When I first got an iPad about 18 months ago (I wasn’t an early adopter), it felt like an oversized iPhone.  I wasn’t entirely sure what I would do with it, but I love techy things so I was excited to try it out.  One thing I was certain I wouldn’t do with it was use it as an e-reader.  I spend a lot of time each day staring at a computer screen in my day job, and I couldn’t imagine reading books that way.  Give me an old fashioned book with a highlighter, and I was happy.

As it turned out, I couldn’t have been more naïve.   Reading is in fact one the primary uses for my iPad these days.  I review pdfs on it.  I read my blog feeds on it.  I love the Kindle app and have several books store there that I use in preparation for children’s ministry lesson.  And, perhaps more than anything else, I love the ability to read my Bible on the iPad.  I use Olive Tree’s app.  To this day it, along with the ESV Study Bible, is still the most expensive app I’ve purchased, and it was worth every penny and more.  The ability to search the Bible, highlight as you read, tag things, keep bookmarks and so much more has made the iPad an invaluable tool both for Bible reading and study.  Commentaries are available for the text you are reading at the touch of a button.  Charts and graphs come alive as you see them side by side with the text.  I am able to keep my personal notes as I read right alongside any sermon notes I might take as I sit in church.  I haven’t counted, but I have upwards of 15-20 different highlighting colors (all customizable) to highlight relevant passages.  So, for example, all the different names of God are highlighted in purple.  Passages about children and families are in blue.  References to the Holy Spirit are in Orange, and so on and so on.  Each time I  read through the Bible, I add more an more highlights as God leads me to knew topics to study whether than be the love of God, fear of God, holiness or whatever else.  And, all of your highlights transfer between translations of the Bible.  My “go to” translation is the ESV, but I also have an NASB and HCSB in my Olive Tree library.

Olive Tree has an extensive library of Bibles and aids that are available for purchase (some are free), and it can be used to read other books as well. I am currently re-reading Spurgeon’s “Come ‘Ye Children” in Olive tree, and I’ve purchase his complete sermon library.  The sermons relevant to the passages you are reading can be shown in the commentary section using the Resource Guide feature.  Frankly, there are a ton of additional resources I would like to purchase for Olive Tree, and it is only my budget that keeps me from doing it!

The iPad in general, and Olive Tree in particular, have revolutionized how I read and study my Bible.  If you have an iPad, I would suggest you give it a shot as well.

NOTE: I have not been paid or compensated in any way for this endorsement.  I am merely sharing my exciting for this product.  That said, if someone at Olive Tree would like to send me a bunch of free stuff for their app, I would not say no!

If you want it done right, DO IT YOURSELF!

This is a bit of a mantra for me, and frankly, something that I struggle with daily both in leadership and in my Christian walk.  If theory, this is easy to accept.  As a Christian, we have to empty ourselves to be filled with the holy spirit.  We have to turn our hopes and desires and aspirations over to God to follow after His will.  We need to rely on Him in the big stuff and in the small stuff.  I get it!  I really do…except…that it isn’t easy.  Instead, I fall all to frequently to the lies I tell myself.  I’ve gotten myself into this mess…I need to get myself out.  If I work hard enough, I can do anything.  I don’t want to “burden” God so I’ll just take care of this myself.  That is my daily walk and my daily stuggle.  God has been gracious enough to show it to me, and if I’m being honest, my biggest struggle is still in not trying to fix that problem myself.

But, that’s not what I want to talk about.  I want to chat for a second about children’s ministry.  Are you a do it yourself kind of person?  Does that show in your ministry?  Do you have kids involved in all phases of your weekend service.

• Are they involved in large group?
• Do you let them lead worship?
• Do you trust them to keep a small group moving along, or is it all leader driven?
• Are they, wait for it, in the tech booth where all that expensive equipment hangs out?
• Do they lead games?
• Do older kids disciple younger kids or are they all shuffled off to their age specific groups never to mix again?

