Hebrews 10:26 has struck fear in many a heart over the years. Some say it proves Jesus’s sacrifice only covers sins committed before we convert. After that, salvation depends on us not sinning. Ironically, this leads us back into a system where our consciences can never be clean because sin remains uncovered. Such thinking is…
Tag: sacrifice
What Is This Thing Called Love?
The following is a column I had published in the religion section of our local paper. It ran about 7 years ago but has been on my heart, so I thought I’d share it. *** Love…. What is it? I’m told it’s in the air. The Beatles say it’s all you need. Some say, “Make…
An End in Itself
Jacob’s death revives fears among his sons that Joseph will retaliate because of their cruelty towards him (Gen. 50:15). Although Joseph already reassured them he held no grudge, they don’t yet trust this. Once again, they appeal to Joseph for mercy (Gen. 50:16-18). Joseph replies, “Am I in the place of God? You planned evil…
Another Scary Verse from Hebrews
I was reading through old posts yesterday and decided to repost this. *** “For if we deliberately sin after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire about to consume the adversaries” (Heb. 10:26-27). This is one of…
Patrick the Slave
From his brief autobiography we learn that…the Irish, then called Scots, began swooping down on the English coast, sailing up the rivers, raiding the settlements, and carrying off plunder and slaves. Among the captives was Patrick. So Ireland’s patron saint was not Irish! He had been reared a Christian. His father was a deacon, but…
Bereavement’s Provision
In Genesis 22, God asks Abraham to sacrifice Isaac: “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about” (Gen. 22:2). There is tenderness in the way the phrasing builds from…
Two Cities, One Gospel: Christ and Revolution
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times….” This unforgettable phrase opens Dickens’s novel A Tale of Two Cities. Set in England and Paris, A Tale of Two Cities takes place just as the French Revolution gets going. On one side are the French commoners. They are enraged by the economic…
Despising the Lamb
Painting by Johnny Mays The following is excerpted from my booklet, “Despising the Lamb: Contempt for Christ in First Samuel“ Hophni and Phineas: Priests of Pleasure When Hannah gave her only son to the Lord, Hophni and Phineas were priests (1 Sam. 1:3). Scripture says Hophni and Phineas were wicked men (1 Sam. 2:12). They…
This Cross
This cross, this cross I know so well, each wood-grain scar, each bloody dell; each splinter broken from this tree, which once in him, is now in me; each splinter growing like a knife that plunges deep with worship’s life; a sacrifice my life to be, for Him, for Him who died for me.
Hymne to God the Father
Sketch by Patrick Murphy Before time your counsels chose that you would lose eternal ties with your one and only Son. – Not sparing Him you let the whips …
The Voice of One 