The Ten Commandments

I thought this was applicable since we are currently going through The Way of the Master on Thursday nights. All the people being interviewed are Christians and are coming out of church. We thought it was funny and fascinating. Why don't you try?

The Tri-Unity of God

The first mention of the plurality of God is found in the book of beginnings, or the book of Genesis 1:1-3. In the Hebrew, the word God is Elohim which means "more then one". In verse 2 of Genesis 1, we see the Spirit of God hovering over the face of the waters. Some scholars think that this could be a direct reference to the Holy Spirit found in creation. In verse 26 of Genesis 1, we see that when God began to create man it says, "let us make man in our image." Once again speaking of the plurality of God. The prophet Isaiah mentions all the titles of the Godhead in Isaiah 9:6. It says, "For unto us a child is born, Unto us a son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of peace." We commonly think of this passage whenever Christmas is drawing near. Interestingly enough, when John the Baptist was baptizing Jesus, Matthew's gospel tells us that when Jesus came out of the water the heavens were opened. And he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove and a voice from heaven said, "This is may beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Mathew 3:16, 17) Here we have Jesus standing with John, the Spirit descending like a dove, and God the Father speaking audibly from heaven. When Jesus commissioned his disciples, he included that they must make disciples of all the nations, "baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19) We also know that the early church believed in the Holy Trinity. In Paul's benediction to the Corinthians he says, "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen". (2 Corinthians 13:14) Church history tells us that by the 4th century the early church practiced what was considered to be an ancient ceremony. The followers of Christ would gather to remember the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus and sing a hymn called, Phos Hilaron, or hail gladdening light. One part of the song says, "Now we are come to the sun's hour of rest The lights of evening round us shine We hymn the Father, Son and Holy Spirit Divine."

Offerings part 1

Many people think an offering is the time in a church service where the worship team plays a song and the ushers pass around the plate. The Pastor himself might even say, "at this time we are going to take up an offering." However, an offering is far more then that. An offering is something that is offered in worship or devotion. So really an offering can be just about anything that we give to God. Paul in writing to the church in Corinth said, "do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not you own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." (I Corinthians 6:19, 20) We as Christians must come to the realization that we do not belong to ourselves, but to God. This will affect what we offer to God, and the motive of our offering.

The Trinity

The Holy Trinity is probably the most debated, and yet important building blocks of Christianity. We know that the early church believed in the Holy Trinity. In fact, one of the ancient hymns that we sing in church says, "praise, praise, the father praise the son, praise, praise, the spirit three in one, oh praise him!" In Luke's gospel, doctor Luke tells us that when John was baptizing Jesus, "The holy spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, a voice came from heaven which said, "You are my beloved Son; In You I am well pleased!" (Luke 3:22) Here we have Jesus standing there, then we have the Holy Spirit descending upon him, and finally God the Father speaking audibly from heaven. Just like we believe in Jesus as our Savior and Lord by faith, we too must believe in the Holy Trinity by faith.

Prayer

Someone has said that, " A man without prayer is like lungs without air." I would have to agree with that. As important as it is to breath in order to stay alive, so should prayer be to us in order to stay connected to God. Prayer is important. The Christian should be in prayer continuously. In the book of Philippians the Apostle Paul urges us to, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6 Often times, for the Christian, prayer is the last resort instead of being the first priority. Prayer is how we communicate with God and how we align our will with his will. No matter how big or how small the request may be God cares for our needs. If we would do this constantly and regularly we would have less anxiety and would make better decisions in life.