I was listening to our “big church” service on podcast on the way in this morning.  It was put on entirely by the young adult ministry in our church, and they did an awesome job.  It got me thinking though.  It seem to me that the high school ministry takes over the main stage from time to time.  I wonder if our kids could that.  They would need adult input to be sure…as they do in all things.  But, the question really is, have we enable them and discipled them in such a way that they could do it?  Or, are we too busy trying to make everything “perfect” by doing it ourselves.  Instead of doing it all ourselves, let’s quit underestimating the kids in our ministries.  Whenever I talk about volunteers and children’s ministry, someone mentions that we have to give the volunteers ownership of the ministry so they will buy in completely.  Don’t we owe the same to our kids?

What is lacking in the Christian Parenting genre is a book that not only addresses the why of parenting based on Christian principles but the how.  Missing that is….until now.  With the launch today of Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller’s new book The Christian Parenting Handbook, a void is filled in helping parents to understand HOW to apply biblical principals to raising their kids.

This book is exactly what the title implies.  It is a handbook for parents on how to raise their kids in a way that addresses the heart issues your child faces throughout their young and adolescent years.  From the very first chapter which may catch you off guard – “Consistency Is Overrated” to the 50th chapter (“The Value of Grandparents”), this book will help you move from a behavioral control model of parenting to a model that addresses the core issues of the heart.

For more information, check out the following video:

If you buy the book during the first week of it’s launch (from April 29 – May 5), you will also receive an additional $400 in free resources.  That package includes:

• The Christian Parenting Handbook electronic versions for iPad, Kindle, Nook or any mobile device ($29.97)
• Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes, in You and Your Kids Lesson #1 Complete Package including Lesson 1 on Video, MP3, Study Guide, and Children’s Lesson. ($59.95)
• Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes, in You and Your Kids Lesson #2 Complete Package including Lesson 2 on Video, MP3, Study Guide, and Children’s Lesson. ($59.95)
• Teach Kids to Listen and Follow Instructionson Video, Workbook, MP3, Study Guide, and Children’s Lesson. ($59.95)
• Correction Ideas that Touch the Heart on Video, Workbook, MP3, Study Guide, and Children’s Lesson. ($59.95)
• Addressing Bad Attitudes in Kids on Video, Workbook, MP3, Study Guide, and Children’s Lesson. ($59.95)
• Everyday Parents CAN Raise Extraordinary Kids Session #1 on Video, MP3, Study Guide, and Children’s Lesson. ($59.95)
• How to Use The Christian Parenting Handbook 30-minute Video ($24.95)

Click on the book cover in this article, or this link, to order the book today.

Note: I was provided with a free copy of this book and other resources for purposes of this review.  That did not in any way affect the contents of that review.

I mentioned the time a few years back when I was reading 10-20 chapters a day.  That was followed by a period of a couple year where I had no real reading plan.  I still read the Bible.  I read it to prepare for lessons, and I would decide to read a book here or there or a couple of chapters from a book if I had come across something interesting, but I wasn’t reading it consistently.  A couple of years ago, I decided that needed to change.  I picked a chronological reading plan (one way I’ve still not read through the Bible) and set out on January 1 to read through the entire Bible in chronological order in one year.  That lasted until about January 20th.  I missed a week, and sure enough I was back to my old “on and off” style of reading.

Fast forward to December 2011.  I decided on December 11th (I remember because it was exactly two weeks before Christmas) that I was going to read the four gospels in the weeks leading up to Christmas.  As always happens when I get back into my Bible, I quickly remembered how much I love reading it.  How is it, I wondered, that I can so easily ignore something that I love so much (there is a deeper spiritual question there, but it’s beyond the scope of this post).  I was inspired and challenged.  By Christmas, I had read the four gospel accounts and decided there was no reason to stop there.  I was going to get back into a regular reading pattern and read through the entire Bible in 2012 for the first time in a few years.

I finished off the New Testament, Psalms and several other Old Testament book in the first four or five months of the year.  I was on a roll again thoroughly enjoying God’s Word and all that it had to teach me until about May.  Things got busy.  A week passed.  I hadn’t read.  It was ok though, I was going to make up that time.  Then another week passed, and another – you know where this story is going, right?

Which brings us to this year.  New Year, new plan!  This year I was going to start with the more “difficult” books of the Bible.  You know the ones I am talking about.  They’re not page turners.  So, I started with the book of Numbers, and a brand new resolve.  I was going to be intentional this year.  I wasn’t going to “read ahead” to build in cushion to make sure I would get done.  I was going to savor God’s Word.  That worked really well, until about March.  Slowly the same pattern began to emerge.  I missed a couple of days one week and rushed to “catch up.”  Then it was a whole week missed and rushing to catch up once again.  Then, before I even knew it, it had been a month.

