NCarolinian

When I think of the position of King, in my head words like sovereign, rule, reign, Majesty, Lord, Your Grace, leadership, responsibility and a whole host of others come to mind. My ultimate King is Christ Jesus. He has and will always exemplify every trait and characteristic of The King perfectly. The wonderment that strikes me is that Christ delegates His rule and reign to us. Jesus is at the right hand of Father God right now, but His Holy Spirit dwells within each believer and the corporate church to testify to God's presence and show His love. This speaks of present day actions that display how Christians are leaders in the area of caring for others. Some capitalize on this notion and are on a great journey to becoming a great king or queen for Christ. Others who sit on their development, the result is not favorable.  I do not know about you, but seeing myself as a priest or king of God is a challenge. However, even though we can start practicing this role now,...

To love God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind as Jesus instructed in Matthew 22:37 has got to be a life-long pursuit. This love relationship is tested again and again so beware to the wimps of relationships.  Jesus, nor I, nor many other Pillars of the Faith will ever tell you that this road of faith is easy. In my perspective,  Matthew 22:37-39  should read something like this -  "'Love [Devote yourself to] the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love [care for] your neighbor as [you would care for] yourself.'" Sometimes loving or devoting yourself to God, even with visible proofs of His presence, while not seeing the actual person of Christ - is difficult.  Jesus even said,   "Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more ...

Big and ferocious things were not strange encounters or battles to David. This shepherd boy had to learn at an early age how to kill animals several times his size, weight and speed. His flock of sheep depended upon him. Fast forward to David's encounter with Goliath and David is protecting a particular flock once again - the nation of Israel. One of the big takeaways from this battle is what happened just prior to David walking out on the battlefield. 1 Samuel 17:38-40 says, "Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. 'I cannot go in these,' he said to Saul, 'because I am not used to them.' So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine....

As the song goes "On a hill far away, stood an old rugged cross...", but then there was the Second Day. Those that followed Jesus were in despair because they had not grasped His words about His suffering, death and resurrection. Those that hailed Jesus as their King during His triumphal entry into Jerusalem were now disappointed in His non-militaristic approach.  Jesus had performed many miracles in their midst, even brought people back from the dead, but now The Physician has to heal Himself; the dead has to take back His life. There would be only one way that is possible - Jesus is The Christ, The Son of the Living God. The followers of Christ new this time was coming. Jesus told them many times about His future suffering, impending death and victorious resurrection three days later. But even recognizing a major crisis and starting the initial steps to deal with it can be trumped by the agony of The Second Day. Sometimes, our Second Day is mercifully short in l...

In Luke 24:39 , Jesus appears to the disciples after He had risen from the dead and says, "Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself!" Why would He draw attention specifically to His hands and feet if that were of no importance to belief in how He had just died days before. Also, in John 20:24-28 Jesus deals with Thomas' unbelief. In verse 26 it says, "But he [Thomas] said to them, 'Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.'" A verse later, "Then he [Jesus] said to Thomas 'Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.' " So, Jesus was crucified with nails probably the size and shape of a railroad spike. In addition, these nails had to be strategically placed to produce the most suffering (according to Roman aggression) and fulfill prophecy - no bone broken . Jos...