Building on the Foundation

Sometimes, it’s really hard to get into a book. The story just isn’t grabbing your attention, you’re not in the mood for a mystery that day, or maybe your mind is just too busy to read and focus. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to get into a book on a particular day, and I just couldn’t do it. The Bible can feel like that a lot of times, but the good news for us is that the Bible has a section for every attention span. Got a five-second attention span? No problem! Read a Proverb. Looking at the Bible like any other book can be problematic, though. How many times have you picked up an instruction manual, read just the end, and tried to operate the machinery to no avail? You don’t know any of the rules for good and safe operation, you don’t know that you’re supposed to let the machine cool off when it gets too hot, and you don’t know what it’s even supposed to be used for! Failed attempts to shave the family dog with a chainsaw are usually a result of only reading the end of t...

Have you ever wondered at what point in your life your name gets written in the Lamb's Book of Life? It would seemingly be a turning point in your life, a day when you make a commitment to serve our Creator with all your heart, soul, and might, and not just any old Tuesday. Baptism is an outward symbol of this commitment which takes place in the heart. It is far more than a physical bath, it symbolizes having your sins washed away through the sacrifice of the Son of Almighty God. It is also making a covenant with Him, (more on that later). Have you drowned your old man?   Now before you go commit murder, so that you can answer “yes,”  please consider that I am referring to your old sinful self and not your physical father.   Romans 6:6,  “... our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin .” In order to no longer be a slave of sin we need to kill our old self.  So how exa...