Holy Week – Day 6: Good Friday – What’s Good About It?
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. -Isaiah 53:5–6 Our human minds can’t even begin to grasp the enormity of the price Jesus paid for us on the cross. If we did,
Holy Week – Day 5: Maundy Thursday: This Is Love
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. -1 John 4:10–12 The word “Maundy” comes from the Latin “mandatum,” meaning commandment. This is in reference to the new
Holy Week – Day 4: Aged to Perfection
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! -2 Corinthians 5:17 What is one of the main themes that keeps recurring in the faiths and literature of the world? What is that longing in the human heart that never goes away regardless of the time or place? It’s the desire that the old, the worn out, and the temporary pass away and the new, the fresh, and the lasting appear! This is what
Holy Week at Starnberg International Church – Join Us!
In this season, we learn the value of waiting. The longer we wait for something, the more we have to trust it will arrive and the more we have to trust that the waiting process is happening for a reason. Waiting helps us deepen our faith and heighten our listening and desire for God. Rather than giving up or turning away from good things like chocolate, coffee, or some other pleasure, it is probably more spiritually productive in the season
The Last Four Days of Holy Week Meditation
If someone asked you to associate one word each for the four days from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday, what would those four words be? For me, they would be love, suffering, grief, and joy. Maundy Thursday: Love A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. –John 13:34 Jesus’ new commandment is intended for the disciples’ welfare and for them to enjoy lives of meaning and purpose. In his ministry, he gives us a model of love
Invincible Joy: Oliver Asher on Finding Joy on The Walk Podcast
Oliver Asher presents us with one of the most amazing, gripping life stories we have had on our show. His struggles gave him plenty of reasons to be hopeless about life, yet he has written a book about the miraculous power Jesus Christ gives to rise above the worst of circumstances. Hear more about Oliver Asher's faith journey and his joy-fueled mission. You can find his book, Invincible Joy: Chasing God’s Dreams For Your Life, on Amazon, or read more at oliverasher.com. To hear
God of the Last Minute
Whether we study the Bible, the history of Israel, or the church, a consistent theme reappears: God likes to take his time doing his will, but he's never late. This means that often (very often), he prefers to wait until the last minute, the 59th minute of the eleventh hour, to answer our prayers and bring about his will and purposes. That God likes to do it this way is not hard to prove. Just read the hundreds of books written
God’s Love: The Best Gift
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. -John 3:16 God is love. We hear this all the time, and Scripture affirms his character is the very essence of love. Yet we make the mistake of ignoring Scripture and instead defining God's love in terms of what we think it is, rather than first understanding what his love means and then measuring ours in the light
Knowing Your Purpose
However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace. -Acts 20:24 One of the inspiring marks of the apostle Paul’s life was that he knew his purpose. He was utterly controlled by the Good News of the Gospel—believing, loving, preaching, and defending it, often at the risk of his life. In this passage, Paul is speaking
The Battle Belongs to the Lord
“… This is what the Lord says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's." -2 Chronicles 20:15 We can’t face the day and fight the same battles any longer—we’re worn out, and there are too many enemies, too much meanness to take on. We’re tired of fighting the same emotional war. What is there to do? In this unusual passage, God orders the people not to try to fight
