Bible and Theology on Barriers

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It’s hard to see, but sometimes the greatest barriers to our spiritual growth and flourishing are the things we’re already carrying or that we assume are essential. We may have picked them up on our o...

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Gracious and loving God, you invite us

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Chip Hardwick

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Gracious and loving God, you invite us to the table, yet we resist your grace. It is sometimes easier to float around outside of the Christian community than it is to invest fully in it. You invite ot...

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Author

Craig Blomberg

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Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8, Acts 10:34-35, Galatians 3:28, Romans 1:16, John 4:21-24, Psalm 22:27-28

[Speaking of the early church] A cosmopolitan spirit grew, particularly in the cities, that transcended national barriers. Old tribal distinctions and identities were breaking down, leaving people rip...

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Moving to the Front Yard

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Jay Pathak and Dave Runyon

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Tom and Angela had lived in their neighborhood for about twelve years without really getting to know many people. They lived in a cul-de-sac of eleven houses and had limited communication and interact...

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Only the Penitent Man Shall Pass

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The Pastor's Workshop

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Scripture

1 Peter 5:6, Luke 18:13-14, James 4:10, Acts 3:19, Matthew 3:8

With the recent release of a new installment in the Indiana Jones movie series, our family decided to re-watch the original trilogy (I like to act as though Kingdom of the Crystal Skull never existe...

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The Two Main Barriers to Reading the Old Testament

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Old Testament

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Psalm 137:9

My brother, who attended a Bible College during a smart-alecky phase in his life, enjoyed shocking groups of believers by sharing his “life verse.” After listening to others quote pious phrases from P...

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Transgressing Boundaries After the Fall

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Ashley Hales

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Scripture

Genesis 3:1-24, Romans 5:12, 1 Timothy 2:12-21

After the fall of our first parents, boundaries were something to push past, to transgress. It’s worth pausing to note how we use the word transgression for “sin.” With its Latin roots, “across” and “...

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Transgression is Pushing Past Good Boundaries

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Ashley Hales

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Genesis 2:, Genesis 3:, James 1:14-15, Romans 5:12-19, Psalm 19:7-8, Genesis 11:

After the fall of our first parents, boundaries were something to push past, to transgress. It’s worth pausing to note how we use the word transgression for “sin.” With its Latin roots, “across” and ...

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The Deepwater Horizon Crisis and Our Need for a Savior

Author

Ryan Bundrick

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Romans 3:21-31, 1 John 1:7, Philippians 1:6, Ephesians 2:8-9, Colossians 2:13-14

In 2010, an oil rig named “Deepwater Horizon” suffered a catastrophic failure. Due to improper installation of the cement seal, a malfunctioning blowout preventer, and cost-cutting decisions by corpor...

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Søren Kierkegaard’s Advice on Reading the Bible

Author

Phillip Yancey

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Genesis 22:1-14, Exodus 14:21-31, Micah 6:6-8, Matthew 22:36-40 , James 1:22-25, Psalm 119:105

Søren Kierkegaard offers two suggestions for the reader who tackles difficult portions of the Bible. First, read it like a love letter, he says. As you struggle with language, culture, and other barri...

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The Challenge of the Old Testament

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Phillip Yancey

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Psalm 137:9, 1 Corinthians 26:18, Exodus 3:1-12 , Jonah 1:4, Matthew 14:22-33, Acts 9:1-19

My brother, who attended a Bible College during a smart-alecky phase in his life, enjoyed shocking groups of believers by sharing his “life verse.” After listening to others quote pious phrases from P...

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Psalm 19 | Creation Reflects God

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

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Scripture

Matthew 5:17, Psalm 19:

Introduction During my time in seminary (and the year after I graduated) I spent a lot of time at a church in southern New Jersey. It’s actually how I met Scott Bullock, TPW board member and creator...

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Inspired by Amos 5:18-24

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Jacob Traeger

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Amos 5:18-24

God has come to us and revealed Himself fully to us Yet too often we hide ourselves from His love and salvation Instead of focusing on you, Lord God, we focus on ourselves Instead of trusting yo...

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God of Grace and Power ... and our

Author

Richard Herman

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Scripture

John 17:21, Micah 6:8, Proverbs 22:9, Matthew 5:4, Jeremiah 17:14

God of Grace and Power ... and our Friend, who sticks closer than a brother: You know when we stumble ... and You know when we manage to get it right. You know when we forget you, but You don’t forget...

