“His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Eph 3:10-11 (NIV) Who makes up the church? According to Paul, the church is made up of […]
Author: Stephen Trammell
“Although I am less than the least of all God’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.” Eph 3:8-9 (NIV) Have you […]
“I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power.” Eph 3:7 (NIV) The resounding phrase that reverberates throughout the line at Luby’s is, “Serve you? Serve you?” As you sift through the many options available to you, you continually hear these soothing words from […]
“This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.” Eph 3:6 (NIV) When we hear the word mystery, we usually think of something that doesn’t make sense or add up. We use the word to denote […]
My dad was given a ten year prison sentence for committing five consecutive DWI’s during my childhood. As you can imagine, anytime I hear the word “prisoner”, my heart rate escalates. I remember going to see my dad in prison for the first time and seeing him hand-cuffed and shackled in his prison orange jump suit. When Paul, who is […]
“In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Eph 3:12 (NIV) Being in Christ changes everything. Your position in Christ gives you direct access to God. In the Old Testament Tabernacle, only the High Priest was granted access into the Most Holy Place which contained the Ark of the Covenant. “Have […]
“Make a curtain of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen, with cherubim worked into it by a skilled craftsman. Hang it with gold hooks on four posts of acacia wood overlaid with gold and standing on four silver bases. Hang the curtain from the clasps and place the ark of the Testimony […]
In the Holy Place of the Tabernacle, we have identified the Table of the Bread of the Presence and the Golden Lampstand. The next item is the Altar of Burning Incense. God instructed Moses on the details for the Altar. “Make an altar of acacia wood for burning incense. It is to be square, a cubit long […]
“Make a lampstand of pure gold and hammer it out, base and shaft; its flowerlike cups, buds and blossoms shall be of one piece with it…Then make its seven lamps and set them up on it so that they light the space in front of it. Its wick trimmers and trays are to be of […]
Where do you go for nourishment? How do you refuel your soul after you have depleted your emotional love tank? Is there a place to receive nourishment? As we tour the Old Testament Tabernacle, we find the place for nourishment is the Table of the Bread of the Presence. It speaks of communion, fellowship, and nourishment. “Make a […]
The second step to intimacy with God involves “the basin of water” found in the Old Testament Tabernacle. We are touring the furnishings within the Tabernacle. After acknowledging God’s gift of salvation through the atoning work of Jesus on the cross as symbolized by the altar of burnt offering, we now move to the basin of water. “Then the LORD […]
When you think about relationships, there are different levels of intimacy. Some relationships are emotionally distant and surfaced whereas some relationships have the capacity to be more consistent and feature an element of closeness. Then there are those relationships where the interaction is meaningful, transparent, and magnetic. The Encarta Dictionary defines the word intimacy as […]
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Tabernacle
Three chapters of the Bible are given to the details of God’s creation activity. Yet, fifty chapters of our Bible are focused on the details of the construction and utilization of the Tabernacle in the Old Testament. The Tabernacle was God’s instrument to come to us and for us to come to Him. Remember, the purpose of the […]
We would be stunned to receive a personal invitation for a private meeting with the president of the United States. Our mind would immediately be bombarded with thoughts of excitement, anticipation, and wonder. We would call, email, and text our friends and family members. Word would get out quickly. Then our focus would be on […]
The former complexity of believing and belonging in the Old Covenant has been replaced by the simplicity and sufficiency of the New Covenant that Jesus completed. The paradigm shift involves moving from the ritual of religion to nurturing a vibrant love relationship with God through Jesus Christ. “For he himself is our peace, who has […]
“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” 1 Cor 12:27 (NIV) Did you know that God’s plan for your life begins with two invitations? God invites you to believe in the completed work of Jesus on the cross and God invites you to belong to […]
Why blood? Have you ever wondered if God could have brought salvation to fallen man through another means? Jesus even prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane asking if it were possible for the cup of wrath to be passed. Yet, Jesus submitted to the Father’s will. Why would blood be necessary to produce redemption? God is holy, righteous, and pure. […]
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Brought Near
“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” Eph 2:13 (NIV) I remember one of my childhood family vacations in Florida when my dad decided that we needed to experience the freedom that sailing brings. He had never been on a sailboat before. However, the longer my brother […]
If you have ever traveled internationally, you know how it feels to be on the other side of the world. You know the impact of being twelve time zones away from home. There is a touch of insecurity which echoes the reality of being far away. You can experience being far away in relationships. You […]
“Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called ‘uncircumcised’ by those who call themselves ‘the circumcision’ (that done in the body by the hands of men)– remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope […]
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Moses & the Cloud
God makes His Presence known. For the children of Israel, God revealed His Presence through the glory cloud. “In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out–until the day it lifted. So the […]
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Moses & the Desert
“But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’” “And God said, ‘I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you […]
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Moses & the Palace
“When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, ‘I drew him out of the water.’” Ex 2:10 (NIV) Amram and Jochebed were the parents of the baby that we come to know later as Moses. In response to Pharaoh’s order to throw […]
“Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word […]
“So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.” Gen 32:24-25 (NIV) Have you ever wrestled with God? Who won? Wrestling is […]
“This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” Gen 6:9 (NIV) God’s workmanship included Noah. When we meet him in Scripture, we are drawn to Noah because he is the kind of daddy every child desires. He is in right standing with God and other people. Noah lives in […]
Categories
Workmanship
Salvation is a gift, not a reward. You cannot perform enough good works to earn salvation. You receive the gift of eternal life by the grace of God through faith in the completed work of Jesus on the cross. If salvation is a gift, how do good works add value? “For we are God’s workmanship, created in […]
God asked Job a very enlightening question: “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand.” Job 38:4 (NIV) Sometimes we forget how big God is and how small we are. That is one factor that makes salvation so amazing. God as the Creator of the entire universe has taken the initiative to […]
How much of your salvation depends on God and how much depends on you? If you say that it all depends on God, then what role do you play in the salvific process? If you say that it all depends on you, then what role does God fulfill? The danger is to think that you did […]
Religion is like a vaccination. It will give you just enough to keep you from getting the real thing. Religion is our attempt to reach up to God. God desires relationship. Relationship is demonstrated by God coming down to us. The Creator coming down to His created ones. Though we are fallen, flawed, and fall short, […]