"You shall call his name Jesus." The name "Jesus," with which we are familiar, is equivalent to Joshua (יְהוֹשַׁבְעַת or יֵשׁוּעַ) in the Old Testament. Both the names יֵשׁוּעַ and Ἰησοῦς point to God's salvation. This important “name-sharing” reveals that Jesus is the one who will lead the people into the promised land surpassing what Moses … Continue reading JESUS: MY SAVIOR
religion
Advantages and Disadvantages in Philippians 3:8
“Yea verily I count all things to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I suffer the loss of all things and do count them but refuse, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8). Paul has made a comparison between “loss” of the world and “gain” in … Continue reading Advantages and Disadvantages in Philippians 3:8
Worldview Analysis
Much of the drama in the world news is the result of competing and clashing worldviews. The secular worldview holds up the physical world as the foundation and end of all that is. This secular worldview can manifest itself in two ways. Either the physical world will be viewed as an "object" of supreme existence … Continue reading Worldview Analysis
God Wants to Be Immanuel
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Apparently, God spent so much time in the Garden paradise that Adam recognized the sound of God as he walked in the Garden (Genesis 3:8). Sin broke that privilege of that precious closeness (Gen. 3:22-24). God did not abandon us to condemnation. God chose to … Continue reading God Wants to Be Immanuel
Meeting a Stranger
Atheism is the belief there is no god to meet. "Deism" is the belief that God made the world and left it to run down and left us on our own. The Bible presents God as a stranger who introduced himself. We have to say God is a "stranger" because he is so different than … Continue reading Meeting a Stranger
Angels
They are, as it were, in yonder gilded vessel, untossed of tempest; but they have sympathy with us in this poor heavy-laden bark, tossed with tempest and not comforted. I see them there on yonder sea of glass mingled with fire. I hear their harpings, as incessantly their joy goes up in music to the … Continue reading Angels
Believe in Jesus, Even If You Have to Sacrifice Everything?
Since the Nike campaign unleashed a PR debacle, various Christians have tried to apply their new slogan to Christian living and especially the command to sacrifice. The book of Leviticus detailed the sacrifices which God commanded the Jews. The Israelites' propensity to sin led them to sacrifice while practicing iniquity, and God refused their sacrifices. Others … Continue reading Believe in Jesus, Even If You Have to Sacrifice Everything?
Where is Jesus During the Lord’s Supper?
Jesus said, "Take, eat; this is my body" and "this is my blood" in Matthew 26:26-28. What does it mean? Is that really Jesus' body? Is that really Jesus blood? There are three positions put forth to answer those questions. First, some have said that this means Jesus is actually physically there. This doctrine is … Continue reading Where is Jesus During the Lord’s Supper?
The Son of God
The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.’ ‘You have said it,’ Jesus told him” (Matthew 26:63–64). But what does it mean to call Jesus the “Son of God”? Does it mean that God the Father created … Continue reading The Son of God
JESUS ABOVE FAMILY? MATTHEW 10:37-39
To be Jesus’ disciple, we must love him more than our family or ourselves. INTRODUCTION TO THE TEXT General Douglas MacArthur: And 20 years after, on the other side of the globe, again the filth of murky foxholes, the stench of ghostly trenches, the slime of dripping dugouts; those boiling suns of relentless heat, those … Continue reading JESUS ABOVE FAMILY? MATTHEW 10:37-39
Donnie's Dogmatics 