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Flashback: A Behavioral Contract (Acts 27-28)

June 1, 2014 By Seth 2 Comments

Have you ever considered how it is that the message of Jesus is alive today?  I’ve said before on this blog that my faith is in an event that I believe took place nearly 2000 years ago: the resurrection of Christ.  It’s the basis of Christianity.  If the event didn’t take place, then everything that Christians believe is worthless.  Over the years, we have moved away from ... [Continue Reading]

June 1, 2014 8:34 pm Seth 2 Comments

Flashback: A Hard Road (Acts 20:4-26:32)

May 31, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

The Church is often guilty of telling people to “come to Jesus” so that their lives will be easier.  Historically, however, the lives of followers of Christ have been anything but easy.  In the rather lengthy narrative of Paul’s life that makes up the reading for today, there is a strong realization that, if Paul wanted an easy life, he should have stuck with being a ... [Continue Reading]

May 31, 2014 8:29 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Flashback: Changing Teams (2 Corinthians 5-9)

May 24, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

When a person gives his or her life to Christ, he becomes a new creation.  The thing that he once was, he is no longer - the desires she once had are gone.  I'll never forget when my favorite childhood baseball player, Orel Hershiser, switched from the Dodgers to the Indians.  It was a great day for me because I lived in Ohio, and now I had a reason to support the team ... [Continue Reading]

May 24, 2014 9:52 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Flashback: The Importance of Being Diligent (Matthew 23; Luke 20-21)

April 12, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

It’s hard not to crack a smile when the news reports about some guy who’s predicting that Jesus is going to return on a specific date.  The Bible has made it pretty clear that no one knows the day or time, so it’s comical to me when a person advertises that he knows Jesus will return.  The ironic thing is that, if Jesus was going to return then, now He can’t because then ... [Continue Reading]

April 12, 2014 9:42 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Flashback: Loopholes with God (Matthew 15; Mark 7)

March 26, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

As little children we learn to manipulate.  One of the amusing examples that I’ve seen is when my niece or nephew asks my brother for something and doesn’t get the desired result, he or she then goes to their mom to see if the outcome might be more in their favor.  I’m not sure anyone taught them how to be manipulative, but as fallen human beings, these things seem to crop ... [Continue Reading]

March 26, 2014 11:11 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Guilt

March 7, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

Once again, today is a day of silence - there is no devotional reading.  The silence symbolizes God's silence to Israel between the time of Malachi and John the Baptist.  Israel stood before God as a guilty people - that nation's sins were great.  However, the status of guilt was about to change.  Through Christ, we are not guilty anymore. The following are lyrics for a ... [Continue Reading]

March 7, 2014 10:44 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Silence

March 6, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

There is no devotional reading for today.  The time between Malachi (the final prophet of the Old Testament) and John the Baptist was about 400 years.  In that period of silence, the nation of Israel wondered where God was and what He was doing.  It's interesting that the greatest period of silence was also the period wherein God was preparing to do His greatest ... [Continue Reading]

March 6, 2014 7:17 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Flashback: Game Over (Jeremiah 51; Psalm 74)

January 29, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

Originally posted on January 29, 2012 Babylon was the most powerful nation of its day, and it was used by God to bring discipline upon the Israelites.  However, God had not abandoned his people, and Babylon was going to be snuffed out.  This final prophecy from Jeremiah is a reminder that God doesn't abandon those He loves even though it may feel at times that His ... [Continue Reading]

January 29, 2014 10:13 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Flashback: Expired Hope (Nahum)

January 18, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

The book of Nahum is really about hope for the people of Nineveh and how they have run out of time to repent and return to God.  Jonah was sent with a message for them a century and a half before Nahum's words were written, but Nineveh did not heed the warning and was now staring down the face of certain judgment.  It's at this point that you might think, "But God is a god ... [Continue Reading]

January 18, 2014 9:27 pm Seth Leave a Comment

Flashback: One Day (Isaiah 26-27)

January 1, 2014 By Seth Leave a Comment

These two chapters from Isaiah are prophesies about the future for His people.  Though they suffered punishment and captivity by other nations, God is promising that He will restore the nation.  Isaiah had in mind a glorious day when God will ransom His people from the gentile nations again (as He did when they were held captive by the Egyptians) and bring them to a place ... [Continue Reading]

January 1, 2014 7:10 pm Seth Leave a Comment

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Seth is a pastor, author, and speaker who lives in Batesville, Indiana. He is married to Kari, and they have a daughter, Madelyn.

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