Sandwich

This morning our friend Mike was taking us through Psalm 32 and he reminded us that a Psalm is like a sandwich. The first two verses start with blessing and the Psalm ends with joy but in the middle is the meat of the Psalm. Here the Psalmist comes to grips with his sin. Someone wanted to know why it didn't start with the sin then the blessing a joy but we must remember that God's order is different than our order.

A Few Days Away

I am going to the Bibles For Missions AGM today so there won't be any postings until next week. Right now we are making plans for the fall program. If you have any ideas I would like to hear from you either by phone, email, or posting as a comment. Currently I am considering doing a series on Hebrews but we need to meet with Pastor to see if that fits into his plans for the fall.

It's My Party

Last night after class one man told me that at first he did not understand about the party being for the Father and not for the son who returned. As he thought about it he thought about his daughter who as strayed away from the Lord. He said that when she comes back to the Lord there will be a party and the party will be for him as he will not be able to contain the excitement of his daughter returning to the faith.

Questions

Tonight was our last study on the prodigal son. One thing that impressed me tonight was the questions. I am sure that I did not give many people new in sights but if I made it so that they would question and study the Scripture for themselves them I have been successful. We want to create life long learners and to do that we have to give them the desire to learn. We want people to read the Bible and study it for themselves but when they read we want them to read it to seek to know more about God. This series didn't go exactly as I imagined but in some ways it exceeded my expectations. If no one else learned anything, I certainly did.

The Third Son

In the parable of the prodigal son the younger son had a Pharisee for an older brother. In the parallel story where we are the prodigal our older brother is the true older brother, the Son of the Father, Jesus Christ.

The Lord's Supper

Why is the Lord's supper called communion?
First, the Lord's supper speaks of the intimacy with Christ. Almost all family gathers have a time of eating together. When we meet with friends we meet together.
So, second, it is a communal feast. You don't take communion and sit in the corner. You are saying by taking communion that you are part of this family. If you only come to church for one service and are not involved in the ministry and fellowship of the church then you do not have communion with those people.
When you take communion in our church and in many churches it is a brother or sister that hands you the bread and the cup. I think we have tragically changed communion into a formality and a ritual and it has lost its meaning to many of us.
In Isaiah 25 we read:
6 On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare
a feast of rich food for all peoples,
a banquet of aged wine—
the best of meats and the finest of wines.

7 On this mountain he will destroy
the shroud that enfolds all peoples,
the sheet that covers all nations;

8 he will swallow up death forever.
The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears
from all faces;
he will remove the disgrace of his people
from all the earth.
The LORD has spoken.

Thank You

I have a number of people I would like to thank for helping me in the series we complete this coming Sunday evening.
First, Andrew for introducing me to the writings and preaching of Tim Keller and to Curtis who gave me the book for Christmas. This book really opened my eyes and tugged at my spirit to pursue the parable.
Thanks Jane for directing me to the book by John MacArthur and to Jeremy for lending me the book. I also found his sermon on www.sermonaudio.com.
Thanks Dan for lending me the book on repentance. I left it on my desk as I had other reading but I picked it up and found that it was applicable to the parable.
Thanks to those who encouraged me especially my fellow teachers, Mike and Gord. Thanks for the comments from Kent, Curtis, Andrew, Mary, Jane, Jeremy and others.
Thanks to Marjory who I often talked to about the lessons and to Alice and Martha for the photo coping.
Thanks to John MacArthur and Tim Keller for the wonderful insights into the parable and thanks to our Lord for giving us this wonderful story and to Luke for recording it for us.
Thank you Holy Spirit for directing me to this parable and to everyone who attends the Sunday evening class. You encourage my heart.
Thanks everyone.