done to you” he implies “you should do to others.” In verse 36 he repeats the same idea and says, “just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”So yes, we serve others, but there's an important connection here we need to see: it's that we can never serve others the way Jesus served us unless we are first his servants. “You Are Serving the Lord Christ”Our calling is to serve Jesus first, and then as his servants, following his example, serving him, we serve others.And I love the way Paul captures this in 2 Corinthians 4:5 — this is a verse to memorize. Paul says about his ministry:“For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.”This is profound. Is Paul serving Jesus or others? He's serving both, but it's even more than that: because in Paul's serving of others, he's actually serving Jesus too. Paul serves Jesus by his serving of others, and in his serving of others he's serving Jesus.William Carey translated the entire Bible into six different Indian languages. He translated part of the Bible into at least 29 different languages and dialects. Which was painstaking work. He would have spent hours and hours hunched over his desk, laboring by candlelight, serving, but get this: he wasn't merely serving the people who would read his translations, but he was serving Jesus! So finally, we have the whole Bible in Bengali! Here, Jesus, it's for you.Hey mom and dad, when you feel at your limit with what you can give your children, and you wonder if it's ever gonna do any good, remember that you're not merely serving your kids in what you do, you're serving Jesus in serving your kids. Here, Jesus, this 10,000th PB&J, it's for you.People at work — employees — when you're tired at work and you'd rather be a hundred other places, you can work heartily for the Lord, not men — because “you are serving the Lord Christ”(see Colossians 3:23–24). Here, Jesus, this report, this project, these tasks, it's for you. We serve Jesus first!And get this: serving Jesus first is the only way we can serve from freedom. The Freedom of a ChristianServing from freedom means that our serving is not constrained by anything. It's not forced by some desired result, but it's willingly! Serving from freedom means we serve because we want to, not because we're trying to get something. And the reason Jesus is the only one we can serve this way is because Jesus is the only person who loves us purely by grace.We don't have to earn his favor or score points — he's already given us his favor! We have all the points! And he has given them to us not because of what we've done — it can never be because of what we've done — but it's all because of his grace.The grace of God is a life-changing discovery. Just ask Martin Luther. Back in the early 1500s, Martin Luther read the Bible and was transformed by the gospel of God's grace. We are saved not by our works, but by God's grace through faith in Christ. And there were a lot of people who did not like that, and one reason was because they said:Hey, if people know they're saved by grace, not by the good works they do, then they will stop doing good works. We have to tell them that their works earn their salvation, so they'll keeping doing them.And in the fall of 1520, Luther published a small treatise called The Freedom of a Christian (still is an amazing book!). And Luther argues that the gospel demolishes that way of thinking. He says the gospel implies two things:1) A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. 2) A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.This is what the gospel does. First, it means we're free!Luther says salvation by grace means “every Christian by faith is exalted above all things so that nothing can do the Christian any harm.” He writes, As a matter of fact, all things are made subject to [the Christian] and are compelled to serve him in obtaining salvation. Accordingly Paul says in Romans 8, “All things work together for good for the elect” and in 1 Corinthians 3, “All things are yours whether … life or death or the present or the future, all are yours; and you are Christ's …”He just rejoices! He says:The cross and death itself are compelled to serve me … This is a splendid privilege and hard to attain, a truly omnipotent power, a spiritual dominion in which there is nothing so good and nothing so evil but that it shall work together for my good … Christians are the freest of kings!It's amazing, brothers and sisters, how free we are in Christ! Ultimately we are untouchable! All by the grace of God, not because of what we do.But then, how does that affect what we do? How do we kings and queens treat one another? Luther says that because we are so free in Christ, all we care about is divine approval and therefore we are freed to serve. Luther writes, [The Christian] ought to think: “Although I am an unworthy and condemned man, my God has given me in Christ all the riches of righteousness and salvation without any merit on my part, out of pure, free mercy, so that from now on I need nothing except faith which believes that this is true.” …Behold, from faith flows forth love and joy in the Lord, and from love a joyful, willing, and free mind that serves one's neighbor willingly and takes no account of gratitude or ingratitude, of praise or blame, of gain or loss. For a man does not serve that he may put men under obligations. … But as his Father does, distributing all things to all men richly and freely, making his sun rise on the evil and on the good, as his Father does, so also the son! [The child of God, the Christian] does all things and suffers all things with that freely bestowing joy which is his delight in God, the dispenser of such great benefits.Brothers and sisters, we serve from freedom, and do you see that it's when we serve from freedom that we serve with joy?That's the third and final point. To serve like Jesus means …3. We serve with joy. We serve with joy — because our salvation is secure in Christ.Because my salvation is secure in Christ, I don't have to serve you to get Jesus to love me. I get to serve you because Jesus loves me. Do you see? Because we are so free, our serving one another is not a have to, it's a get to. We serve as the overflow of our joy in God — joy we have by grace! That's why we are joyful servants.Serving with joy is not an add-on — it's just what makes sense in light of what God has done. And it is the example of Jesus. Jesus knew who he was, he was free, and he knew the cost, and yet the Book of Hebrews tells us that “for the joy set before him, he endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2). Still a cross, still a cost, But joy he found beyond the pain, Joy that carried him from loss to gain.That's what brings us to the Table. The TableAt this table each week, we remember this dinner that we've talked about. We remember the sacrifice of Jesus for us — that Jesus, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved us to the end. The bread and cup represent the death of Jesus, which means, they represent his love. And when we eat the bread and drink the cup, we are resting in his love. This is why this Table is for Christians. This remembrance is for those who have put their faith in Jesus. If you're here this morning and you've not yet done that, you can just pass the bread and cup to the person beside you, but don't pass on the moment. If you're not a Christian, today is the day of salvation. Today you can trust in Jesus. You can just pray, simply: Jesus, I can't save myself — I'm sorry for trying. I believe you died for me, you are raised from the dead.I trust you. Save me.You can just pray that, or something like that. You can rest in the love of Jesus this morning too.The pastors will come, let us joyfully serve you.

What links carol singing with dogs? Medieval musicologist Micah Mackay reveals that carols aren't just for Christmas – they began life as communal songs for anything from lullabies to drinking songs. She explains the detective work required to bring to life a fundamentally oral culture from a small number of manuscript sources, and what the origin of carols can tell us about the concept of Englishness in the medieval period. Englishness is also a key point of interrogation for Dr Caroline Lesemann Elliott, whose research explores the fascinating world of exiled English convents in Continental Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries, focusing especially on their musical sound world. We hear from the Basilinda Consort, an ensemble Caroline founded in order to perform the music they discovered and reconstructed as part of their research. The host is BBC New Generation Thinker Leah Broad, author of Quartet, a group biography of four women composers, which came out earlier this year.Dr Caroline Lesemann Elliott recently completed a PhD at Royal Holloway, University of London and a Bodleian Visiting Fellowship in Music. They are founder and director of the Basilinda Consort, an early music ensemble dedicated to exploring the lives of English Christian women religious. They are also a composer. https://carolinelesemannelliott.com/ https://basilindaconsort.com/Micah Mackay is a writer and historian who recently submitted her PhD at the University of Oxford as part of the ‘Hearing the Page' project in the Publication Beyond Print Doctoral Centre. She is also a theatre maker, screenwriter, and presenter based in Edinburgh. https://mamackay.com/about/ https://www.humanities.ox.ac.uk/hearing-pageThis New Thinking episode of the Arts & Ideas podcast was made in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council, part of UKRI. You can find more on BBC Sounds and in a collection on Radio 3's Free Thinking programme website called New Research with discussions on topics ranging from diverse classical music to how and why we talk.

Walking with the Saints Podcast | Feast of St. Alban, Patron Saint of all Torture Victims | June 22   St. Alban, was the first English Christian martyr. He lived in Verulamium sometime during the 3rd century when the Christians were suffering from the cruel persecution of Emperor Septimius Severus. Nothing is recorded about the early life of St. Alban. What we have gathered here is an account according to Venerable Bede, an English monk, scholar and theologian. Bede relates that Alban was not a Christian, but one day he met a Christian priest fleeing from persecutors. Alban kept the priest for some days in his house and watched him pray and meditate. He was so impressed that he decided to imitate the priest. Soon he decided to be a Christian and asked to be baptized. A few days later , someone informed the persecutors that the priest was hiding in Alban's house. When the soldiers pursuing the priest came to Alban's house, without the knowledge of the priest, Alban put on the priest's cloak and presented himself to the soldiers. He was immediately brought to the emperor and was ordered to offer sacrifices to the idols. But he refused saying “I worship and adore the true and living God, who created all things.” in prayer in St. Alban's Enraged, the emperor sentenced him to be scourged and beheaded. As he was being led to execution, they came across a river and Alban prayed that they could cross the wide river. Immediately the water dried up and they crossed it on dry land. When they reached a certain point, Alban prayed that God would give him a drink for he was thirsty. Suddenly, water sprung up at his feet and he was able to drink. Then, one of the soldiers gave him a fatal blow and his head dropped to the ground. The soldier who killed him, however, also died with his eyes popping out of its head and fell off to the ground beside the head of Alban. Meanwhile Alban's head rolled down and on the spot where it stopped a spring of water gushed up. These miracles converted some soldiers. Today's St. Alban's Cathedral stands on this spot. After its destruction by the enemies of the Church the Cathedral was remodeled and improved. At 85 meters long, it has the longest nave of any cathedral in England. The present building is of Romanesque architecture with Gothic and 19th century arts. The present church officially called The Cathedral and Abbey Church of St. Albans and often referred as “the Abbey” is a church in England in the former Verulamium, now St. Albans. But there is a real Benedictine Abbey of monastic life founded beside it about 794 by King Offa. This Abbey still exists today, was remodeled and improved and other monasteries were established, including a monastery for nuns.  It is recorded that a part of the improved building was opened by Queen Elizabeth in 1982. Today, there are several churches and schools in some parts of England built and maintained in memory of St. Albans, where they also keep some of his relics. The largest relic of this saint is his thigh preserved at St. Michael's Benedictine Abbey in Farnborough, Hampshire, which was transferred from St. Pantaleon's reliquary in the 1950's. St. Albans is venerated as the English Protomartyr. He is remembered in the Church of England with a Lesser Festival on June 22 and he continues to be venerated by the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Communions. Every year, during the weekend closest to his feast, St. Alban's Cathedral is host to a celebration called “Alban Pilgrimage” performed around the city of St. Albans, re-enacting Alban's martyrdom. Virtue: integrity, empathy, compassion, kindness, bravery, commitment and fortitude Prayer: “St. Alban, help us to imitate your faith to worship and adore the living God alone and reject the idols of our modern world.”          

