gloryunveiled

The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like…Pt. 2: The Sower of Good Seed

The kingdom of heaven is so vast, the Bible so colossally labyrinthine, and Christians so all over the map as to what this kingdom is all about that we desperately need light to cut through the fog. Jesus’ parables break forth as a breath of fresh air of simplicity in this stuffy room of complexityContinue reading “The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like…Pt. 2: The Sower of Good Seed”

The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like…Pt 1: Have You Understood All These?

If you were asked to describe the kingdom of God, how would you do it? Oh, and you only get six analogies to compare it with. Here’s the kicker: your description of the kingdom of God has to encompass everything the Bible has revealed about it—all the Old Testament, the Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and allContinue reading “The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like…Pt 1: Have You Understood All These?”

All He Asks of Me is to Shine

God has been shaking up the way I see Him in His world! What’s at the epicenter of this spiritual earthquake? Jesus’ parables. On Labor Day weekend I ventured west from Virginia in my ’09 RAV4 for a long anticipated journey to visit family and familiar landmarks from my childhood to college years in Indiana,Continue reading “All He Asks of Me is to Shine”

Looking Unto Jesus: From Abel to Today

What faith did saints in the Old Testament have? We believe in Jesus. What did they believe? The Lord has been showing me how their faith wasn’t all that much different than yours and mine today. Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside everyContinue reading “Looking Unto Jesus: From Abel to Today”

More Precious Than Gold Pt. 2: Perception Matters

Remember how Paul fell off his horse on the Damascus road when he encountered Jesus? Only one thing. Neither Acts nor Paul said anything about a horse. Yet this pervasive perception is imprinted in our imagination of this scene. If we see through rose-colored glasses, the world looks rosy, right? Looking at the glass halfContinue reading “More Precious Than Gold Pt. 2: Perception Matters”

More Precious Than Gold Pt. 1: Teaser Intro to Peter’s Epistles

I’ll never forget my first whitewater rafting trip. Standing at attention in my blue life-jacket and yellow “brain bucket,” our young adult river guide warned of everything that could go wrong. Most ominous was the “High side right!”—an emergency scramble onto the raft’s right side (outside the raft) to avoid rapids swallowing us up. AsContinue reading “More Precious Than Gold Pt. 1: Teaser Intro to Peter’s Epistles”

Buy From Me Eye Salve

Over thirty years I’ve heard many definitions of what a “hot” Christian is. Back when I was in a legalistic church, a deacon confronted a young adult couple over their delinquency in church activities, asking them to rate their pursuit of Jesus on a scale of one to ten. He rigged it so that anyContinue reading “Buy From Me Eye Salve”

A Royal Priesthood: Attached to the Lord

Peter calls us a holy and royal priesthood (1Pe 2:5, 9). But what does this mean? Does a ceremonial animal slayer of the Old Testament or a collared Roman Catholic priest enter your mind? Me too. Last summer, though, the Lord unshackled my mind to see a priest expressing an intimate relationship with Him. OriginsContinue reading “A Royal Priesthood: Attached to the Lord”

Out of the Strong Came Something Sweet: Samson’s Lion

I marvel at how the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to a universe of Christ’s glory in an otherwise overfamiliar Sunday school Samson story! Father, enlarge our capacity to drink in Your living waters to quench our thirst in Christ. Then [Samson] came up and told his father and mother, “I saw one of theContinue reading “Out of the Strong Came Something Sweet: Samson’s Lion”

What Am I to Do with My Child? Pt. 2: Manoah

The statistics concern me. An epidemic of youth raised in Christian homes leave the faith. I see my teenagers growing up, breathing in a culture awash in idols and distractions. Computer screens and iPhones beckon. My children still aren’t saved even after years of teaching and example. Through unsung Manoah, Samson’s father, though, Jesus shedContinue reading “What Am I to Do with My Child? Pt. 2: Manoah”