Author: Jarrett Ray Fletcher

Jarrett is the discipleship and missions pastor at Glen Haven Baptist Church. His passion is helping people follow Jesus, be transformed by Jesus, and join the mission of Jesus. He is a graduate of the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and has been a part of evangelism, church planting, and discipleship in various local churches, college campuses, and Southeast Asia.

“No Not One”- A Sermon on Romans 3:9-20

On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn MessagesLeave a comment

This week I had the opportunity to preach on Romans 3:9-20. What an incredible passage! This text is one of the clearest expressions of mankind’s universal need for a Savior. If we understand Paul’s words rightly, we will be much better positioned to understand and appreciate Christ and the salvation he provides.

Here’s the text if you want to follow along:

“9What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;
11     no one understands;
    no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
    no one does good,
    not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave;
    they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14     “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16     in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.”
18     “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:9-20 ESV).

Seven Reasons to be Confident in the Resurrection of Jesus

On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Defending the Faith, Imago Dei Class1 Comment

“Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised” (1 Corinthians 15:12-15).

 All of Christianity hinges upon the resurrection of Christ. Paul argues that if he has not been raised, we are still in our sins and are completely misrepresenting God. But if he has been raised, Paul argues in Acts 17:31, everything he said and did, including his perfect life and sacrificial death, is vindicated. Therefore, it is not a stretch to say that if we do not have confidence in the resurrection, we cannot have confidence in our salvation.

But Christ has been raised! We can and should be confident in his resurrection. Here are seven reasons why:

1. The Empty Tomb

    Jesus was buried in a known location. His tomb was owned by Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Sanhedrin. It was also guarded by Roman soldiers, who must have been told which tomb to guard and where it was. If the tomb was occupied, Jesus’ body could have been easily produced by the Roman guards or the Jews. Everyone who went there found the exact same thing- an empty tomb.

    2. The Soldiers’ Response

    Matthew reports that the guards immediately reported to the Jewish leaders. That’s interesting in and of itself. Why didn’t they go to Roman leaders? Because they would have been killed! The Jewish leaders paid the soldiers to spread the lie that Jesus’ disciples stole the body in the night. They told the guards, “if this [the empty tomb] comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble” (Matt 28:14). The soldiers’ lives were on the line. Yet they “took the money and did as they were told” (Matt 28:15).

    Here’s the question. Why would the Roman soldiers trust the Jewish leaders who promised to “satisfy”  the governor and keep them out of trouble? They didn’t have that much influence. And the soldiers knew that. But they had no other option. The tomb was empty. Their life was in danger. Their best bet was to take the money, spread the lie, and take their chances on the Jewish leader’s protection. They had no other option.

    3. The Early Claims

    Claims of Jesus’ resurrection began days after his death. Once again, if these claims were false, why did no one prove it? Critics will say that resurrection claims camemuch later, even decades after Jesus’ death, too far from his death to really prove such claims false. But 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 proves this such theories false. Paul writes,

    “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

    For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.”

    Many scholars believe that verses 3-5 are an early creed that dates immediately after Jesus’ death up to five years later. And Paul is quoting this creed in his letter written in the 50s, only two decades after Jesus’ death. So we can be confident that the claims regarding his resurrection did not arise later. They began as early as the day the women discovered the empty tomb.

    Continue reading “Seven Reasons to be Confident in the Resurrection of Jesus” →

    Is Jesus Really God? A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Summary

    On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Defending the Faith, Imago Dei ClassLeave a comment

    Does the Bible present Jesus as God in the flesh? Is the Son of God really God? Or did the doctrine of Christ’s deity evolve over the centuries? Christianity rises and falls upon this doctrine just as much as any other. It is not an overstatement to say that salvation hangs in the balance. So, what’s the answer?

    Dan Brown writes in his enormously popular book The Da Vinci Code that Jesus’ deity was a doctrine proposed and voted on at the Council of Nicaea in 325. He writes that the Roman emperor at the time, Constantine, “turned Jesus into a deity who existed beyond the scope of the human world, an entity whose power was unchallengeable.”[1] However, The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction, and so is this claim. Fiction.

    Not only is this claim historically inaccurate (the deity of Christ was not proposed/voted on at the council of Nicaea), it is biblically and theologically inaccurate. The Scriptures clearly present Jesus as God and our theology of salvation requires it. Yet countless cults and critics have bought into Brown’s claims or those like it, believing that the deity of Jesus is a historical development rather than biblical truth.

    Biblical Evidence

    I would like to pose three arguments that demonstrate that the Bible clearly expects us to believe that Jesus is God: 1. Jesus bears the names and titles of God. 2. Jesus does the works of God. 3. Jesus receives the worship of God.

    1. Jesus bears the titles of God.

      Consider the following verses:

      “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)

      “Thomas answered him [Jesus], ‘My Lord and my God!’” (John 20:28)

      Titus writes that we are “waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). This verse features the Granville Sharpe Rule in Greek, where God and Savior refer to the same person, Jesus Christ. It is similar to how we might say “our father and friend David.” We would understand David to be both the father and friend referenced.

      There’s another one of these in 2 Peter 1:1- “To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ.”Peter clearly refers to Jesus as God and Savior.

      Paul writes, “To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.” (Romans 9:5)

      And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.” (Revelation 21:6). Compare this to what Yahweh says about himself in Isaiah 44:6, “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redemer, the Lord of hosts: I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.”

      The New Testament authors clearly identify Jesus as God by using these titles in reference to him.

      Continue reading “Is Jesus Really God? A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Summary” →

      Six Reasons You Can Trust the Bible

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Defending the Faith, Imago Dei Class4 Comments

      This week we are considering the question of whether or not we can trust the Bible. What makes it unique, setting it apart from other religious books? How can we be sure that what we have is what was originally written? And how can we know that it is actually from God?

      A quick reminder: we are not looking for absolute certainty. We are looking for confidence. Can we have confidence that God has spoken to us in the sixty six books of the Bible? Here are six reasons that I believe we can.

      1. The Unity of Scripture

      The Bible was written over 1,500 years by over forty authors in three languages on three different continents, yet it tells one cohesive story about God and man. All of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation centers upon the Son, the Seed, the Servant, who will save his people from their sins and reconcile them to God. His victory is promised in the first book of the Bibe and is realized in the final book of the Bible. How amazing is it that all of the biblical authors, in different languages, in different centuries, write in such unity with each other?

      2. The Explanatory Power of Scripture

      This unifying story is an apologetic in and of itself. It answers all the biggest questions of life: How did we get here? Why are we here? Why is the world the way that it is? Why is there suffering, pain, and death? What hope is there for us? What should we live for? What comes after this life?

      The Bible possesses the greatest explanatory power for all of the major questions of life. It explains who created us, how sin entered the world, why we experience pain and suffering, and how God, in his mercy and love, has purposed to save us in His Son and redeem us from all the effects of sin. It explains to us who God is- the One in whom we live and move and have our being. It gives explanation to life in a way that nothing else can.

      3. Fulfilled Prophecy

      At many points in this unfolding story, God speaks through prophets who specifically predict future events. Some of them are so accurate in their predictions that liberal scholars claim that the books must have been written after the events predicted (the book of Daniel, for example). A couple of these prophecies include Judah & Israel’s exile and captivity, Isaiah’s prediction of Cyrus leading the Jews home, and Jesus prophesying the destruction of the temple within a generation in Matthew 24.

      However, the most impressive prophecies are those that are made about the Messiah that were fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth. Conservatively, Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies from the Old Testament. Some of these include specific prophecies such as his birth in Bethlehem or his family fleeing to Egypt, but also include typological prophecies such as Abraham sacrificing his only son, Isaac. God tells Abraham to spare his son, of course, but the story points to God the Father sacrificing his Son, Jesus.

      4. Historical Reliability

      The first three reasons are impressive, but not if the story and prophecies have been edited and re-written over the centuries to make the Bible appear more impressive than it is. Can we be confident that what we have in our modern Bibles is what was actually written thousands of years ago? Yes we can.

      We have greater historical evidence for the Bible than any other work of antiquity. In seminary, I focused on the work of textual criticism. I was able to compare several different manuscripts (copies) of the New Testament and evaluate their similarities and try to make sense of their differences. Get this: we have well over 5,000 copies of the Greek New Testament, and some of those copies go all the way back to within 30-50 years of the originals. And these copies agree 93-95% of the time!

      There are, of course, minor differences between the copies. They were all handwritten copies, so we should expect differences to appear. We call those differences variants. But the vast majority of the text of the New Testament has been miraculously preserved through centuries of copying. When we put the copies side by side, the original (what we call the autograph) emerges, and we can be confident that we have what was originally written.