In one of the many memorable scenes in Chariots of Fire, the two old Cambridge dons look out the window on the departing Harold Abrahams and lament that his attitude is just not that of an English Christian gentleman. “Well”, says John Gielgud as the Master of Trinity College, “there goes your Semite, Hugh. A different God; a different mountaintop.”It's not often that the contrast between the two mountains in Hebrews 12 is alluded to in popular culture. In fact, I think it's safe to say that this may be the one and only and final time.Abrahams belongs to the God of Sinai, the Cambridge don is saying—to the smoking, terrifying, mountain of the law. We (he implies by way of contrast) have a different mountaintop, the heavenly Zion, the joyful assembly of the justified. What's going on here? Are the two stuffy academics casting the professionalized pursuit of individual athletic glory (that they see in Abrahams) as a kind of works-based striving for acceptance? Or is it just the hide-bound prejudice of the self-satisfied Christian elite against the upstart pushy Jewish outsider? Or could it perhaps be a bit of both? This complexity is one of the many layers of meaning that make Chariots of Fire such an entertaining and satisfying story. At this point in the film, the British establishment (in the form of the dons) is arguing for the spirit of the amateur and against the win-at-all costs professionalism of the modern athlete. Sporting endeavours, they say, are about the creation of character: “They foster courage, honesty and leadership. But most of all, an unassailable spirit of loyalty... comradeship and mutual responsibility.” Later in the movie, the British establishment (in the form of Lords Cadogan and Birkenhead, and the Prince of Wales) try to dissuade Eric Liddell from precisely these ideals. They try to talk him out of the courageous, loyal, honest expression of his Christian beliefs (about running on Sunday) so as to win Olympic glory for Britain. Which mountain do the British elites belong to now? The compromised nature of the establishment is highlighted by Liddell's character. He is also an outsider; a Scottish, non-conforming Christian. In many ways, he represents the calm assurance and joy of the heavenly Zion. He runs with a kind of liberated abandon and pleasure that his rival Abrahams can only dream of, and with a sense of commitment, courage and integrity that the Cambridge dons would surely approve of. And yet, ironically, the climactic plot device of the movie—Liddell's Sabbatarian refusal to run on Sundays—suggests that the old mountain of the Law still has some hold on him. The movie closes (and opens) with another twist—the funeral of Harold Abrahams in the church of St Martin-in-the-fields, Abrahams having converted to Christianity around a decade after the events portrayed in the film. Recalling all this is making me want to go and watch again for the umpteenth time, and if you haven't ever done so (i.e. you're probably under 40), let me highly recommend it. But before I zip downstairs and fire up my steam-powered Panasonic VCR and rifle through my VHS collection, a word about why I've been thinking about Chariots of Fire again after all these years. It's because I've been reading Hebrews again, and thinking about how important and climactic the two mountains passage in chapter 12 is in the message of the whole book. As you no doubt know, Hebrews sharply and constantly contrasts the old covenant and the new. For all its glory, the old covenant of Moses is a shadow and forerunner of the ‘things that were to be spoken later'. It testifies and points forward to the new and infinitely better covenant that has now been finally revealed and enacted by the Son. Israel set out on a journey to the promised land of rest, and most didn't make it. We have set on a pilgrimage to a heavenly sabbath rest, under the leadership and ministry of “a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God” (4:14). The contrasts mount up as the book unfolds—the better and final revelation (1:1-4), the better servant-leader (3:1-6), the better sabbath rest, the better high priest and sacrificial atonement made in the better tabernacle (ch 5-10), the better city, the better country, the better resurrection (ch 11), and finally in chapter 12, the better mountain. In all of these contrasts, the ‘betterness' of Jesus' ministry and the new covenant is heavenly. In particular, the sacrificial ministry of Jesus as the one, great and final high priest takes place not in an earthly tent or on an earthly mountain (Jerusalem, Mt Zion). His life is taken on the earthly hill of Calvary, but it is in heaven, in the heavenly tabernacle of God, that he appears and offers himself once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin (9:25-26).On the basis of that eternal, heavenly redemption, the new covenant people of God arrive at their destination—the heavenly Jerusalem, the heavenly mountain of chapter 12. That's what all the heroes of faith in chapter 11 were longing for, but never saw, not even those who entered the physical promised land (like David and Samuel and the prophets, in 11:32). Interestingly, there are two mountains in Hebrews, not three. There's the earthly Sinai and the heavenly Mt Zion, but the earthly Mt Zion doesn't feature. As the book unfolds, Israel is redeemed under Moses, receives the law, journeys towards the land of promise, and has a temporary ineffective priestly ministry in the tabernacle to accompany them. But they never arrive. There is no earthly Jerusalem in Hebrews; no temple, only a tabernacle. There are only two mountains (Sinai and the heavenly Zion), because the promise to Israel was never about an earthly mountain but a better, heavenly one. It is to that heavenly Mt Zion that we have now come through the blood of Christ, through his infinitely greater heavenly sacrifice and redemption. And our response? We must not refuse him who speaks, but fall down before him in submission (12:25-28).This, of course, is the point of the book of Hebrews, and of the two mountains passage in chapter 12. As much as we love this passage as a key plank in our doctrine of the heavenly ‘church' (or assembly), its main function is as the high point, so to speak, of the book's exhortation. Consider what the eternal high priestly work of the Son has done for you; understand where you now stand through the work of Christ; and for heaven's sake (quite literally) don't give up now. Don't drift, don't droop, don't shrink back, don't let your hearts be hardened, don't refuse him who speaks; but instead, draw near for help to the throne of grace that we now have open access to, lay aside every weight and sin that hinders us, and exhort and encourage one another to stand firm and grow in love.The Master of Trinity was only half right. It is a different mountaintop, but not a different God. The same God who spoke in darkness and fire on Sinai is the God who has now fulfilled all his promises through his Son, and brought his people to their heavenly home. Let us continue to serve him, with reverence and awe. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.twoways.news/subscribe

Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. Christ Jesus asked us DONOT LET our hearts be troubled, it means we can do it. Notice the word LET. Meaning. To allow something to happen or an action given your permission: God is bigger than any problem you face and can deliver you from any situation, no matter how bad it is. Today the answer for you is to look up and focus on God's provision. Have faith in God! ________________________________________________________________________________ Listen to English Christian song on Radio Adonai. Available on Android &iOS, Internet Youtube channel hope in despair/ radio adonai. Visit / write to us on www.adonairadiocast.com

This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John's Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today's edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. In last week's edition of Christian Mythbusters, I talked about the dangers fascism poses to our country right now, including where I live here in Grand Haven, MI. I talked about how Christians are increasingly comfortable with fascist perspectives and ideology, something that should concern all of us, conservative and liberal alike.This week, I'd like to drill down to one specific point—book banning—and to explore some of the uncomfortable history Christianity has with this common tactic of fascists.First, we have to acknowledge that Christianity has often sought to suppress literature which it has perceived as contrary to the dominant view at the time. The original book burner himself was 15th century priest Girolamo Savonarola whose “Bonfire of the Vanities” burned art and books that he believed were morally lax or questionable. In 1517, the Nine Five Theses from Martin Luther were condemned by Pope Leo X. Later in the sixteenth century, the Holy Inquisition began compiling its Index Librorum Prohibitorum, a list of books and authors that Catholics were not allowed to print or read. The system remained in place for the next several hundred years, not abandoned until the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council. In my own English Christian tradition, the leaders of the Church of England (when it was still part of the Roman Catholic Church) burned thousands of copies of William Tyndale's English translation of the New Testament, eventually burning Tyndale himself as well. And, as many of us know, several books that have been banned in history have wound up being regarded as classic works of literature by later generations. Daniel Defoe's book Robinson Crusoe was on the Catholic Church's Index Librorum. So was Le Misérables by Victor Hugo. Boston's district attorney threatened to ban Walt Whitman's book Leaves of Grass. Christians in the White Citizen's Council urged the restriction of The Rabbits' Wedding because they thought this illustrated book promoted the dangerous idea of racial integration. Other examples include Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five, James Dickey's Deliverance, The Diary of Anne Frank, and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. And it's not just questions of morals, Christians have also opposed books that might encourage people to understand the Bible and its teachings differently. Darwin's Origin of the Species was banned from the library of Trinity College Cambridge, where Darwin himself had studied. In 1925, Tennessee banned the teaching of the theory of evolution in schools in any form, a law that remained in place since the late sixties. But we also have several modern day examples of conservative Christians urging the banning of books. When I was in college, the battle was against JK Rowling and her Harry Potter series, due to its supposed encouragement of witchcraft and the occult. It struck me even then that it was odd Christians couldn't distinguish fictional magical powers from occult practices of worship and how many Christians missed the point in the first book that the most powerful thing of all was the self-sacrifice of Harry's mother in love for her son… a decidedly Christian idea!So much of the history of Christians censoring, banning, or even burning books is based on two elements: fear and the need to control. Christians have feared depictions of anything that they think might threaten their own conceptions of morality, anything that might send people down the wrong path. They believe that banning books will help them control people, ensure they are not exposed to anything to which their understanding of faith is opposed.And yet, the early church was remarkably committed to ideals of freedom and openness of dialogue, believing that the Christian faith could not be coerced. They opposed any sort of attempts at control to get people to be Christians or to force people to adopt Christian ways of thinking. They believed that the Christian life has to, in the end, be chosen by each individual or it will be broken from the start..I was struck by a verse from First John which was in the appointed Scripture readings for Morning Prayer this past Tuesday. In it, St. John wrote, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.” I wish Christians would let go of fear and control and instead seek perfection in love. Neither of these are virtues for the Christian faith. Indeed, Christianity actually thrives much more when people live with attitudes of love, respect, and humility, when it doesn't try to control what people read or how people live but instead when individual Christians choose to display in their own lives the love and sacrifice of Jesus, when Christians strive to be curious instead of judgmental.Christians need to repent, once and for all, of this tendency in our tradition throughout history to ban or burn that which we deem inappropriate. Instead, let's trust trained librarians to curate content that is age appropriate and, above all, let's engage in conversation about difficult works of literature, asking why it is so unsettling to people… and, perhaps most importantly, asking if you are unsettled because the content is inappropriate, or because the content raises issues of sin, selfishness, discrimination, or control that are already present in your own heart. And maybe your heart is what you should focus on a little bit more.Thanks for being with me. To find out more about my parish, you can go to sjegh.com. Until next time, remember, protest like Jesus, love recklessly, and live your faith out in a community that accepts you but also challenges you to be better tomorrow than you are today. 