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God of Grace and Power—our Friend, who

Author

Richard Herman

Scripture

2 Corinthians 1:3-4, 1 Peter 5:7, Philippians 4:19, Romans 15:13, James 1:27

God of Grace and Power—our Friend, who sticks closer than a brother: You know when we screw up ...and You know when we manage to get it right. You know when we forget you ... but You never forget us. ...

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Heavenly Father, we confess that we see difficult

Author

Allen Thompson

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Scripture

Hebrews 12:1-2, Acts 16:16-34, 1 Kings 17:8-16, James 1:2-4, Romans 8:28, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Philippians 4:12-13

Heavenly Father, we confess that we often see difficult circumstances and discouragement as barriers to doing the work you have called us to do. Rather than rejoicing in what you have provided, we lam...

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When we allow darkness to overcome the

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Scripture

John 1:5, Ephesians 5:18, Isaiah 55:2, Luke 12:15, Ezekiel 36:26

When we allow darkness to overcome the light, forgive us, Lord. When we reduce Christmas to plastic and tinsel, have mercy on us, Father. When hardness of heart keeps us from seeing and hearing an...

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God of love—Father, Son and Holy

Author

Richard Herman

Scripture

John 11:32-35, Acts 10:, John 5:1-9, Luke 10:25-37, Ephesians 4:3-6, Matthew 25:40

God of love—Father, Son and Holy Spirit: You loved us before we ever knew You. Give us such a deep love for You, that we can see the world as You see it, feel the compassion You feel, and be a people ...

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Prayer for Social Justice

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Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the people of this land], that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappea...

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Peace Keeping vs. Peacemaking

Author

Rick Love

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Jeremiah 6:14, Jeremiah 8:11, Ezekiel 13:10, John 5:42

Peacekeepers are conflict avoiders, sweeping important issues under the carpet so no conflict manifests itself. This often happens in families and churches. This also happens between alienated ethnic ...

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Deepening Our Attention

Author

Kent Annan

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Scripture

Colossians 4:2, Amos 5:24, James 1:5, Philippians 4:6-7, Micah 6:8, Matthew 6:10

Simone Weil, a French philosopher, theologian and activist around the time of World War II, wrote a remarkable essay in which she connects the discipline of schoolwork with that of prayer. She argues ...

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Author

Brené Brown

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[Belonging is] the innate human desire to be part of something larger than us. Because this yearning is so primal, we often try to acquire it by fitting in and by seeking approval, which are not only ...

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Sermon Illustration Tuesday (10.16.18)

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Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

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Tom and Angela had lived in their neighborhood for about twelve years without really getting to know many people. They lived in a cul-de-sac of eleven houses and had limited communication and interact...

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The Boodle Feast

Author

Rick Love

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Scripture

John 13:34-35, Galatians 3:28, 1 Peter 4:9, Matthew 25:35, Luke 14:12-14, Romans 12:13, Hebrews 13:2

In his helpful book Peace Catalysts , Rick Love shares a poignant example of how sharing a meal can break down the familiar walls of status, power, and economics: In 2011, my wife, Fran, and I we...

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The Great Wall of China & The Desire for Safety

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

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Scripture

Proverbs 4:23, 1 Samuel 15:22, Matthew 7:24-27, 1 Corinthians 3:11, Psalm 127:1

The Great Wall of China was an immense and costly project, built with tremendous effort and resources, designed to provide security and protection. Yet, within a few years of its completion, it was br...

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Author

Charles Kettering

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Psalm 37:23-24, Joshua 1:9, 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, Isaiah 40:31, James 1:2-4, Proverbs 24:16

Failures are finger posts on the road to achievement.

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Author

Henry Ward Beecher

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The little troubles and worries of life may be as stumbling blocks in our way, or we may make them stepping-stones to a nobler character and to Heaven. Troubles are often the tools by which God fashio...

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Author

Basil Hume

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Our age dislikes intensely the idea of mystery because it directly exposes our limitations. The thought that there could be something, or someone, beyond human comprehension or imagining is, of course...

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Author

Gregory Spencer

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As a language-user, I’m bound to all the audacious capacities and frustrating limits of words. We label, we name, we frame all of our experiences, past, present, and future. We give words to our inner...

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Author

Miroslav Volf

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The absence of boundaries creates nonorder, and nonorder is not the end of exclusion but the end of life.

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