• Bible Studies

    Romans 6:1-7

    “The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” The response of some to that seems odd, doesn’t it? “Well, if grace is God’s response to sin then sin must have the power to inspire grace. More sin ­ more grace. There must be something actually good about sin if it means God extends more than enough grace to cover sin. Something good comes out of it after all.” We talked about the thief who argued…

  • Bible Studies

    Romans 5:10-21

    Last time we looked at what it means to have peace with God. It is not the same as the peace of God. Without the first we cannot have the second. Peace with God comes on God’s initiative. There is nothing we can do to earn it or discover it. We cannot find our way to God. He reveals Himself to us in Christ and it is only through Christ that we have peace with God. Everything else is our imagination or our longing for that peace. That is where we left Paul in Chapter 5: “For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the…

  • Fred's Blog

    Playing the Piano in a Whorehouse

    It was Harry Truman who said, “My choice early in life was either to be a piano player in a whorehouse or a politician. And to tell the truth, there’s hardly any difference.” Mark Twain wrote, “Reader, suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.” H.L. Mencken was ruthless in his criticism of the political class, “If a politician found he had cannibals among his constituents, he would promise them missionaries for dinner.” Will Rogers, while kinder overall, still found politicians easy targets during the Depression, “The United States Senate opens with a prayer and closes with an investigation.” So, it…

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  • Bible Studies

    Romans 5: Peace With God

    Sometimes we have to go back to the original documents to discover the roots of who we are and what we believe. It’s surprising now and then to find out how far we have strayed from the original definition and intentions. I went through a period when I could not read enough history about the founders of our country and realized how little I knew about the original ideas behind America and what it means to be called an American. In the same way, we need to go back periodically to the founders and original documents of our identity as Christians to discover what was in their minds as they…

  • Fred's Blog

    Darwin’s Paradox

    In “Where Good Ideas Come From” Steven Johnson uses the illustration of a coral reef as an example of a structure that is both fragile and still able to withstand the incessant pounding of waves and storms. He quotes Charles Darwin’s first experience with reefs and his amazement they were able to withstand the violent surges of water, “The ocean throwing its waters over the broad reef appears an invincible, all-powerful enemy; yet we see it resisted, and even conquered, by means which at first seem most weak and inefficient…Yet, these low insignificant coral-islets stand and are victorious: for here another power, as an antagonist, takes part in the contest.…

  • Bible Studies

    Romans 4 and Caitlyn Mortus

    Several weeks ago when I first asked Caitlyn Mortus if she could be with us I did not know we were going to be in the book of Romans and I had no idea we would be looking briefly at this particular passage this morning. I’ll not say any more about that but as soon as she begins to tell her story you will realize as I did that you just cannot plan things like this. Over the last several weeks we have looked at Paul’s developing case for both Gentiles and Jews being equal in God’s sight. They have different roles and responsibilities but are all included in our…