Len is a true Renaissance man. Author of more than seventy books and 1500+ published sermons, Leonard Sweet's recent publications include groundbreaking textbooks on preaching (Giving Blood), evangelism (Nudge), ecclesiology (So Beautiful) and discipleship (I Am A Follower). The second volume in his Christmas trilogy with Lisa Samson is just out (St.As). Len and co-author Lisa Samson are working on volume four (for Dementia and Alzheimers patients) of their “Songs of Light” series. Len often appears on the “50 Most Influential Christians in America” listings, and in 2010 was selected by the top non-English Christian website as one of the “Top 10 Influential World Christians of 2010”. His “Napkin Scribbles” podcasts can be accessed on leonardsweet.com or Spotify. In this episode, Len unpacks what semiotics is, how we can better read the Bible by paying attention to story and symbolism, why CEO-style church leadership does not resonate with what Jesus said about leadership, and why the table should be the center of our ecclesiological rhythms.  Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme. Support Preston Support Preston by going to patreon.com Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1 Connect with Preston Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle Instagram | @preston.sprinkle Youtube | Preston Sprinkle Check out Dr. Sprinkle's website prestonsprinkle.com Stay Up to Date with the Podcast Twitter | @RawTheology Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

Are you sure you're confronting persecution the right way? Let's seek to learn how exactly God's Word instructs us to face persecution through this English Christian message. For more details, please contact: Gunashekhar Phone: +91 8095483180 Email: gunashekar.mmi@gmail.com Clubhouse: @gunashekhar7 Instagram: christ_for_all_mysuru You can also visit: English Christian Messages | Meditation and Study: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BIdVGowotCuY1JjK0e6ZLvg Kannada Christian Messages | Meditation and Study: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BJj_BCFjbSVoDabCtEj86Zl The Whole Armor of God: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BLpL6JB9aeso1H3WDIFL_pn ದೇವರ ಸರ್ವಾಯುಧಗಳು: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BJQ2iMraO7FgWTtAvsN2be8 परमेश्वर के सारे हथियार: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BIS4Q2oWL074QiDwFIoOBp9 దేవుని సర్వాంగ కవచము: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BIHA1IPg8bEmJu3DnZft7Lf ദൈവത്തിന്റെ സർവായുധവർഗം: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BI6JUsowYndaUQlkH0kT5xt தமிழ் செய்திகள்: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL57mfRzHh4BI-RKoCaZLK2lbdhOUFTVeg YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/ChristforAllMysuruKarnataka Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/christforallmysuru/ CFA Online Church: https://christforallmysuru.online.church/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gunashekar.vedamurthy.549 Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/christ-for-all/id1447647228?ign-mpt=uo%3D4&mt=2 Anchor Podcast: https://anchor.fm/christforall [ನೀವು ದೇವರ ವಾಕ್ಯವನ್ನು ಸ್ಪಷ್ಟವಾಗಿ ಗ್ರಹಿಸಿ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಆತ್ಮೀಕ ಜೀವಿತಕ್ಕೆ ಈ ಸಂದೇಶಗಳು ಪ್ರಯೋಜನಕರವಾಗುವಂತೆ ಈ ಸಂದೇಶಗಳನ್ನು ನೀವು ಪೂರ್ಣವಾಗಿ ಕೇಳಬೇಕೆಂದು ಬಯಸುತ್ತೇನೆ. ಕ್ರಿಸ್ತನನ್ನು ಅರಿಯದಿರುವ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರು ಕ್ರಿಸ್ತನ ಮೂಲಕ ರಕ್ಷಣೆ ಹೊಂದುವಂತೆ ಈ ಸಂದೇಶಗಳನ್ನು ಅವರೊಂದಿಗೂ ಹಂಚಿರಿ. ಅದಲ್ಲದೆ ಕ್ರಿಸ್ತನಲ್ಲಿ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಸಹೋದರ ಸಹೋದರಿಯರಾಗಿರುವವರು ಅತ್ಮೀಕವಾಗಿ ಬೆಳೆಯುವಂತೆ ಅವರೊಂದಿಗೂ ಈ ಸಂದೇಶಗಳನ್ನು ಹಂಚಿರಿ. ಕರ್ತನ ಹೆಸರು ಮಾತ್ರ ಮೆಹಿಮೆ ಹೊಂದಲಿ! Please listen to these messages completely so that you may be able to understand God's Word clearly and so that these messages may benefit your spiritual life. Moreover, please share these messages with your friends who don't know Christ that they may find salvation in Him and also with your brothers and sisters in Christ that they may be spiritually edified. May the name of God alone be glorified!]

I have been fervently praying for America. There is a fierce spiritual battle going on in this country, and it often appears that the dark forces are winning. I am convinced of a different reality, however. Defeat is not the future of America. Though our natural eyes see a bleak situation, our eyes of faith allow us to see a spiritual reality of hope and restoration. Through countless dreams, God has shown me that a great revival is coming to many countries, including America and China. The intense spiritual battles that are going on around us are the enemy's attempt to stop these future revivals, but God's plans will not be defeated.   A few weeks ago, I was invited to lead an online Chinese Christian Bible study. This group had been reading the book of Deuteronomy and learning about Moses' prophecies regarding the Twelve Tribes. The group didn't understand the meaning of these prophecies, so they invited me to share my perspective. The Holy Spirit led me to compare Moses' prophecies with Jacob's prophecies in Genesis 49. Both passages offer prophetic visions about the Twelve Tribes. I believed that comparing these two chapters would give them a better understanding. As we were talking about Jacob and Moses' prophecies of Joseph, the Holy Spirit spoke though my mouth. I began to proclaim that America is the Joseph of today and that her branches run over the wall. Each Christian who is fighting for America can also be the Joseph of today. When countless “Josephs” strengthen their bows to resist the enemy, God will begin to save the world. The difficult environment that America is currently facing will be a catalyst for change. Countless Josephs can arise making America, the collective Joseph, even stronger.   I felt the Holy Spirit on these words to the group. In fact, I felt as if these were God's hidden plans for America. As we examine this prophecy deeper, it becomes obvious that the Spirit was using pictorial language based on the biblical images of trees and branches. First, I was led to Genesis 49:22 which says, “Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a fountain; His branches run over the wall.” The Holy Spirit explained this metaphor: Joseph represents America today. She is a fruitful bough. Her branches run over the wall, bearing abundant fruit all over the world. Although the archers (49:23) tried their best to attack her, her bows will be unmoved, and her arm will still be agile (49:24). God will certainly rise to help her (49:25) and bless her greatly. What a great thing to hear about the condition of America! God's calling for America is also represented by Moses' prophecy over Joseph: “His horns are the horns of a wild ox; with them he shall gore the peoples, all of them, to the ends of the earth” (Deuteronomy 33:17). This verse prophetically speaks about America's role. They should continue to play the role of the “horns of the wild ox.” That is, they should spread the gospel to every country in the world and “gore” the people and nations who resist the Gospel.   Joseph Is A Fruitful Vine Let's look deeper at the prophetic implication of these verses in Genesis. The Bible says that Joseph is a fruitful bough. He's a lovely vine by a fountain; his branches run over the wall (Genesis 49:22). Using the same metaphor, the Lord Jesus told us, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Joseph was a branch that depended on God as his vine. Joseph was the fruit of the prayers of his mother, Rachel, after an extended period of infertility. He was his father's favorite, a descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Joseph embraced the God of his fathers and his roots were Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham. He was firmly attached to the vine of God. Even after a series of life hardships, Joseph still flourished like a vine because he was deeply rooted in the soil. We don't know how Joseph spent his years in prison, but it is not hard to imagine that Joseph stayed connected to God through prayer. Hardship and the prayer it inspires, help us root our lives and identities in God.   Joseph's Branches Run Over the Wall One of my hobbies is planting fruit trees. I also enjoy reading articles about effective horticulture. On the internet, I saw pictures of a fruit tree planted close to the neighbors' yard. A heavy bough, laden with fruit, was hanging over the fence into the next yard. In many cases, tall courtyard walls hide the branches that spill over the wall into the next yard. Because of this, the owner of the fruit tree may not be able to see the fruit hanging on the branches in their neighbor's yard.   Joseph originally lived in Canaan with Jacob and his eleven brothers. Suddenly, his brothers attacked him, sold him to the Ishmaelites, and brought him to Egypt. Metaphorically, we can say that the archers (his brothers) attacked him. Later, Potiphar's wife (who was another archer used by the enemy) falsely accused him of rape and sent him to prison. Genesis 49:23 describes this series of tragedies: “The archers bitterly attacked him, shot at him, and harassed him severely.” Why? Because Joseph had God's calling on his life. God wanted to save the world through him. Because of God's calling on his life, evil spirits used humans to vigorously attack Joseph. These “archers” tried their best to attack Joseph. Psalm 105:18-19 says of Joseph, “His feet were hurt with fetters; his neck was put in a collar of iron; until what he had said came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him.”   But this suffering did not knock Joseph down. On the contrary, God was with him wherever he went. God helped him, strengthened him, and turned his life into a beautiful testimony of salvation. Through Joseph, the world was saved from famine. Because of his godliness, Joseph received the firstborn rights which the eldest son, Reuben, lost because of his immorality. Joseph's two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, received double portions of the land and became two separate tribes of Israel. This fulfills the prophecy of Genesis 49:24: “Yet his bow remained unmoved; his arms were made agile by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob (from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel).”   These words of prophecy were not solely heartfelt words of blessing from Jacob to his son Joseph, but they were also words inspired by God. Jacob went on, “By the God of your father who will help you, by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that crouches beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of your father are mighty beyond the blessings of my parents, up to the bounties of the everlasting hills. May they be on the head of Joseph, and on the brow of him who was set apart from his brothers" (Genesis 49:25-26). In the life of Joseph, we see an example of God's wishes for America.   America, A Modern-Day Joseph If we as Christians are rooted in the Lord, we can become like Joseph, a fruitful vine that extends over the wall. Joseph does not just represent individuals but also countries that are called by God to witness for Him. In the Old Testament, Joseph represents Israel. God wanted Israel to be His witness to the nations in order to attract them to Him.   Today, Joseph represents America. America was founded so that Christians could worship Jesus freely. Modern-day America is like Israel in the Old Testament: a city on a hill, a light to the world, and a witness for Jesus Christ. I have often heard it said that since its founding, America is responsible for sending more financial aid and missionary witnesses than any country in history. America is a modern-day Joseph. Her branches run over the wall, bearing fruit outside her borders.   I came to the United States in 2002. Although there was a Gospel revival in China at that time, most of the revival took place in rural areas where the Chinese government's control was less strict. In cities and universities, intellectuals have almost no or little chance to hear the Gospel. So, God created an environment, allowing many Chinese scholars to study in the US. It is estimated that half of the students from mainland China who came to the US received the Gospel. Almost every campus in the US maintains campus fellowship groups to preach the Gospel to Chinese students. These groups include Chinese Christians and Chinese churches but also American Christian campus ministries such as Campus Crusade. I was saved in one of these campus fellowship groups in Southern California.   Without America, I may not have received Christ. After I was saved, I continued to study Christian literature available in English. I am now currently finishing a Doctor of Ministry degree program. As I have studied, I realized that the richness of American Christianity rooted me more firmly in America and in the Christian traditions of Europe and the ancient church. Although we are all rooted in Christ directly, we are also rooted in our Christian traditions through our language and culture. Many Christian works have not yet been translated into Chinese, and I would not have been able to access this information were it not for English translations available in America. Through the English Christian classics, I have become rooted in thousands of years of Christian tradition.   Just like Joseph was rooted by the fountain, the United States is rooted in thousands of years of rich history of European Christian civilization. Their roots go all the way back to Paul's gospel work in Europe, which can be traced back to the ministry of Jesus Christ on earth. God has called America to be rooted by the fountain, like Joseph, and send her fruit-bearing branches over the wall to many nations. As a result, however, archers are attacking America severely. Evil spirits are finding numerous ways to shoot at her, seeking to lure her into sin. Through the sins of the flesh and of the worldly nations that are against America, evil spirits attack her simultaneously from both the inside and the outside. Their purpose is to cut down America, the expansive vine that is rooted in God.   America Will Not Be Taken Down! After I received the revelation about America being like Joseph, I exclaimed, “Now, they are cutting America off from its roots, which is the same as cutting me off from my roots. They absolutely can't do that! Not on my watch!” I explained to the Chinese Christians in the meeting why I felt so strongly to resist the opposition with my proclamation, “Not on my watch!” It's not because I'm arrogant. Instead, it's because I've made up my mind to become a modern-day Joseph. No matter how hard the archers try to attack us, we must remain unmoved. Our arms must remain agile because the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob will help us. He will bless us. He will bless America, just like he blessed Joseph. The all-sufficient God of Jacob will bless Joseph with blessings of heaven from above, blessings of the deep that lie beneath, and blessings of the breasts and of the womb.   Each Christian has the opportunity to stand as a modern-day Joseph. Meanwhile, America is the collective modern-day Joseph. Jacob's blessings to Joseph surpass the blessings of Jacob's ancestors, reaching the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills; these blessings will be on Joseph's head and on the crown of the heads of those who are separated from their brothers (Genesis 49:25-26). These words are for Americans today. Although I thank God for using President Trump, he is not our salvation. Our salvation comes through the rising of the Church as every Christian becomes like Joseph. As each of us rises to become like Joseph, rooted in God, our branches will bear fruit, run over the wall, and make an impact on people outside the church walls. Our relatives, friends, and those who have not yet believed in the Lord will be reached by our low-hanging branches of Christian fruit and testimony.   Therefore, I said, “Don't lose hope.” I encouraged the Chinese American Christians in that meeting. Because of the current difficulties, some of them were believing the lie that America was about to be defeated and abandoned by God. “God will not abandon America,” I said. America will not be defeated. America is Joseph. Although the archers are trying to attack her, her bow remains unmoved. As American Christians wake up, they will use their agile arms to fight back. The God of Jacob will help us. This is Jacob's prophecy to Joseph and it's the Holy Spirit's words for America today. If American Christians ever needed encouragement, it's now. We Chinese believers are fruits of America's branches that ran over the wall. America's branches have borne countless fruits and have run all over the world.   I don't know about the rest of the world, but I know that in America and China alone, there are millions of Chinese Christians praying for America. We stand like Aaron and Hur, who held up Moses' hands and prayed while Joshua was fighting his battle against his enemies. There are countless Christians in other countries praying that America (Joseph) will be able to fight her battles well. This battle will end with victory. God will definitely help America because God is the Shepherd and the Stone of Israel (and America as well) (Genesis 49:24).   Horns Of A Wild Ox Moses' prophecy to Joseph has some similarities to Jacob's prophecy. In it, Joseph received all the blessings in heaven and on earth (Deuteronomy 33:13-15). Like Jacob, Moses described Joseph as a “prince among his brothers” (Deuteronomy 33:16). In addition, Joseph was described as “a firstborn bull—he has majesty, and his horns are the horns of a wild ox; with them he shall gore the peoples, all of them, to the ends of the earth; they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh” (Deuteronomy 33:17).   Joseph had authority and power. He was the steward in the house of Pharaoh in Egypt. His brothers bowed before him. Joseph dealt harshly with his brothers, even throwing Simeon in jail. In the end, he led his brothers to repent of their sins. Likewise, a modern-day Joseph will not only bring the Gospel of Life to the world but will also be a majestic bull with the horns of a wild ox. America is like Joseph in this respect as well. God has blessed her, and she has become the most powerful country in the world. She upholds justice and spreads the Gospel to the ends of the world. America will fiercely gore the nations and people who resist God and the Gospel, with the horns of a wild ox. This is why nations unite to try to knock America down. Unfortunately for them, God has already ordained Joseph's future and thus America's too.   Written by Sean Song on October 19, 2021. (All scriptures are quoted from English Standard Version.)