I sat down earlier this week and started reading it again.  And, once again it is only after I get started that I realize how important that process really is to my life.  What a grace God has given to us in His Word.  What a treasure it is, and what a travesty to allow it to collect dust.  I don’t write this as a judgment against you or against myself (that is something I have been guilty of).  God’s Word is not like sauerkraut (or insert name of your least favorite food here) that He is forcing us to eat whether we want it or not.  Instead, God’s Word is like the choicest fruit the He provides for our nourishment and sustenance.  Together, let us make sure that we do not allow the hustle and bustle of today detract our attention from the eternal things of God.

This new group starts at the end of April and will run for 16 weeks and cover a variety of topics faced by teens when their parents separate or divorce.  Registration is open through next Tuesday (April 30th).

To find out more information about these groups, click on one of the following links:

• General Information

• Pilot Program Schedule

• Register for the Group

We encourage you to share this information with any teens you might know who can benefit from this program!  We’ve also created something for you print out and post on your bulletin board at church.

As I scanned through Dad in the Middle this morning, I realized that new visitors would be more likely to think this is a site about Biblical Prophecy than family life and children’s ministry – the result of a series I wrote years ago whose final installment (#116) will be published next Monday.  That article will represent the 915th article published on this site.  And, I realized something about myself.  I miss this site.  I miss sharing what I am learning about God, about being a Dad about teaching kids about God.  I miss the community and interaction that grew out of it.  But, things have changed too.  I don’t have the time I had when I first started Dad in the Middle in Summer of 2008.  In fact, the pace I had myself on eventually led to burn out and an intentionally scaled back scheduled when it comes to blogging and online activity.  So, I can’t go back there.  That wasn’t a healthy place.  So, wherein do I find the balance.

Here’s the plan!  Dad in the Middle will be back, and it will be back as I had originally intended it.  I will talk about the things that are most important to me.  Some of those may be of interest to other people – some will not, and that’s ok.  I will not, by the grace of God, allow it to become a chore again where I strive to meet some sort of posting schedule or perceived need.  That is a recipe for disaster.  And, I will not let it interfere with what I believe to be the ministry given to me by God – to minister to children of divorce and their families.  Instead, I intend to take Dad in the Middle back to it’s roots – a place for me to write about the things that are most important to me – God, my family and ministry.  That might mean one post a week, or it might mean one post per month.  I leave all of that up to God.

I hope you’ll come along for the ride though.  I’ve missed you!

Introduction

The Old Testament also tells us that the coming Messiah would proclaim Himself the fulfillment of prophecy.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

If the Messiah had simply come and died, that would have been insufficient. It was His resurrection that conquered sin and death for us, and the Old Testament predicted His resurrection as well.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

Last week we looked at how Christ would conquer sin and death. This week we look at the prophecies that state that the Messiah would also defeat Satan.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

In His death, and resurrection, the Messiah would once for all conquer sin and death.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

After receiving the book, I realized that it was geared more towards traditional adult Sunday School environments, but I was still hopeful that some of the information would be transferable to a children’s ministry setting.  With that background, the following is my review.

The Book

Sunday School Teachers A-Z by Keith Hammond

What Is It?

I like the premise and purpose of this book. The goal is to equip those who minister to others to do that better. The purpose is to educate the reader on being a better Sunday School teacher.  Against that backdrop though, the book is clear that we are all still learning even as we seek to teach others.  In the preface to the book, the author writes:

“If God waited on people to become perfect
before He anointed them
to preach, teach, lead or minister,
there would never be anyone worthy,
and the work would never get done.
God uses willing vessels, with weaknesses,
so His strength, power, and anointing,
can shine through,
and He can get the glory!”

The introduction to the book provides a concise summary of the goals and purposes of the book:

This book provides dynamic step-by-step training for Sunday school teachers. Outlines goals, duties, attendance, class policies and procedures, lesson plan tips, info for regular and substitute teachers, class structure, required skills, teacher training, basics of student recruitment, and has 40 simple guidelines to follow such as ‘don’t assume your students can read’. Every teacher should have these fundamentals of teaching contained in Sunday School Teachers A to Z.

