Christine's Blog (2,677)

My acquaintance with Nicodemus goes back to when I was probably about four years old, when a Sunday School teacher taught by moving paper figures around on a flannel-graph board—two men, both Jewish, one old and gray, both with beards.  And that is just about how much I took it into my heart—paper on a flat board.  It was an important lesson—for…

So an old Jewish teacher goes to find the one they call Jesus . . . the one people are talking about around town . . . recently turned water into wine . . . captivating folks with his words.  Nicodemus goes at night, because he would probably be stripped of his high-powered position in the Sanhedrin if he was seen in the company of this rabbi from…

Perspective --from a glimpse in the crowd . . .

We looked at Jesus’ final night with his disciples-

How he pleaded with the Father to…

Peter’s Message for Us.  Acts 2.14-41

Peter, the impetuous disciple of Christ—the one who denied him three times—at Jesus’ most desperate hour, preached the sermon of a lifetime, and 3000 people came to know Jesus in one day.  Here is what he…

Good Morning.  

Picture the 120 gathered together, and filled with the Spirit for the first time in history.  They begin to speak in unknown languages--unknown to them, but not to the Jewish pilgrims who had traveled to Jerusalem to observe Pentecost.  A crowd gathers and hears the good news…

‘Round me on the airplane, some passengers are reading, and many are sleeping, as we wing our way over Greenland, bound for home.   While my body is exhausted, my head and heart are full of the sights, sounds, and experiences of the last days.  Hmmm, how to make sense of a holiday of short duration but of huge personal proportions…  Eight days ago, I flew with my family from Southern…

What was meant by 'speaking in tongues' in Acts chapter Two.

What strikes me most about Paris is the historic nature of it … the age of the buildings, streets, and statuary—the exquisite detail and beauty.  ‘The building that has taken my breath…

The Holy Spirit and Languages.  This Morning Briefing is a two-parter.

Part One.

We made our way across London via the Underground to see…

Hello, my friends . . . 

Lord, increase my faith.

While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you."…

Who else saw Jesus see after he had shed his burial clothes?

Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaeus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. (Luke 24) They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with…

“Christ is risen.  He has risen indeed!”  Many of you will say that at church this week . . . and, how blessed are we to go to church two thousand years after the resurrection and celebrate what took place on that Sunday so long ago?!

We will consider Luke’s…

Crucified, buried . . . Finally, the procession reaches the top of Mount Calvary--Jesus and two criminals are to be crucified.  Jesus is stripped naked, his bruised and bloodied arms outstretched on the rough wood--a five-inch long, three-eighths-inch square nail is driven through each of his hands--actually, more the wrists. Crucifixion is meant to be…

And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country and laid on him the cross to carry it behind Jesus. And there followed Him a great multitude of the people and of women who were mourning and lamenting for Him.  Luke 23.26 and following. . .…

The biblical accounts from Luke 23 and Matthew 27:

When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had wanted to see him; in fact, he was hoping to see him perform some sort of miracle. He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave no answer. The…

We left Jesus standing before the Sanhedrin, with Caiaphas saying, 'We don't need any more witnesses; we heard all we need to hear,' planning to send Jesus to Pilate, governor of Judah.

There is no doubt that this was the most famous and the…

And so Jesus departs from the Upper Room . . . and begins the quiet march toward his arrest.  He returns again this night to the Mount of Olives, and stops in the garden that we hold so dear, the Garden of Gethsemane.  We watch as Jesus prays to his Father, about the agony that is soon to come upon him …    Luke 22.39-46…

Isn't it ironic. . .

An old man turned ninety-eight

He won the lottery and died the next day…