Robin Morrow's holiday program is designed to be played daily between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Christmas Fantasy is a great way to enhance the spirit of the season 25 old time radio show recordings. Episode 5 is about Isaac Watts (17 July 1674 – 25 November 1748). He was an English Christian minister (Congregational), theologian, and logician. He was also a prolific and popular hymn writer.

English Christian hymn

Bible Study with Jairus – Numbers 8 Numbers 8 has two different stories. The first story is about Jehovah instructing Moses and Aaron how to place the lamps in the golden lampstand.  Numbers 8:2 (ESV) records: "Speak to Aaron and say to him, when you set up the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand." We keyed in on the phrase, "the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand."  The lamps must light in front of the lampstand.  The second story is about Jehovah telling Moses how Aaron should offer the Levites as a wave offering.  The main verse we discussed at this meeting was verse 11 (ESV), "Aaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that they may do the service of the Lord."  The phrase that stood out was Aaron offering the Levites as a wave offering. Why were the Levites presented as a wave offering?  The wave offering could be unleavened bread (ESV, Exodus 29:23) and the breast of the ram (ESV, Exodus 29:26).  Unleavened bread was to be burned on the altar on top of the burnt offering before the Lord (ESV, Exodus 29:25).  After the breast of the ram was waved, it could be returned to Aaron and his sons.  Here it said that Aaron would offer the Levites as a wave offering. We understand that this is a spiritual representation. So, are the Levites like the unleavened bread, or the breasts of the ram, or both?  Maybe both.  But why would they be offered as a wave offering from the Israelites?  Why not let other animals from the herd or the flock be offered as a wave offering instead of the Levites? Numbers 8 mentions that when the Levites were offered as a wave offering, they needed to be sprinkled with the water of purification, to shave, and wash their clothes (Numbers 8:7, ESV). They shall take a bull from the herd and its grain offering, and another bull from the herd for a sin-offering (Numbers 8:8, ESV).  They shall use one for a sin offering to the LORD and the other for a burnt offering, to make atonement for the Levites (Numbers 8:12, ESV). The Levites shall offer them as a wave offering to the Lord (Numbers 8:13, ESV). The reason the Levites were treated as a wave offering was that "the Levites shall be mine" (Numbers 8:14, ESV) and "in place of the firstborn of all the people of Israel" (Numbers 8:16, ESV).  Because "On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I consecrated them for myself" (Numbers 8:17, ESV), "I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel." (Numbers 8:18, ESV).  Then the Levites could do the service for the people of Israel at the tent of meeting and make atonement for the people of Israel, so that there may be no plague among the people of Israel when the people of Israel come near the sanctuary (Numbers 8:19, ESV). A man in our study asked, "What is the practical spiritual significance of the Levites' story of being wave offering to Christians today?  Christians can now approach God's throne of grace with confidence (Hebrews 4:16, NIV), and we don't need an intermediary as the Levites did." To answer this question, we need to take a closer look at Numbers 8:11 (NIV), "Aaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that they may do the service of the Lord." Aaron's work is to serve God in the Holy of Holies, which represents our spiritual life living before God to serve God Himself.  There are very few such people around.  I saw a conversation between our Heavenly Father and Anna Rountree. He asked her to eat the food in His hands and even told her that there were very few people serving Him in the Holy of Holies. An English Christian named Margaret E. Barber greatly influenced Watchman Nee. When she read Ezekiel 44:9-26, it talked about some Levites wandering away from God; thus, they could only serve in the temple.  But the sons of Zadok never left God's sanctuary, so God allowed them to serve Him.  When Margaret read this story, she knelt and prayed that she was willing to be a person serving God forever and not serving only in the temple.  Watchman Nee told this story with the hope that fellow believers would grow in their spiritual lives, have a deeper relationship with God, and serve Him in the Holy of Holies. It's in the Holy of Holies that one serves God.  There is no natural light in the Holy of Holies. No one can see what you've done. It's just like when you pray behind closed doors at home, seeking to serve God every day. No one would know how much work you have done for God. You also can't see how much you have achieved. But God knows because you are serving God Himself. Serving Him in the Holy of Holies is mainly to become a friend of God, have fellowship with Him and intercede for people. Serving God in the Holy of Holies represents the highest spiritual life. The ministry in the sanctuary is divided into several layers. The descendants of the Levites, the Kohathites, were responsible for carrying the things in the sanctuary, including the ark, etc.  Although they served in the sanctuary, they directly helped the priests (Aaron and his sons)  in serving God. The Gershonites and Merarites were closer to the outer courtyard. They were responsible for carrying the things in the outer courtyard of the tabernacle. Aaron and Zadok were also Levites. But not all Levites could serve God in the Holy of Holies. Many Levites, such as the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites, served in the temple of God and the chosen people of God on different stages. Aaron and the high priest, who served God in the Holy of Holies, represent our closeness and fellowship with God in the spirit.  The Levites, who served in the sanctuary,  lit the lamps, replaced the bread of the Presence, and burned the incense. The work at this stage represents the cleansing work in the soul.  The Levites who served the Israelites in the outer courtyard were mainly preparing the sacrifices such as the herds and the flocks,  which represents the cleansing of sin in our flesh. Therefore, the different services in the Holy of Holies, sanctuary, and the outer courtyard represent the spiritual life and spiritual service of Christians in three different stages. Most people's spiritual life and spiritual service are in the outer courtyard.  The service in the outer courtyard isn't bad, because many people are needed to preach the gospel and testify of the redemption of Jesus Christ. Outer courtyard people will also help unbelievers prepare sacrifices, which include a repentant heart and a broken spirit (Psalm 51), dedicated to God so that they can be cleansed from their sins and please God. But this does not mean that preaching the gospel or serving in the outer courtyard is enough. In addition to allowing Christians to preach the gospel and bring people to salvation, God also calls us to enter His holiness and glory, and participate in the divine nature (2 Peter 1:3-4, NIV).  So, in addition to dealing with sins, we also have to undergo changes in the soul. For example, Romans 12:1 (NIV) Let us offer our bodies as a living sacrifice and pleasing to God, which is our reasonable service.  Verse 2 goes on to say, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will." "Renewing of your mind" is specially mentioned here. It is a change and sanctification of the soul. The Local Church Movement, where I was saved, focuses on pursuing holiness through teaching the renewal of the mind.  I am currently a Doctor of Ministry student at the United Theological Seminary. I have come into contact with many believers of the United Methodist Church. Many teachers and classmates have a United Methodist background. They told me that John Wesley also focused on teaching holiness.  The Pentecostal Movement was also born from the "Holiness Movement," which was influenced by John Wesley.  But the modern-day Pentecostal Movement is not known for pursuing holiness.  It isn't limited to the Pentecostal Movement, but it seems like as a whole, Western Christianity does not pay enough attention to holiness. I am very grateful to the Local Church Movement for teaching us the pursuit of spiritual growth, especially the change of soul-life. I also want to thank my friends in the United Methodist Church for sharing John Wesley's teaching about holiness. From my observation, in the United States, there are many Christians who are saved yet cannot overcome sin.  Even fewer live a holy life, never entering into the Holy of Holies to serve God. God isn't pleased with this situation. If Hebrews 4:16 says that we can boldly enter the Holy of Holies by the blood of Jesus Christ, why is it that many Christians have not entered the Holy of Holies in experience? Jesus Christ has re-opened our way to the tree of life or opened our way of entering the Holy of Holies to meet God. But it doesn't mean that you will automatically enter into the Holy of Holies. Madame Guyon said that coming near to God is as natural as balloons flying in the air. But if the balloon is tied to a stone, it can't fly up into the sky. The sins in our lives and the uncleanness in our souls are just like these stones. They will prevent us from entering the Holy of Holies.  Therefore, we need to confess our sins and experience the renewal of our minds to remove our sins and uncleanness. This is a pathway to enter the Holy of Holies and draw near to God. So with this understanding, we can say that the role of the Levites here as a wave offering from the Israelites is like "renewing the mind" or purifying the soul.  First of all, this is not merely an offering to make atonement in the outer courtyard. Those offerings in the outer courtyard are usually sin offerings and guilt offerings, but it is clearly stated that the Levites were offered as a wave offering by the Israelites.  The meaning of this wave offering is like what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4:12 (NIV), "Death is at work in us, but life is at work in you." The Levites were offered as a wave offering to replace the firstborn of Israel.  When God led the Israelites out of Egypt, the firstborn of Israel were considered dead.  The firstborn of Israel were saved because of the lamb, which is a type of Jesus Christ. Therefore, they were redeemed by the blood of His Son, the Lamb of God. Similarly, the Levites were redeemed by the blood of His Son, the Lamb of God. Here, the Levites were offered by Aaron as a wave offering from the Israelites. We, too, should experience more of being dead in the soul life.  As the Lord Jesus said, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it." (NIV, Matthew 16:24-25). Our church and Christians (represented by the Levites) must experience more of the lessons of the cross to have more power to become the sacrifice for more sinners (represented by the Israelites), allowing them to be forgiven from sins and be born again. The real sacrifice is Jesus Christ, the flawless lamb and high priest, which is what Aaron represents. But we are brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, helping Him to serve God. It's just like the mission of the Levites was to help Aaron to serve God.  So, when we are willing to experience a change in our soul and the renewal of our minds, not conforming to the pattern of this world, we will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:2, NIV). Talking about the experience of the cross is not a very popular topic in American Christianity today. But it is an indispensable way for our spiritual life to be deeply rooted and enter the Holy of Holies to serve God.  Therefore, Numbers 8:11 described this picture.  Aaron (who represents our spirit or Christ) needs to offer the Levites (who represent our soul) as a wave offering, which is both a burnt offering (completely burned to ashes, absolutely for God). as well as a sin offering (removing our sins).  This lesson of the cross was so that the Levites could help the Israelites be free from sin.Today, the church is the light and salt of the world.  If we won't be the light, how can the world see the light? The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV): "You are the light of the world.  A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.   Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.  Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." This is the same as what Numbers 8:2-3 (ESV) says: "Speak to Aaron and say to him, When you set up the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand." And Aaron did so; he set up its lamps in front of the lampstand, as the Lord commanded Moses." Here the Lord commanded Moses to tell Aaron that the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand, to let the light shine on those who come to the sanctuary.  Actually, the work of the Levites was to shine and let the light of God shine before others.  The service of the priest in the sanctuary includes tending the lamps, repairing the channels to the lamps, and refilling the lamps.  The purpose was to light the lamp.  We are the lamp of God.  As the Bible says, "The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all his innermost parts." (ESV, Proverbs 20:27). This verse is a better illustration of the work of our spirit (represented by Aaron), which is to search all our innermost parts (the soul is represented by the Levites).  When we are willing to let Aaron tend this light, illuminate our inner being (which is our soul), and experience the renewal and change of our soul-life, darkness is removeed in the soul and prevents obstruction for the light of God to shine in our spirit.  Our light can then shine before others (Matthew 5:16), and people can be freed from darkness and sins and enter God's salvation. Today, the Spirit of God has lit the lamp through Aaron's work, but we, who are the Levites, need to experience the death of soul-life, the renewal, and change of mind so that His light shines through us to those we come in contact with.  They can then be convicted of sin, repent, accept God's salvation, and come into the light. This is the spiritual significance of the two stories in Numbers 8.  These two stories are closely linked. Only when the light of Aaron's lamp faces outside will it gradually illuminate the Levites, treating them as a wave offering. Then the Israelites in the outer courtyard will experience atonement. This is also true in our spiritual experience today.  When God is alive in our spirit, and His light penetrates our soul, renewing our minds, we will know His good, pleasing, and perfect will allowing our bodies to be redeemed. Many unbelievers will be freed from sin and become members of the body of Christ.  Believers will be cleansed from sin, which is the complete salvation of our spirit, soul and body, and a picture of the growth of the church, which is Christ's body.