What I Liked?

The book is laid out nicely as it works through the ABCs of what Sunday School teachers need to know.

The author clearly rebuke the notion that you should do things the way they have always been done.  He writes:

The stronghold that tradition has over the lives of both teachers and students at some churches, in my opinion, should be broken.

Whether it is teaching the same wrong information because that’s the way it’s always been taught or continuing to use the same methods over and over and over and over, I agree wholeheartedly with the author on this.

The book always provides many useful exhortations to the teachers which should seem like common sense, but unfortunately are not always.  These include:

• It is vitally important that you study lessons “before you teach them.”
• Make it a habit to get the students to laugh at least once per lesson.
• Demonstrate, rather than explaining whenever possible.
• Oversimplified and affected speech will hurt your students in the long run.
• Laugh at yourself sometimes.
• One of the most important things to remember is that, It’s not about you.

The author does draw attention in one part of the book to the changes in kids’ families.  He reminds Sunday School teachers that:

If you’re dealing with youth as your students, regardless of age, let me remind you that things have most likely changed since you grew up. Two parent homes are no longer common. Living in a shelter during the week and coming to your Sunday school class is likely. So I want to remind you that every one of your students is going through something before they come to your class. So give them the opportunity to speak, then you take time to listen. It is within this framework that you will help them grow and learn how to cope.

Given my work with Divorce Ministry 4 Kids and I Am A Child of Divorce, I am acutely aware of the issues kids face at home.  Unfortunately, many people are not, and I truly appreciate the author’s effort to make Sunday School teachers aware of this important issue.

What I Didn’t Like?

The book, I believe, presents an overly simplistic formulaic approach to coming up with lessons.  Take for example this quote from page 10,

Even if you’ve never written a lesson plan, developed curriculum, or even created a Bible study from your own research, the process, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, is rather simple. Select a lesson from the Bible, study the lesson, study it again, and ask the Holy Spirit to give you a list of 7-10 questions that can help you teach your students. Then, locate an appropriate graphic, to complete and present.

If what the author is trying to get at is that we should be led by the Holy Spirit in trying to teach God’s Word, I agree, but I believe statements like to one above don’t reflect the weight of the burden of accurately teaching God’s Word.

Whether intentional or not, there are also some theological issues I have with the book.  For example, in talking about what is required to be effective teachers, the author writes:

The most important thing is that you must love GOD.
The next is that you must follow JESUS CHRIST.
The last is that you must be gifted by the HOLY SPIRIT.

While I agree that all three of things are important, I think it is a fallacy, based on scripture to try to prioritize them as all three are intertwined and can’t be separated out.  For example, following Jesus and loving God go hand-in-hand not one then the other.

The book is also, I believe, unnecessarily narrow in it’s focus based on certain theological interpretation where well-meaning Christians disagree.  Consider the following:

From time to time, listen and ask the students during your periodic student performance evaluation, if the teacher ever speaks in tongues. If they don’t in class, they most certainly should in worship.

While I differ in my interpretation of the issue of the gift of tongues, I do not view it as a “closed fist” issue, and the author seems to portray it as such.  This quote is included in in a section on whether or not the teacher is Holy Spirit led and given equal importance as confessing Jesus Christ as Lord.

Parts of the book seem out of touch with current culture.  For example, in his advice on where to recruit students, the author writes:

SPRING SUMMER WINTER FALL
Boys love sports, girls hang at the mall.
Boys are into video arcades, girls get their hair and nails made.
Boys head to the playground, girls go there to hang around.
If you get the boys the girls will follow.
Go on a Saturday because Sunday is tomorrow.
Don’t give them much time to ponder or think.
Their attention span isn’t much more than a blink.
Offer food and you may get them to stay.
If you get the popular kids, others won’t stay away.

I could go on and on with this poem, but I’ll let you add your own lines based on the culture and population near you.

Unfortunately, I believe the poem itself reveals a certain amount of cultural unawareness, and may even be offensive to some in its generalizations.

