The Purpose of Everything

Posted on 2013/05/06 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 148 commands everything in creation to praise Yahweh:

— “the heavens” :1
— “angels” :2
— “sun and moon … stars of light” :3
— “the earth” :7
— “sea monsters” :7
— “fire and hail, snow and clouds” :8
— “mountains and all hills; fruit trees and all cedars” :9
— “beasts and all cattle” :10
— “kings of the earth and all peoples; princes and judges of the earth; both young men and virgins, old men and children” :11-12

In other words, EVERYONE, and every THING is to praise the Lord. This also points to the PURPOSE of everything; everything which exists, exists to praise God.

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Consecrated By His Glory

Posted on 2013/05/05 by Shawn Thomas

In Exodus 29:43 God said that He would meet with the sons of Israel at the tent of meeting, and that it “shall be consecrated by My glory.” That meeting place would be set apart, not merely by some religious act of men, but by the very presence of the glory of God Himself.

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When Words and Deeds Contradict

Posted on 2013/05/04 by Shawn Thomas

Titus 1:16 should be inscribed across the landscape of religious America: “They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him.” SO many people in our country profess to know God – yet so few demonstrate the reality of it by the way they live.

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But God

Posted on 2013/05/03 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 102:12 begins: “But You, O Yahweh …”. The first eleven verses of the Psalm are taken up with lament, how “my heart has been smitten” (:4) “my bones cling to my flesh” (:5) and “my enemies have reproached me all day long” (:8). But at the end of his complaint comes a transition: “BUT YOU, O Yahweh.” Even in his great troubles, the Psalmist knew there was a factor outside himself that he could count on: “But You …”. GOD would make all the difference in his situation!

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Intergenerational Ministry

Posted on 2013/05/02 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 145:4 says: “One generation shall praise Your works to another, and shall declare Your mighty acts.” This describes intergenerational ministry – one generation sharing with another — a too rare thing in American church ministry today.

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When Faith Means Giving Up

Posted on 2013/05/01 by Shawn Thomas

In II Timothy 4:6-7 the Apostle Paul wrote: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith …”. There are some who might have criticized the Apostle Paul in these verses for seeming to “give up.” He didn’t seem to “have faith” for his deliverance, or hold out any hope for release. Instead he said, “The time of my departure has come.” His famous 3-fold phrases are all PAST tense: “I HAVE fought the good fight, I HAVE finished the course, I HAVE kept the faith.” The fact is, Paul knew that there was not any hope for deliverance or escape this time. He had a certainty that his impending death was God’s will now, and he accepted that.

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Ultimate Accountability

Posted on 2013/04/30 by Shawn Thomas

II Timothy 2:15 adjures: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed …”. The words “approved to GOD” are key here. They remind us that it is not any man or human organization to whom we are ultimately accountable; rather it is GOD by Whom we are to seek to be approved.

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A Picture of Intercession

Posted on 2013/04/29 by Shawn Thomas

In :9-12 of Exodus 28 God commanded: “You shall take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel … You shall put the two stones of the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of memorial for the sons of Israel, and Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders for a memorial.” Thus Aaron the priest was to take the names of each of the tribes of Israel on his shoulders when he went into the presence of the Lord. Continue reading →

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“Negative Preaching”?

Posted on 2013/04/28 by Shawn Thomas

In II Timothy 2:2, Paul exhorts Timothy: “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and teaching.” It is interesting that of the three terms Paul uses here to describe the kind of preaching he wants Timothy to do, TWO of them might be considered “negative”: “reprove” and “rebuke.” (“exhort” would be the 3rd)

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The Priority of His Presence

Posted on 2013/04/27 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 140 ends: “the upright will dwell in Your presence.” (:13) THIS is what is really important. Psalm 140 speaks repeatedly of the “evil men” (:1) who “stir up wars” (:2) and “sharpen their tongues”, etc. But the Psalm ends by saying that despite all that, the upright have the presence of God, which is by far more important than any earthly “success” or possession or blessing of any kind.

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