Posts by The North Salem United Methodist Church
“Two Advents – Two Messiahs”
In Matthew’s gospel there is a very interesting statement that John the Baptist directs to some of his followers while he, John, is in prison and Jesus is engaged in his own ministry. From his prison cell John sends his disciples to present Jesus with a question. Through them John asks Jesus this curious question:…
Read MoreThe Transfiguration
When considering any of Christ’s many miracles, one must first ask oneself this question: Why did Christ do such & such a miraculous work? Why did Christ engage in miracles at all? Could it have been, even partially, that he was revealing, or hinting perhaps, to things that were or were soon to be? Well,…
Read More“The Lynch Pin Commandment”
Of God’s Ten Commandments one stands out uniquely from the other nine – and that commandment is the Fourth Commandment. As the Commandment is written: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God;…
Read More“Cleansing The Temple”
A few weeks ago during worship service I read the first Scripture reading for that day, John 2:13-22. The passage was about Jesus cleansing the temple. And, as I said at that time, it was about Jesus cleansing the temple the FIRST time! Yes, as I said then, the Scripture passage in John was about Jesus…
Read More“It Was Not For Them To Know”
Commentary on Acts 1:1-11 Among the many noteworthy points of interest in Acts 1:1-11 there are two I would like to comment on. The first is about how the author of Acts, the one and only Luke of the gospel of Luke, described Jesus’ ascension. Luke noted that Jesus was “lifted up” and “taken up.” Such language strongly implies…
Read More“A Brood of Vipers!”
John (the Baptist) was in the wilderness baptizing at the Jordan river in the year that the prophet Daniel had written the Messiah of Israel would appear, a time late in 26 A.D. Many in Israel were also aware of Daniel’s prediction and were thus heading out into the wilderness in anticipation of the Messiah’s…
Read MoreAdopted Into Sonship
Pentecost Sunday is the day nearly two thousand years ago that many believe the Church was born. It was the day the Church received the promised Holy Spirit that Jesus said he would send as our Comforter and Advocate. But the Holy Spirit is even a bit more than that. He is something that many just…
Read MoreThe Traditions of Men
In the gospel of Mark (Mark 7:1-8) Jesus calls out the religious leaders of his day for placing centuries old traditions ahead of explicit, biblical directives. (See Mark 7:5-8) I would say not much has changed since Jesus’ day. So many of the churches today still place age-old traditions ahead of God’s written word, or at the very least add superfluous rituals, holidays (holy…
Read MoreFive Smooth Stones
There is an interesting tidbit in the Scripture passage of 1 Samuel 17:40. It states: “Then he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the wadi (a brook or stream), and put them in his shepherd’s bag, in the pouch; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near to the…
Read MoreRevelation! But to Whom?!
In Chapter 3 of Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, Paul explains to his readers how there was a “spiritual mystery” that was kept from men until Paul’s time and his call to reveal it. That mystery, of course, was that gentiles were also to be brought into the kingdom of God. And again, it was…
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