The Rev. Dr. Matthew Cadwell '95, on his journey from Scandinavian Studies and Religion major (Phi Beta Kappa) at Gustavus to Vicar-in-Charge at the venerable Old North Church in Boston, the impact of Covid-19 on Old North, his “theological hero,” the English Christian socialist F. D. Maurice, and the history of and his vision for Old North's congregation. Click here for a transcript.

"feniskuru fullaa fenbovaigenvaivaa takka fen"- ingireysi nasraanee lava / الأغنية الإنجليزية المسيحية - "عطش الغزلان للماء" .mp4

You are here, moving in our midst I worship You I worship You You are here, working in this place I worship You I worship You Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are You are here, touching every heart I worship You I worship You You are here, healing every heart, I worship You, I worship You, Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are, Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are. Even when I don't see it, come on, even when Even when I don't see it, You're working Even when I don't feel it, You're working You never stop, You never stop working You never stop, You never stop working (come on) Even when I don't see it, You're working Even when I don't feel it, You're working You never stop, You never stop working You never stop, You never stop working (oh) Even when I don't see it, You're working Even when I don't feel it, You're working You never stop, You never stop working You never stop (yeah oh), You never stop working Even when I don't see it, You're working Even when I don't feel it (yeah), You're working You never stop, You never stop working You never stop, You never stop working (You're the way maker, yeah) Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are Yeah, yeah Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are Sing that is who You are Oh, that is who You are That is who You are Oh and, that is who You are That is who You are Yeah, and that is who You are, yeah That is who You are Oh, that is who You are That is who You are Oh it's who You are, now Jesus Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are You are Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness My God, that is who You are Oh, His name is above His name is above depression his name is above loneliness Oh, His name is above disease His name is above cancer His name is above every other name Yes it is That is who You are (That is who You are) That is who You are (That is who You are) Jesus And that is who You are (That is who You are) Oh I know that is who You are That is who You are