There are other indications that the book has not been updated despite the 2012 copyright.  In talking about visual aids, the author explains:

Listening to audio cassettes in the classroom can be helpful, but videos are much more motivating. (emphasis added)

The book is also riddled with typographical and grammatical errors that made it hard to read at times.  While I tend to notice these while reading, I don’t generally comment on them.  In this case though, they were so prevalent that they detracted from the message of the book.

My Recommendation

This book is any easy read and does include some useful information.  However, it is written in such a way that the audience is very limited and includes some things that I found particularly troubling.  While I appreciate the author’s efforts to educate those tasked with the spiritual nurture of others, I wouldn’t generally recommend this book.

An electronic copy of this book was provided to me for purposes of this review.  That did not in any way influence the contents of this review.

Introduction

Following His death and resurrection, the prophecies of the Old Testament make it clear that the Messiah would ascend to Heaven.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

The purpose of the Messiah’s coming, and eventual death, was to be the salvation of all who would believe in Him.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

You can purchase the album on iTunes at https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/jesus-music-box/id602350089.  I would suggest the deluxe edition from iTunes which includes 3 videos as well.  You can find that at https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/jesus-music-box-deluxe-edition/id605496395.  To find out more about the album, check out http://yancynotnancy.com/store/cds/new-jesus-music-box.  Enter the shipping code “YancyLovesMe” for free shipping.

All of the songs are scripturally based, and I love how Yancy masterfully weaves bits and pieces of scripture throughout these songs. These songs are captivating. I had planned on sampling the songs in order to write this review and found that I couldn’t force myself to turn them off in order to go to the next song! I was ready to review another of Yancy’s kids’ worship cds which are, without fail, top of the line. This is another worship cd for kids, but it is also one of the best all around albums I have listen to in a long time, and after one listening has become a fixture on my iPod’s worship playlist.

As an aside, in this day and age where music is all digital, covers and what used to be called CD inserts have become less and less prevalent. That said, I wanted to note how well done I thought the cover (shown here) and the Digital Book for this release were.

Here is the video for “I Am Not Ashamed”

As with past releases, I wanted to give you a feel for each of the songs on the new album.

I Am Not Ashamed

This is an upbeat anthem about not being ashamed about our relationship with Jesus and living out the life Jesus has called us to. “I am not ashamed to say the name of Jesus!!!”

Better Than the Best Thing

This catchy little song reminds us that there is nothing like the love and grace of Jesus Christ which warrants our praise and adoration. “Jesus, you’re better than the best thing.”

All Things

I dare you to try to listen to this song and keep your hands and feet still. This song will get you moving and remind you that God is bigger than all things and meets our every need. “He freely gives to you and me. He gives us all things.”

You Are Everything

This song slows things a down a little bit. In the form of a prayer, this song asks God to remind us that we don’t have to do things all by ourselves. “You are everything I need. You are what matters most to me. You are my maker. You are my savior. I’m your creation set free.”

Evidence of You

Part rock / part pop, this song is an important reminder that our desire should be to demonstrate the love of Christ to our lost world. If this song doesn’t motivate you to go out and do that, I don’t know what will! “I want my life to be the evidence of you. I want the way I live to be somebody’s proof…When I open my mouth, I want your love to come out.”

Our God

I love the original song written by Jesse Reeves, Chris Tomlin, Matt Redman and Jonas Myrin and performed by Chris Tomlin, and when it comes to a song like this I don’t tend to like remakes and covers. That said, Yancy delivers with this cover by retaining enough to be true to the original and adding her own twist to make it uniquely Yancy! “Our God is greater. Our God is stronger.”

Always With Us

Is that a synthesizer? Maybe not, but this 80’s kids loves it anyway! And, the message of the song that God is there for us no matter what is going on in our lives is one that all of us need to hear. Make sure to stay tuned for the special rap from Canon. “We won’t be afraid no matter what comes our way. If God is for us what can stop us?”

When We Pray

This song reminds us that God knows our name and hears us no matter what we pray about and encourages listeners to pray with boldness. “Don’t put faith in the wrong stuff. Faith in God brings peace and trust. He always hears us when we pray.”

Be Careful

This one is for the kids and is a redoing of one of my kids favorite songs – “Be careful little eyes.” Once again, Yancy take a standard and makes it better. “Be careful little ears what you hear. What goes in is what comes out. Be careful little ears what you hear.”