      Continue reading “Six Reasons You Can Trust the Bible” →

      Three Classic Arguments for the Existence of God

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Defending the Faith, Imago Dei Class1 Comment

      Can we be certain that God exists? Many have claimed that we can be absolutely certain, and that and doubt regarding God’s existence is absurd. While I appreciate the sentiment, and generally agree that you can’t even talk about the existence of God without assuming that he exists (by the use of logic, reason, and language), I don’t believe that attaining absolute certainty regarding his existence should be our goal.

      The Bible tells us that it is impossible to please God without faith. Furthermore, we must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him (Hebrews 11:3). If we could attain certainty regarding the existence of God, what role would faith play? How could we believe that he exists if we could know with absolute certainty that he does?

      Instead of attaining certainty in the existence of God, we should aim for confidence. “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb 11:1). Consequently, we need an informed faith. A faith that is strong, confident, and full of substance. A faith that is strengthened by what we do know, yet is content with what we do not know. This is the kind of faith we need.

      As we consider three arguments for the existence of God, let’s keep this kind of faith in mind. Our faith cannot be separated from reality, yet it cannot demand the certainty that would render faith useless. For example, God has clearly shown us his attributes in the things that have been made, and thus we are without excuse (Romans 1:20). But the righteous must still live by faith (Romans 1:16-17).

      Therefore, when these arguments regarding the existence of God are considered, we must recognize the clear demonstration of God’s existence and his attributes, but we must choose to exercise faith in them, or rather in God. Its not enough to be convinced of God’s existence intellectually, we must exercise faith in the God who’s existence we are considering. With that being said, here are three of my favorite arguments for the God’s existence:

      1. The Cosmological Argument

      The primary claim of the cosmological argument is that the universe must have a cause. If everything that begins to exist has a cause, and if the universe began to exist, then the universe must have a cause. That which causes the universe to come into must be its creator, able to stand outside of the universe and bring it into being. Nothing comes from nothing. Something must come from something, or someone.

      Imagine you are taking a stroll down the beach, and you come across a glorious sand castle. Would your assumption be that it has always existed, or that at some point in time, it had a beginning? Of course you would assume that it had a beginning. Such is the case for everything else you experience in life. Everything that exists has a cause. This is why the scientific consensus has adopted The Big Bang Theory, because it explains the beginning, or the cause, of the universe. However, even The Big Bang, if it began to exist, had to have a cause. Who or what caused it?

      The cosmological argument asserts that the universe had to have a beginning, and that it is probable for that beginning to be God. More on that in the next argument.

      Continue reading “Three Classic Arguments for the Existence of God” →

      My Truth, Your Truth, or The Truth: Who Gets to Decide?

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Defending the Faith, Imago Dei Class2 Comments

      Recently I had a conversation with someone who embodied the postmodern sentiment of rejecting all universal truth claims. “There are no universal truths,” he stated plainly. “Is that a universal truth?” I asked. He stopped to think, and after a period of silence, he responded, “That’s a good point.”

      This man recognized the problem with making a universal truth claim that there are no universal truth claims. In order to state his premise, he had to assume that which he intended to deny. This kind of argumentation is typical in our culture that has adopted the pragmatic theory of truth.

      The pragmatic of theory of truth states that something is “true” if it works for you. It’s a deviation from the correspondence theory of truth that states that something is true if it corresponds to reality. In the pragmatic theory, everyone gets to decide what set of “truths” work for them. Truth becomes subjective instead of objective. But this doesn’t work in reality. Should each pilot decide which set of truths work for them? Or each surgeon? Or teacher? And what if “my truth” conflicts with “your truth?” What then?

      We must have objective truth. In other words, there must be truth that it is what it is regardless of what anyone thinks. The question that must be asked is “who has the truth?” The Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, or atheists?

      Jesus claimed to be the objective truth. “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:16). He claims that the only way we can know the only true God is by knowing him (John 17:3).

      Notice that Jesus doesn’t leave the door open for multiple Gods. “The only true God.” There is one true God, and the only way to know him is to know His Son. He alone offers us salvation, and with it infuses our life with meaning, value, and beauty.

      What we believe about truth impacts our lives daily, because the nature of truth correlates with the nature of morality. Subjective truth leads to subjective morality, and objective truth naturally leads to objective morality. Everyone believes in some set of rights and wrongs. But who gets to decide what is right or wrong? My friend that I mentioned at the beginning suggested that whatever the consensus of the populace is should determine right or wrong. But what happens if the consensus is wrong? For example, if the consensus of 18th century America was that slavery was morally acceptable, does that actually make it morally acceptable?

      There must be some standard outside of ourselves to correct us, including our misguided consensuses. Jesus is that standard. He is the lawgiver and judge. “There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” (James 4:12).

      What we must do, then, is assess Jesus’ life and words and determine if he is who he says he is. Is he the truth? Is he the only way to the only true God? Is he the lawgiver and judge? I invite you to follow along as I blog through our life group series, Defending the Faith. I’ll post here weekly the week after we discuss a particular topic. I will also include a pdf of my notes as well. It’s my prayer that these posts will increase your confidence in the Christian faith and encourage you to share it!

      Defending the Faith- The Nature of TruthDownload

      Aslan, Manhood, and Sacrificial Responsibility

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn DevotionalsLeave a comment

      My boys and I have been reading through C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe at night time before bed, and they have loved it. Though they are only four and six, they’ve been able to grasp the plot of the fantasy world and its battle between good and evil.

      Last night we read the part of the book where Aslan dies on behalf of Edmund. Edmund, of course, is the younger brother who is tempted into betraying his siblings by the Witch’s promise of making him king. Even though he is rescued by Aslan and shows signs of repentance, there is “deep magic” in Narnia that requires the life of any traitor.

      Aslan, the son of the “Emperor Beyond the Sea,” who all the “good guys” expect to lift the cruel curse inflicted on Narnia by the Witch, chooses to die on Edmund’s behalf. He allows himself to be bound, shaved, and sacrificed on the Stone Table to atonefor Edmund’s sin.

      My boys immediately understood Lewis’ point, “That’s just like Jesus dying for us!” Indeed it is.

      Now let me be clear, in Lewis’ story, Aslan pays a ransom to the Witch for Edmund’s life. That’s not what Jesus did. He didn’t pay off Satan. He paid the Father. He took the wrath of God against our sins on the cross. It was God the Father who poured out punishment on his Son, not Satan (Isaiah 53:10-11).

      But Aslan does sacrifice his life for Edmund in a substitutionary manner by taking responsibility for Edmund’s sin. Even though Aslan didn’t commit treason, he chose to be punished as if he had so that Edmund could be set free. And that’s exactly what Jesus did for us.

      “But God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). “Greater love has no man than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). We prayed and thanked Jesus for loving us and dying for us.

      I also wanted to teach my boys a lesson about biblical masculinity and its assumption of sacrificial responsibility. I told them that God wants each of them to become men who willingly sacrifice themselves for the people that God places in their lives, and that they do that by bearing the responsibility of leadership. Aslan bore this responsibility for Edmund, just as Jesus did for us, and we are called to do the same.

      Each of them declared their willingness to die for another member of our family should it be necessary. “If August needed a heart, and my heart was the only one he could have,” Haddon said, “I would die so he could have my heart.”

      Though it was sweet, I also wanted them to see that sacrificial responsibility doesn’t just mean choosing to die so that someone else can live. It certainly can, and did mean that for Jesus. But it can also bedying to yourself daily- your desires, your preferences, your rights- to serve those God has called you to lead.

      This is what motivates me as a father. God has called me to assume the sacrificial responsibility for my home. I am called to lead and bear the responsibility for my marriage and my children. And God has called me to bear that responsibility by regularly sacrificing myself for them. “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church” (Ephesians 5:25).

      So, I told them, that looks like getting up every day, praying for your family, working hard to provide, teaching your family the Word, spending quality time together, disciplining your children, making sure all the bills are paid, making sure all the relationships are healthy, seeing to it that everyone has what they need, taking care of the things God has given us, and so on. Gladly taking on the duty of these things and tending to them with care, even when you don’t feel like it, is sacrificial responsibility. And that’s what it means to be a man. And that’s what God wants you to become. That’s how you embody Jesus to your family, to your community, and ultimately to the world.

      “So Daddy, you’re like Aslan?” I’m trying to be, son, and one day, I hope each of you will too!

      Kids & Kingdom: Children in the Gospels- Heirs of the Kingdom

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Imago Dei Class, Kids & KingdomLeave a comment

      I recently heard a counselor tell parents that one of the most helpful tools in raising children is the remembrance of their own childhood. This helps the parent remember what it felt like to be a child, including both the positive and negative aspects.

      For example, it helps the parent consider how little things can be huge things to kids, like the friend that hurt their feelings during recess. In our adult minds, we know it was likely a minor thing and not worth getting all worked up about. But for them, it is as if their world came crashing down on the playground.

      Remembering what it felt like to be a child helps us have sympathy and compassion for children and their experience of life. It enables us to enter their world, so to speak, and comprehend the things that matter (or don’t matter) to them.

      Hebrews 4:15 tells us that Jesus can sympathize with our weaknesses as one who was tempted in every way as we are, yet was without sin. He can sympathize with children, too, because he was one. He is not just our perfect high priest, but theirs too. He can understand their world, their struggles, and their dreams. He also knows what children are capable of, even when adults can’t see it.

      Let the Children Come to Me

      Jesus’ disposition towards children is displayed in several of the gospels. Consider this story from Mark 10. “And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, ‘Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.’ And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them” (Mk 10:13-16).

      Who was bringing children to Jesus? Probably their parents, siblings, or grandparents! Why? “That he might touch them” (v. 13)  It is possible that they had heard of Jesus’ power and how that power had been revealed through touch (Mk 1:40-42, 5:25-34). Maybe touching Jesus would make their children strong and healthy or wise and successful. Maybe it would even make them more obedient!

      I think its more likely that they were seeking a blessing for their children. Blessings were often conveyed by the laying on of hands (Gen 48:14). So these parents probably though it would be good for Jesus to touch their children. Wouldn’t you?

      Continue reading “Kids & Kingdom: Children in the Gospels- Heirs of the Kingdom” →

      Kids & Kingdom- Children in the Gospels: The Christ Child

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Imago Dei Class, Kids & KingdomLeave a comment

      Every year we pause and reflect on the miracle of the incarnation at Christmas time. It is one of the most important elements of the Christian faith, and is foundational to understanding the gospel and salvation. Entire books have been written seeking to explain the numerous details or implications of the incarnation. My goal is not to explain it fully here. But I do want to highlight one very important point about God’s entrance into the world, and that is how he came- as a child.

      In my previous post, we read the prophecy concerning the virgin giving birth to a son in Isaiah 7. Just a few chapters later in Isaiah, we are given more information about The Son that will be born. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be on his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness, from this time forth and forevermore” (Isa 9:6-7).

      “For to us a child is born.” The Son of God who upholds the universe by the word of his power (Heb 1:3) could have entered the world in any way he wanted. He could have come as a thirty year old man ready to begin ministry. Just as God created Adam as an adult, he could’ve allowed his Son to become man by simply fashioning a body out of dust for him.

      As God took Elijah up into heaven, he could have sent his Son in human form down from heaven. Jesus could have come in a grandiose way where he would be seen and known instantly. Or he could have mysteriously come as Melchizedek does in Genesis 14. But he didn’t. He came as a child. As an infant. As a fetus. As an embryo.

      Jesus of Nazareth was born to a poor family traveling to Bethlehem. The offspring that was promised to Eve, Abraham, David, and Israel was finally here. And as all offspring comes, he came as an infant, fully dependent on his mother’s sustenance and care. The nature of his coming is important. If he didn’t come this way, all of the offspring promises could not have been fulfilled in him, because he would not have been anyone’s offspring!

      Christians often say that Jesus was fully God and fully man. But there was a time in his life when he was fully God and fully child.  Luke tells us that he “grew and became strong” and “increased in wisdom and stature” (Luke 2:40, 52). He grew up as other children did, in their homes and in their communities, learning, playing, eating, and celebrating. He spent time with siblings, cousins, and other neighborhood kids. He did kid things. But there were signs that he was different.

      Continue reading “Kids & Kingdom- Children in the Gospels: The Christ Child” →

      Kids & Kingdom- Children in the Covenant: Teach Them Diligently

      On By Jarrett Ray FletcherIn Imago Dei Class, Kids & Kingdom2 Comments

      In my previous post, we considered the promises that God made to his people and how each of those promises found their fulfillment in Christ. God promised his people that he would crush Satan, bless the nations, reign forever, and save his people, all through the gift of offspring. All of these promises, just like every promise of God, “find their yes” in Christ (2 Cor 1:20).

      However, God did not expect his people to be passive bystanders as he fulfilled his promises. He called them to faith-motivated action. After promising Abraham that he would make him into a great nation, God asked him to sacrifice his only son (which God stopped and provided a substitute for, by the way). After promising the Israelites that he would rescue them from slavery in Egypt, he asked them to follow him into the wilderness (including walking through the sea!). After promising Israel a land to inherit, he asked them to trust him and take the land even though their enemies were stronger and more numerous.

      When God makes promises, he wants us to trust him and act on that trust. When he made promises to Israel regarding offspring and children, he expected his people to trust him and obey him. But what did obedience look like, and what does it look like for us?

      Continue reading “Kids & Kingdom- Children in the Covenant: Teach Them Diligently” →