Today we celebrate the clergyman who wrote hymns and poems that use garden imagery. We'll also learn about the man who loved gardens and garden design - and he wasn’t afraid of Virginia Woolf… he was married to her. We’ll recognize a sculptor whose final work was a touching monument to children incorporating a bouquet of snowdrops. We hear a hauntingly beautiful poem by an English clergyman and poet. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book that teaches how to make garden crafts and projects that are totally within reach and are utterly charming with their appealing and practical sensibility. And then we’ll wrap things up with the story of an Opera singer turned gardener.   Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart To listen to the show while you're at home, just ask Alexa or Google to “Play the latest episode of The Daily Gardener Podcast.” And she will. It's just that easy.   The Daily Gardener Friday Newsletter Sign up for the FREE Friday Newsletter featuring: A personal update from me Garden-related items for your calendar The Grow That Garden Library™ featured books for the week Gardener gift ideas Garden-inspired recipes Exclusive updates regarding the show and more... Plus, each week, one lucky subscriber wins a book from the Grow That Garden Library™ bookshelf.   Gardener Greetings Send your garden pics, stories, birthday wishes, and so forth to Jennifer@theDailyGardener.org.   Curated News These Succulent Christmas Trees Are Our New Holiday Obsession | Southern Living | Meghan Overdeep   Facebook Group If you'd like to check out my curated news articles and blog posts for yourself, you're in luck because I share all of it with the Listener Community in the Free Facebook Group - The Daily Gardener Community. So, there’s no need to take notes or search for links. The next time you're on Facebook, search for Daily Gardener Community where you’d search for a friend... and request to join. I'd love to meet you in the group.   Important Events  November 25, 1748   Today is the anniversary of the death of the English Christian minister (Congregational) and prolific hymn writer Isaac Watts. Known as the "Godfather of English Hymnody," Isaac’s hymns are still sung in churches today: “O God our Help in Ages Past,” “There is a Land of Pure Delight.” There’s another Isaac Watts hymn that will be getting some traction over the next month: “Joy to the World.” Isaac’s work marked a turning point for hymn writing because he didn’t just set psalms and scripture to song; he actually wrote original verse. Isaac’s hymn, “We are a Garden Walled Around,” uses garden imagery and is a favorite with gardeners: We are a garden walled around, Chosen and made peculiar ground; A little spot enclosed by grace Out of the world's wide wilderness. Like trees of myrrh and spice we stand, Planted by God's almighty hand; And all the springs in Zion flow, To make the young plantation grow. Awake, O, heavenly wind! And come, Blow on this garden of perfume; Spirit divine! descend and breathe A gracious gale on plants beneath. Make our best spices flow abroad, To entertain our Savior God And faith, and love, and joy appear, And every grace be active here.   November 25, 1880  Today is the birthday of the British political theorist, writer, publisher, civil servant, and gardener Leonard Sidney Woolf. Leonard was the husband of Virginia Woolf. Leonard was the primary gardener and garden designer of Monk's House - although Virginia helped him. Virginia and Leonard lived at the house when they first purchased it in 1919 until their deaths. The garden at Monk's House was a retreat and a place where they could both escape from London’s chaos. Leonard loved to be in the garden gardening. He hated tea roses and floribunda roses. He loved fruit trees like apples and pears, and he sold the fruits to make money. Leonard's devotion to the garden was a source of consternation for Virginia. Leonard spent so much of his time and money on the garden that Virginia famously complained, “We are watering the earth with our money!” Leonard recorded all of his Monk's House garden income and expenditures in a gorgeous dark green and pink ledger book. The first line in the book is dated August 26th, 1919, and he recorded the first gardening work performed by gardener William Dedman. Virginia described Monk's House as "the pride of our hearts.’" In July of 1919, Virginia wrote that gardening or weeding produced "a queer sort of enthusiasm." When Virginia suffered bouts of depression, the garden at Monk's House was where she went to recover and heal. And, since both Virginia and Leonard kept diaries, we know today that the garden was a frequent topic. On September 29, 1919, Virginia wrote: "A week ago, Leonard's wrist and arm broke into a rash. The doctor called it eczema. Then Mrs. Dedman brushed this aside and diagnosed sunflower poisoning. [Leonard] had been uprooting them with bare hands. We have accepted her judgment." One of Virginia's favorite places to write was in the garden at Monk's House. She had a small converted shed that she called her writing lodge. Every morning on her way to the lodge, Virginia walked through the garden. The Monk's House garden was THE place where she wrote some of her most famous works. One story illustrates Leonard's devotion to gardening. In 1939, as the second world war approached, Virginia called for him to come inside to listen to "the lunatic" Hitler on the radio. But Leonard was in the middle of tending to his Iris, and he shouted back: ”I shan’t come. I am planting iris, and they will be flowering long after he is dead.” After Virginia's tragic suicide, Leonard wrote: "I know that Virginia will not come across the garden from the Lodge, and yet I look in that direction for her. I know that she is drowned, and yet I listen for her to come in at the door." And, there were two Elm trees at Monk's House garden that the Woolf's had sweetly named after themselves, “Virginia and Leonard.” Leonard buried Virginia’s ashes under one of those Elms and installed a stone tablet with the last lines from her novel The Waves: “Against you, I fling myself, unvanquished and unyielding, O Death! The waves crashed on the shore.”    November 25, 1816 Today is the anniversary of the death of one of the great English sculptors, Francis Chantrey. Francis, who sculpted both kings and presidents, was commissioned to sculpt a memorial to two young girls, Ellen-Jane and Marianne Robinson. Ellen-Jane and Marianne had lost their father, Reverend William Robinson when he was in his thirties. In 1813, their mother took them on a trip to Bath. One evening as she was getting ready for bed, Ellen-Jane’s nightgown caught on fire. She died the next day. The following year, the younger daughter, Marianne, got sick and died in London. So, within three years, Mrs. Robinson lost her entire family, and she went to Francis Chantrey and asked him to make a sculpture. In turn, Francis honored her request to recreate a scene seen repeatedly with her girls: they would often fall asleep in each other’s arms. And so it was that in the year he died, Francis created his final masterpiece, “The Sleeping Children”. Francis added a touching last element to their memorial when he sculpted a bouquet of snowdrops in little Marianne’s hands. Seeing this memorial is on my bucket list. The Sleeping Children sculpture is at the Lichfield (“Litchfield”) Cathedral in England.   Unearthed Words So breathing and so beautiful, they seem,    As if to die in youth were but to dream Of spring and flowers! Of flowers? Yet nearer stand    There is a lily in one little hand, So sleeps that child, not faded, though in death,   And seeming still to hear her sister's breath, Take up those flowers that fell   From the dead hand, and sigh a long farewell! Thine, Chantrey, be the fame   That joins to immortality thy name. For these sweet children that so sculptured rest   A sister's head upon a sister's breast Age after age shall pass away,   Nor shall their beauty fade, their forms decay. Mothers, till ruin the round world hath rent,   Shall gaze with tears upon the monument! And fathers sigh, with half-suspended breath:   How sweetly sleep the innocent in death! — William Lisle Bowles, English priest, poet, and critic, The Sleeping Children. Note: This is an excerpt from this hauntingly beautiful poem written in tribute to The Sleeping Children sculpture by Francis Chantrey in memory of Ellen-Jane and Marianne Robinson.   Grow That Garden Library Do-It-Yourself Garden Projects and Crafts by Debbie Wolfe  This book came out in 2019, and the subtitle is 60 Planters, Bird Houses, Lotion Bars, Garlands, and More. In this book, Debbie shares easy projects and beautiful crafts for your garden and home. With Debbie’s step by step instructions, you can make a Bird and Bee Bath, a Flower Press, a Foraged Garland, Herb Napkins Rings, Herb Drying Racks, and Unique Planters. I love Debbie because she wants her readers to use what they have - go and find your home-grown and foraged materials - and make something beautiful with them. Debbie even shows how to make personal and household items that would make excellent gifts: Herbal Lotion Bars, Gardener Hand Scrub, and All-Purpose Thyme Cleaner. If you're a gardener or DIY lover, this book is for you! Loaded with gorgeous photography, Debbie will inspire you to get out in the garden, get creative, and make something with your own two hands. This book is 240 pages of crafts and projects that are totally within reach and are utterly charming with their appealing and practical sensibility. You can get a copy of Do-It-Yourself Garden Projects and Crafts by Debbie Wolfe and support the show using the Amazon Link in today's Show Notes for around $10.   Today’s Botanic Spark Reviving the little botanic spark in your heart November 25, 1914   On this day, the St. Joseph Gazette wrote a front-page article about the  Romanian-born American soprano Alma Gluck and the headline was “Miss Gluck is Quite a Farmer.” “One would scarcely expect a young and beautiful prima donna who… is recognized the world over as one of the greatest of sopranos, to know much about raising chickens. Nor is it… expected that she be a connoisseur of tomato raising… Standing beside the window of her room at the Hotel Robidoux, [Alma]... told with characteristic enthusiasm of her "farm" at Lake George, where each summer she and Miss Jewell, her companion, spend their vacations." She said, "One year, you know, we decided to raise chickens. Neither of us knew a thing about the creatures, but we bought fifty just fresh from an incubator. Our farmer neighbors told us we should have brooders to keep them at night and advised us to get cheese boxes and line them with cotton batting. We fixed them up cozy as you please and each night stuffed the baby chicks in their beds. But they began soon to die. We couldn’t imagine what was the matter with them. They just grew knock-kneed and drooped over. Our cook decided she would make an examination, and cutting open one of the chicks, what do you suppose she found? It was just lined with cotton batting. The little things had pecked all the cotton from around their beds. After that we hung a feather duster in the brooder, and the chicks hovered each night under that Just as though they had a mother. And later I myself sawed and built a little house for them. We became quite famous gardeners, too. Despite the fact, we knew nothing of such things when we started planting a garden. We raised the best tomatoes grown in that section of the state."   Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener. And remember: "For a happy, healthy life, garden every day."

Open the eyes of my heart, Lord Open the eyes of my heart I want to see You I want to see You Open the eyes of my heart, Lord Open the eyes of my heart I want to see You I want to see You To see You high and lifted up Shinin' in the light of Your glory Pour out Your power and love As we sing holy, holy, holy Open the eyes of my heart, Lord Open the eyes of my heart I want to see You I want to see You Open the eyes of my heart, Lord Open the eyes of my heart I want to see You I want to see You To see You high and lifted up Shinin' in the light of Your glory Pour out Your power and love As we sing holy, holy, holy To see You high and lifted up Shinin' in the light of Your glory Pour out Your power and love As we sing holy, holy, holy To see You high and lifted up Shinin' in the light of Your glory Pour out Your power and love As we sing holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy We cry holy, holy, holy You are holy, holy, holy I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy You are holy, holy, holy I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy, I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy, I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy, I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy, I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy, I want to see you Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy Holy, holy, holy, I want to see you

Jesus climbed the hill To the garden still His steps were heavy and slow Love and a prayer Took Him there To the place only He could go Gethsemane Jesus loves me So He went willingly To Gethsemane He felt all that was sad, wicked or bad All the pain we would ever know While His friends were asleep He fought to keep His promise made long ago Gethsemane Jesus loves me So He went willingly To Gethsemane The hardest thing that ever was done The greatest pain that ever was known The biggest battle that ever was won This was done by Jesus The fight was won by Jesus Gethsemane Jesus loves me So he gave His gift to me In Gethsemane Gethsemane Jesus loves me So he gives His gift to me From Gethsemane

Morning, I see You in the sunrise every morning It's like a picture that You've painted for me A love letter in the sky Story, I could've had a really different story But You came down from heaven to restore me Forever saved my life Nobody loves me like You love me, Jesus I stand in awe of Your amazing ways I worship You as long as I am breathing God, You are faithful and true Nobody loves me like You Mountains, You're breaking down the weight of all my mountains Even when it feels like I'm surrounded You never leave my side, oh oh oh Nobody loves me like You love me, Jesus I stand in awe of Your amazing ways I worship You as long as I am breathing God, You are faithful and true Nobody loves me like You Oh, what a song to sing Oh, what a song to sing Oh, what a song to sing Oh, what a song (my heart keeps singing) Oh, what a song to sing (what a song) Oh, what a song to sing (I'll never stop) Oh, what a song to sing Jesus, You love me And I love You, God Nobody loves me like You love me, Jesus I stand in awe of Your amazing ways I worship You as long as I am breathing God, I will worship You, forever worship You Nobody loves me like You love me, Jesus I stand in awe of Your amazing ways I worship You as long as I am breathing God, You are faithful and true Nobody loves me like You Nobody loves me like You love me, Jesus (I'm a child of God) I stand in awe of Your amazing ways (yes, I am) Nobody loves me like You Nobody loves me like You

100 English Christian songs..listen and enjoy --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/wob-bible/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/wob-bible/support

Oh, just one word, You calm the storm that surrounds me Just one word, the darkness has to retreat Oh, just one touch, I feel the presence of heaven Just one touch, my eyes were opened to see My heart can't help but believe There's nothing that our God can't do There's not a mountain that He can't move Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do And just one word, You heal what's broken inside me And just one word and You revive every dream (That's right) Just one touch, I feel the power of heaven And just one touch, my eyes were opened to see My heart can't help but believe (Come on) There's nothing that our God can't do There's not a mountain that He can't move Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do Oh I know there's nothing that our God can't do There's not a prison wall He can't break through Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do And I will believe for greater things There's no power like the power of Jesus Let faith arise, let all agree There's no power like the power of Jesus I will believe (Come on) for greater things There's no power like the power of Jesus Let faith arise, let all agree There's no power like the power of Jesus I will believe (Come on) for greater things There's no power like the power of Jesus Let faith arise, let all agree There's no power like His power There's nothing that our God can't do There's not a mountain that He can't move Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing, there's nothing that Jesus can't do Woah, there's nothing that our God can't do There's not a prison wall He can't break through Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah There's nothing, there's nothing There's nothing, there's nothing Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah There's nothing that our God can't do

Oh, just one word, You calm the storm that surrounds me Just one word, the darkness has to retreat Oh, just one touch, I feel the presence of heaven Just one touch, my eyes were opened to see My heart can't help but believe There's nothing that our God can't do There's not a mountain that He can't move Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do And just one word, You heal what's broken inside me And just one word and You revive every dream (That's right) Just one touch, I feel the power of heaven And just one touch, my eyes were opened to see My heart can't help but believe (Come on) There's nothing that our God can't do There's not a mountain that He can't move Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do Oh I know there's nothing that our God can't do There's not a prison wall He can't break through Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do And I will believe for greater things There's no power like the power of Jesus Let faith arise, let all agree There's no power like the power of Jesus I will believe (Come on) for greater things There's no power like the power of Jesus Let faith arise, let all agree There's no power like the power of Jesus I will believe (Come on) for greater things There's no power like the power of Jesus Let faith arise, let all agree There's no power like His power There's nothing that our God can't do There's not a mountain that He can't move Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing, there's nothing that Jesus can't do Woah, there's nothing that our God can't do There's not a prison wall He can't break through Oh, praise the name that makes a way There's nothing that our God can't do Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah There's nothing, there's nothing There's nothing, there's nothing Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah Woah, woah, woah There's nothing that our God can't do

All these pieces broken and scattered In mercy gathered Mended and whole Empty handed But not forsaken I've been set free (×2) Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now i am found was blind but now i see oh i can see you now oh i can see the love in your eyes laying yourself down Raising up thr broken to life you take our failure you take our weakness you set your treasure In jars of clay So take this heart Lord I'll be your vessel The world to see your life in me Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now i am found was blind but now i see oh i can see you now oh i can see the love in your eyes laying yourself down Raising up the broken to life Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now i am found was blind but now i see Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now i am found was blind but now i see oh i can see you now oh i can see the love in your eyes laying yourself down Raising up thr broken to life Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now i am found was blind but now i see Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost was blind but now i see oh i can see you now oh i can see the love in your eyes laying yourself down Raising up thr broken to life

Today's guest on the dHarmic evolution podcast is an emerging, independent singer/songwriter, from the San Francisco bay area. She calls her genre Timely Americana (She's inspired to write for the particular time that we live in). Her songs address issues such as; preservation of the natural world, homelessness, the political landscape, friendship and loss, and love of country. So, without further ado, strap up your seat belts, cause we're taking a ride with Kate Magdalena. Timestamps [5:10] Listen to A Larger Dance by Kate Magdalena. [9:55] Is the West a better place for artists to develop? [1:54] Kate gets into her recently released a full album. [21:31] Listen to Take me to the church by Kate [25:12] The story behind Take me to church [26:51] A bit of spiritual talk [31:05] Listen to New Earth by Kate Magdalena [34:55] A little inside tips on how to record with a better voice [40:11] Kate's ritual [46:49] Listen to Kate's Streets of Anytown [52:10] Kate's experience writing and filming the Streets of Anytown [2:27] Kate's new album Kate explains the inspiration and background of some of the songs that she's written. Included in her album are a couple of songs about saving the earth; One is called New Earth. A fantasy, visionary song about the kingdom of God, how the earth should be like it was in the beginning, and how it will be restored. The second is Long Live the Woods. Poetry inspired by Gerald Manly Hopkins, an English Christian poet from the 90s who wrote beautiful love poetry to God. [12:50] Kate's journey towards her Music Career Never really considered herself an artist for the better part of her life, Kate's focus was mostly on her studies and the world as she grew up. She spent her twenties in pursuit of spirituality and working various publication jobs for corporations. Eventually, she ended up being a teacher, a career she very much enjoyed due to her love for children. Despite her love for singing and music, Kate had no idea how to approach the music industry. And especially without the internet at the time, it all seemed pretty impossible. In the end, she had no option but to keep singing just as a hobby. But it all kept coming back. Kate found herself gravitating towards poetry (a niche she actually has a graduate degree in) and she began setting some of it towards music. Despite working with a couple of bands in the early 2000s, she felt that she didn't have enough knowledge on the music career as a whole, and this motivated her to go back to school and study music. Afterward, she spent the next 6 years of teaching music. Later on, she went to Seminary after having a conversion experience in 2009. It wasn't, however, until 2010, when everything globally was just crazy, is when Kate began to write. 2 years later she had written her full album. [17:15] Kate's View on Songwriting Despite taking a songwriting course and dropping it. Kate has never really studied songwriting. In her opinion, it's a creative process of going within and allowing the spirit to move. She also believes that it's a God-given talent, and gives total credit to God for the gift. Kate's creativity and passion for writing began with poetry. With time though, Kate's love for writing poetry slowly fade away, it lost meaning to her and she slowly found herself transitioning to songwriting. [18:17] Kate's icons while growing up To begin with, Kate's opinion on music is that the voice is literally formed through the ear. It's formed through listening to the music. As a child, some of the great musicians that inspired her to sing the way she does, include; Julie Andrews, Mary Travers, Joni Mitchell, and Barbara Streisand. Quotes: [1:00:21] We're living in biblical times, we need to keep our eyes open to see what is occurring, but we should not be afraid. [17:27] Songwriting is a God-given creative talent that involves going within and allowing the spirit to move Follow Kate:*Sign up to her email list to get a free download for her new song, New Earth and also be a part of Kate's family. Website www.katemagdalena.com Facebook @katemagdalenamusic Instagram @kate_magdalena Twitter @KateMagdalen Itunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/kate-magdalena/1245277903 Thanks for joining us, and be sure to connect with us on social media! Follow our Host: www.thejamesoconnoragency.com Facebook Twitter Instagram Follow our Podcast www.dharmicevolution.com Check out our YouTube channel! Join our community on dHarmic Evolution Community Facebook Group  

In the medieval world, thinking about God was done in a monastery where it was bathed in a liturgical setting amid devotional practices. In the modern world, thinking about God is done in a university where liturgical formation is replaced by academic formation marked by a disputational spirit and critical practices... Read the full article here https://www.pastorresources.com/the-decline-and-fall-of-seminaries/ ABOUT THE AUTHOR Leonard Sweet is a preacher, teacher, scholar, and bestselling author. In 2006 and 2007, Len was recognized by his peers as one of the "Fifty Most Influential Christians in America" (ChurchReport magazine); and in 2010, he was selected by the leading non-English Christian website as one of the "Top Ten Most Influential Christian Leaders of 2010." Len resides on Orcas Island off the coast of Washington State. You can find Leonard Sweet online at www.leonardsweet.com; LenSweet on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and Amazon; and youtube.com/lenssweetspots. See Leonard Sweet, Viral: How Social Networking Is Poised to Ignite Revival (Colorado Springs, CO: WaterBrook, 2012). William Muehl, Why Preach? Why Listen? (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986). Matthew 10:39. Karl Rahner, “I Believe in Jesus Christ,” in Writings of 1965–67, part 1, vol. 9 of Theological Investigations (London: Darton, Longman & Todd, 1973), 167. Read by Jim Buttrey of http://www.homesuitehomestudio.com/

Blessed assurance is that song which close to my heart it's and English Christian hymnal song and we thank God Jesus Christ for he gave us that song in Hindi...

Leonard Ravenhill (June 18, 1907 – November 27, 1994) was an English Christian evangelist and author who focused on the subjects of prayer and revival. He is best known for challenging western evangelicalism (through his books and sermons) to compare itself to the early Christian Church as chronicled in the Book of Acts. He was a proponent of the moral government or Governmental theory of atonement. His most notable book is Why Revival Tarries which has sold over a million copies worldwide.In his message, Ravenhill uses the example of Paul the Apostle to call the church back to simplicity of the Gospel. He calls the church to live a life laid down and become a bond servant of the Lord. A body who truly grows up in Christ, not simply receiving salvation and never progressing past that point. A church that has fully laid down who we are, and by the power of the Holy Spirit rises again to become all that the Lord wants us to be.

Flex records was a DIY hip-hop tape label run out of a Brooklyn studio apartment during the nascent - nah, just kidding it was an English Christian label. Still, a couple of interesting tunes on this sampler - but is it an AT*? *Amazing Tape

"हे प्रभु हे भगवान"-हिन्दी और अंग्रेजी ईसाई गीत／"O Lord My God"-மகிமை எல்லாம் இயேசு வுக்கே-Hindi & English Christian Songs.3gp

"हर दिन एक नया दिन है"-अंग्रेजी ईसाई गीत／"Everyday Is A New Day"-English Christian Song.3gp

[४४]."दर्दनाक पथ"-अंग्रेजी ईसाई गीत.3gp

How does Chaucer write about rape and consent ? What links Kim Kardashian West & Margery Kempe - an English Christian mystic and mother of 14 children who wrote about her religious visions in the 1420s in what has been called the first autobiography in English. Alicia Spencer-Hall, Elizabeth Robertson and New Generation Thinker Hetta Howes join Shahidha Bari for a conversation about new research and what a feminist take brings to our understanding of the medieval period. Made with the assistance of the AHRC - the Arts and Humanities Research Council which funds research into the humanities and works with BBC Radio 3 on the New Generation Thinkers scheme to make academic research available to a wider audience.

REFLECTION QUOTES “…. we care for no knowledge in the world but this: that man hath sinned and God hath suffered; that God hath made himself the sin of men, and that men are made the righteousness of God.” ~Thomas Hooker (1586-1647), co-founder of the Colony of Connecticut “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject of all, subject to all.” ~Martin Luther (1483-1546) in “The Freedom of the Christian” “The wild rejoicing on the part of the emancipated coloured people lasted but for a brief period, for I noticed that by the time they returned to their cabins there was a change in their feelings. The great responsibility of being free, of having charge of themselves and their children, seemed to take possession of them.” ~Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) in his autobiography Up from Slavery “To be truly free, it takes more determination, courage, introspection, and restraint than to be in shackles.” ~Pietro Belluschi (1899-1994), Italian-born architect and MIT professor “Nothing…cuts us down to size like the cross. All of us have inflated views of ourselves, especially in self-righteousness, until we have visited a place called Calvary. It is there, at the foot of the cross, that we shrink to our true size.” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader “…unless this freedom [of the Christian gospel] be comprehended, neither Christ nor gospel truth, nor inner peace of soul, can be rightly known.” ~John Calvin (1509-1564), French-born, Swiss reformer “Somewhere, somehow, somebody must have kicked you around some Tell me why you want to lay there, revel in your abandon Honey, it don't make no difference to me baby Everybody has to fight to be free, You see, you don't have to live like a refugee…” ~Tom Petty (1950-2017), American singer-songwriter SERMON PASSAGE Galatians 5:1-16 (NIV) 1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. 2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. 7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? 8 That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 9 “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” 10 I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty. 11 Brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12 As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves! 13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. 16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

REFLECTION QUOTES “If you are to go to Christ, do not put on your good doings and feelings, or you will get nothing; go in your sins, they are your livery. Your ruin is your argument for mercy; your poverty is your plea for heavenly alms; and your need is the motive for heavenly goodness. Go as you are, and let your miseries plead for you.” ~C.H. Spurgeon (1834-1893), famed London preacher “The preaching of Christ is the preaching of Christ crucified. Christ is not truly preached unless there is the offense that is to Jews a stumbling block and to Greeks foolishness. This offense that inheres in the cross lays evangelism open to the temptation to eliminate or tone down that which appears to imperil the success of evangelistic effort, the temptation to withhold, at least at the outset, the very kernel of the gospel of grace. This is fatal dishonor to Christ and nothing more successfully insures that the gospel we preach is not the gospel but the wisdom of man. It is the cross of Christ as the exalted Lord that embodies the supreme revelation of the justice, love, and grace of God, and to eliminate or tone down the offense of the cross is to preach another than the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…” ~John Murray (1898-1975), Scottish-born theologian, professor at both Princeton and Westminster Theological Seminaries “The Bible isn't about people trying to discover God, but about God reaching out to find us.” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader “The doctrine of the cross is the sun in the system of truth. It is seen by its own light, and throws light upon every other subject. This will soften hearts that withstand threatenings. This opens a door of hope to the vilest—to the despairing sinners. The strictness and sanction of the law must be preached, to show sinners their danger; but the gospel is the only remedy and suggests those motives, which are alone able to break off the sinner from the love of his sins, and to enable him to overcome the world.” ~John Newton (1725-1807), Anglican clergyman and author of the hymn “Amazing Grace” SERMON PASSAGE Acts 28:23-31 (ESV) 23 When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. 24 And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 25 And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet: 26 “‘Go to this people, and say, “You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.” 27 For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed; lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.' 28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” 30 He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.

REFLECTION QUOTES “I walk around feeling a sort of existential guilt all the time….” ~Julia Louis-Dreyfus, American actress, comedian and producer “Guilt is anger directed at ourselves—at what we did or did not do. Resentment is anger directed at others—at what they did or did not do.” ~Peter McWilliams (1949-2000), American author “Guilt is cancer. Guilt will confine you, torture you, destroy you…. It's a thief.” ~Dave Grohl, musician, best known for Nirvana and the Foo Fighters “No work or love will flourish out of guilt, fear, or hollowness of heart…” ~Alan Watts, (1915-1973), British philosopher “Nothing is more wretched than the mind of a man conscious of guilt.” ~Plautus (254-184 BC), Roman playwright “Our huffing and puffing to impress God, our scrambling for brownie points, our thrashing about trying to fix ourselves while hiding our pettiness and wallowing in guilt are nauseating to God and are a flat out denial of the gospel of grace.” ~Brennan Manning (1934-2013), American author “…the essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man. Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be; God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be.” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader, one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people (2005) “You may pile up your sins till they rise like a dark mountain, and then multiply them by ten thousand for those you cannot think of; and after you have tried to enumerate all the sins you have ever committed, just let me bring one verse in, and that mountain will melt away: ‘The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from ALL sin.'” ~D.L. Moody (1837-1899), American preacher and founder of Northfield Mount Hermon School SERMON PASSAGE Mark 14:32-42 (ESV) 32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And [Jesus] said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”

REFLECTION QUOTES “I believe, because He fulfills none of my dreams, because He is in every respect the opposite of what He would be if I could have made Him in my own image…Thus, if a Christian is asked: ‘Why Jesus and not Socrates or Buddha or Confucius or Mahomet?' perhaps all he can say is: ‘None of the others arouse all sides of my being to cry ‘Crucify Him'.” ~W.H. Auden (1907-1973), English-born poet “For the essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man. Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be; God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be.” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader “Humiliation: That's the key,” Scorsese told me. “As Kichijiro says in the movie: ‘Where is the place for a weak person in the world we're in? Why wasn't I born when there wasn't any persecution? I would have been a great Christian.'” ~The New York Times review of the new Martin Scorsese film “Silence” “Taken to its logical extreme, Christianity would mean the systematic cultivation of the human failure.” ~Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), as quoted in British Historian Sir Alan Bullock's seminal biography, Hitler: A Study in Tyranny (1952) “Truth is what your contemporaries let you get away with.” ~Postmodern philosopher Richard Rorty “The message [of Jesus Christ] subverted the world of politics. It claimed that Rome's salvation would come from among those forgotten victims of state terror. Caesar himself would have to bow before a crucified Jew. Having crucified the Lord of the universe, the much-vaunted civilization of Rome stood radically condemned.” ~Vinoth Ramachandra, Sri Lankan theologian and human rights advocate SERMON PASSAGE Mark 14:1-41 (ESV) 1 And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. And they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate. 2 And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” 3 And the chief priests accused him of many things. 4 And Pilate again asked him, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you.” 5 But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed. 6 Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked. 7 And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the insurrection, there was a man called Barabbas. 8 And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he usually did for them. 9 And he answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” 10 For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead. 12 And Pilate again said to them, “Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?” 13 And they cried out again, “Crucify him.” 14 And Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him.” 15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourgedJesus, he delivered him to be crucified. 16 And the soldiers led him away inside the palace (that is, the governor's headquarters), and they called together the whole battalion. 17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on him. 18 And they began to salute him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 19 And they were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him and kneeling down in homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to crucify him. 21 And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. 22 And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. 25 And it was the third hourwhen they crucified him. 26 And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” 27 And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. 29 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him. 33 And when the sixth hourhad come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 35 And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, he is calling Elijah.” 36 And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” 37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way hebreathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” 40 There were also women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 When he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him, and there were also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem. Mark 10 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 14 24 And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.

REFLECTION QUOTES “Why does the Bible put such emphasis on human failure—other than it's true? To prepare us for the One who won't fail.” ~John Hannah, American church historian “A non-violent deity can only signal his existence to mankind by having himself driven out by violence—by demonstrating that he is not able to establish himself in the Kingdom of Violence.” ~Rene Girard (1923-2015), French historian, literary critic and philosopher of social science “The life of grace is not an effort on our part to achieve a goal we set ourselves. It is a continually renewed attempt simply to believe that someone else has done all the achieving that is needed and to live in relationship with that person, whether we achieve or not. If that doesn't seem like much to you, you're right: it isn't. And, as a matter of fact, the life of grace is even less than that. It's not even our life at all, but the life of that Someone Else rising like a tide in the ruins of our death.” ~Robert Farrar Capon (1925-2013), American clergyman “The Bible isn't about people trying to discover God, but about God reaching out to find us.” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader “We suffer primarily not from our vices or our weaknesses, but from our illusions. We are haunted, not by reality, but by those images we have put in their place.” ~Daniel Boorstin (1914-2004), historian at the University of Chicago SERMON PASSAGE Mark 14:12-72 (ESV) 12 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 13 And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, 14 and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?' 15 And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.” 16 And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover. 17 And when it was evening, he came with the twelve. 18 And as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.” 19 They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, “Is it I?” 20 He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. 21 For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” 22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” 23 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. 24 And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. 25 Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” 26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.' 28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 29 Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same. 32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.” 43 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” 45 And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him. 46 And they laid hands on him and seized him. 47 But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled.” 50 And they all left him and fled. 51 And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, 52 but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked. 53 And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.54And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire. 55 Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. 56 For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree. 57 And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, 58 “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.'” 59 Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. 60 And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?” 61 But he remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” 62 And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” 63 And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need? 64 You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they all condemned him as deserving death. 65 And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received him with blows. 66 And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, 67 and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” 68 But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway and the rooster crowed. 69 And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” 70 But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” 71 But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” 72 And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

"हे प्रभु हे भगवान"-हिन्दी और अंग्रेजी ईसाई गीत／"O Lord My God"-மகிமை எல்லாம் இயேசு வுக்கே-Hindi & English Christian Songs.3gp

"हर दिन एक नया दिन है"-अंग्रेजी ईसाई गीत／"Everyday Is A New Day"-English Christian Song.3gp

REFLECTION QUOTES “…nobody who ever met Jesus Christ ever had a moderate reaction to him. There are only three reactions to Jesus: they either hated him and wanted to kill him, they were afraid of him and wanted to run away, or they were absolutely smitten with him and they tried to give their whole lives to him…” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader in his book Basic Christianity “Biblical faith is not in a new set of beliefs and friends; it is much deeper than that. It is a shift that comes about through an exchange of one identity for another, from an old identity to a new identity ‘in Christ.'” ~Jonathan Dodson, American author and pastor “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.” ~Proverbs 18:10 ESV “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.” ~Proverbs 22:1 ESV “[M]y discovering my own identity doesn't mean that I work it out in isolation, but that I negotiate it through dialogue, partly overt, partly internal, with others.” ~Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor in his book Multiculturalism: Examining the Politics of Recognition “We don't need bigger cars or fancier clothes. We need self-respect, identity, community, love, variety, beauty, challenge and a purpose in living that is greater than material accumulation.” ~Donella Meadows (1941-2001), American environmental scientist and teacher “Think about what people are doing on Facebook today. They're keeping up with their friends and family, but they're also building an image and identity for themselves, which in a sense is their brand. They're connecting with the audience that they want to connect to.” ~Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook SERMON PASSAGE Mark 3:7-19 7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea 8 and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. 9 And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they crush him, 10 for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 And he strictly ordered them not to make him known. 13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

REFLECTION QUOTES “Every person needs at the center some sense of meaning about existence. It is life and death to us. It makes us who we are.” ~Richard Dawkins, Oxford professor and noted atheist “The soul can do without everything except the Word of God.” ~Martin Luther (1483-1546) “God must speak to us…. He must disclose to us who He is before we can offer Him what we are in acceptable worship. The worship of God is always a response to the Word of God. Scripture wonderfully directs and enriches our worship.” ~John Stott (1921-2011), English Christian leader “Grace is not so poor a thing that it cannot present itself in any number of ways.” ~Marilyn Robinson in her novel Lila “Tears have a tongue, and grammar, and language, that our Father knoweth. Babes have no prayer for the breast, but weeping: the mother can read hunger in weeping.” ~Samuel Rutherford (c. 1600-1661), Scottish thinker and theologian “Christianity is not about me and what fits my preferences and my comforts. It's about [God]. It'sThe Hope of Sarai, Hagar & Ishmael about making his glory known in the world no matter what the costs, because I know that his reward is greater than anything this world has to offer.” ~David Platt, contemporary American pastor and author “Whatever else it embraces, true Christian experience must always include a genuine encounter with God. Without this, religion is but a shadow, a reflection of reality, a cheap copy of the original once enjoyed by someone else…. It cannot but be a major tragedy in the life of any man to live in a church from childhood to old age and know nothing more real than some synthetic god compounded of theology and logic, but having no eyes to see, no ears to hear and no heart to love.” ~A.W. Tozer (1897-1963), American pastor and author SERMON PASSAGE Genesis 16 (NASB) 1 Now Sarai, Abram's wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 After Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram's wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. 4 He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done me be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the Lord judge between you and me.” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.” So Sarai treated her harshly, and she fled from her presence. 7 Now the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. 8 He said, “Hagar, Sarai's maid, where have you come from and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.” 9 Then the angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself to her authority.” 10 Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord said to her further, “Behold, you are with child, And you will bear a son; And you shall call his name Ishmael, Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction. 12 “He will be a wild donkey of a man, His hand will be against everyone, And everyone's hand will be against him; And he will live to the east of all his brothers.” 13 Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees”; for she said, “Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?” 14 Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. 15 So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him. Romans 8:1-4 (NASB) 1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. 3 For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Rupert Sheldrake and Mark Vernon discuss the value of spiritual practices undertaken with others, or as it is known in the English Christian tradition, the value of common prayer. They explore what is lost when the so-called 'spiritual but not religious' generation assumes spiritual practice is an essentially individual pursuit, and what needs to happen in order for collective traditions to become accessible once more.

Join us as we have a conversation with Leonard Sweet on this episode of The Catch on BlogTalkRadio. Leonard Sweet is a scholar of USAmerican culture;  a semiotician who "sees things the rest of us do not see, and dreams possibilities that are beyond most of our imagining;" and a preacher and best-selling author who communicates the gospel with a signature bridging of the worlds of faith, academe, and popular culture. In 2006 and 2007, Len was voted by his peers “One of the 50 Most Influential Christians in America” by ChurchReport Magazine, and in 2010, he was selected by the top non-English Christian website as one of the “Top 10 Influential Christians of 2010.” His popular podcast, “Napkin Scribbles,” is widely quoted, and his weekly sermon contributions to sermons.com have made that site the top preaching resource for pastors in North America. For nine years, he and his wife wrote the entire content for the weekly preaching resource Homiletics. In 2005 Len introduced the first open-source preaching resource on the Web, wikiletics.com.  Len's microblogs on twitter and facebook rank as two of the most influential social media sites in the world.  You can find some of Len's talks on his youtube channel, www.youtube.com/lenssweetspots.   Len is a popular and highly sought-after speaker throughout North America and around the world. In the past couple of years he has spoken in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, England, Wales, South Africa, South Korea, Iceland, Scotland, and most recently, China, Indonesia, and Latvia. Visit Leonard's website here.