As Long As I Live

This mid-tempo song trumpets the importance of praising God in response to all that He has done for as. Yancy reminds us that we should praise God as long as we live. “You are always with us. You care about us. You give us everything we need.”

Forever, Today & Always

Another slower song greets the listener as the album winds down to remind us that Jesus will always be there and that He keeps his promises. “O’ Jesus you are faithful. You never change. You are the same. Your word will never fail. Through smiles and tears, you’re faithful still – forever, today and always.”

Our God Reigns

The album ends with what might be my favorite song on the whole album. A slower song that starts with what sound like a music box, this song reminds us that God is always in control and is faithful. “Our God reigns victorious. And, He is faithful through the ages. Our God reigns victorious. So lift Him high. Sing His praises.”

THE CONTEST

The theme of this album seems to be recognizing how great God is and has been to us and then serving others. My newest efforts to help others come in the form of a brand new website for Children of Divorce and those who care about them called I Am A Child of Divorce.  You will see that several of the options in this giveaway relate to that new site, and I hope you will help us to get the word out about it (and hopefully win something in the process).  This contest will remain open through next Friday, March 15, 2013.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of the album for purposes of doing this review. Free or not, this is still one of my favorite albums. So there!

Introduction

In terms of timing, certain passages of the Old Testament give clues as the timing of the coming Messiah. In today’s passage, we learn the Messiah would die before the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

There are prophecies in the Old Testament which address how the Messiah’s body would be treated following his death. In this week’s prophecy, we learn that the Messiah was to be buried in a rich man’s tomb.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

In His death, predicted hundreds of years earlier, the Messiah would take on the sins of man.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

Introduction

The Old Testament was very specific in certain prophecies. For example, it is clear that the palms of the hands of the Messiah would be bear witness to His sacrifice.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

I have a pet peeve.  I have several, but one is relevant to this article.  It bothers me when we start to sling around lingo in lieu of of actually doing what the lingo would suggest.  I think this habit is pandemic in the church.  Allow me to give you a couple of examples of phrases that now make me cringe. First, let’s talk about “vision casting.”  Is the idea of vision casting bad?  Of course not.  It simply means setting a vision for your church or ministry and helping other people to buy into and get excited about that vision.  That’s a great thing and something we should strive for, but the term “vision casting” is now thrown around more often than a ball in the game of hot potato.  In the process, the phrase itself has become a substitute for actually doing anything.  In other words, we spend more time talking about the phrase vision casting than actually casting vision.  It has become a Christian cliché.

What about “seeker sensitive.”  That’s an oldie but a goody.  It started as an idea that churches should be a welcoming place for non-Christians (a biblical idea to be sure).  Over time though, and with overuse of the phrase, it took on a life of its own and morphed into a phrase for a kind of shallow and palatable Christianity.  In its overuse, it had become useless.

Which brings me to the “gospel centered” movement.  There is no doubt in my mind that the cross of Christ should be central to our lives.  It is the focal point of the Bible and of human history.  I was grateful to see a movement, particularly in children’s ministry, back towards Christ in all that we teach and do.  I think it’s great the curriculum now exists which focuses on the gospel.  I spent my fair share of time rewriting curriculum to focus more on Christ in the past.  So, again, the idea is solid and biblically sound.  However, it scares me that the pendulum may be swinging too far in the opposite direction.  Instead of the original focus on Christ, are we now focused so much on being “gospel centered” that it has become our man-made attempt to do something that can only be done by the power of Christ?  I think we are now faced with frightening possibility that “gospel centered” may have become the newest Christian cliché.  For example, I wonder if when a church or ministry really is gospel centered whether it needs to continually point out that it is “gospel centered” to its members.  Is it appropriate to advertise a curriculum or conference as “gospel centered” or should that just be evident by the contents thereof?  God help us if we are taking something as fundamental to our faith as the gospel and somehow cheapening it in our effort to promote our churches and programs.  

Introduction

The Messiah’s sacrificial death was no accident and it was not completed in contravention of God’s will. To the contrary, God the Father willed that the Son would bear the sin of man.

Old Testament Prophecy

New Testament Fulfillment

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed