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Introduction In these parables (earthly story with a heavenly meaning), what does Jesus want us to understand about His kingdom?   Let’s read these parables- Read Matthew 13: 31-33; 44-46 Notice how the parables begin. Kingdom of heaven is like… ·          Jesus does not define the kingdom of God; He describes it only through parables. [1] As I titled this message, Big K Kingdom, I wanted us to see there is a difference between a little k kingdom and Big K Kingdom.   When I volunteered in Iola at a youth center, I used to remind everyone that I am not just about growing my little k kingdom (Iola FCC).   You could replace Iola with HMBC. But my desire is to see God’s Big K Kingdom expanded which means I am excited when people are saved and discipled whether they attend HMBC or Hesston Methodist or Hesston Mennonite, etc. It’s not about building little k kingdoms, but God getting the glory for Big K Kingdoms being built...

Last week, I finished reading Jack Klumpenhower's book, Show Them Jesus. I will be writing a review of the book in the next few days.  Here are some quotes from the final chapters: Jesus calls his people to love-based life together. Moral reform is not the same as Christian growth...But performing for God and ignoring God are both ways of bypassing Jesus. Alex needed to fight sin but to do it with God, instead of performing for God. He needed to hate sin but not keep a scorecard. He needed the good news. Being close to your Father brings true sorrow for sin and helps you fight sin better next time. . .So don't think you have to fight sin first so you can come to God. Instead, come to God so you can fight sin.  If we want believing kids to change how they act, we must teach them--perhaps counterintuitively--to focus less on how they act. We must first remind them who they are. They're joined to Jesus. It's the Holy Spirit who changes kids. He brings rebirth a...

If I have not convinced you by now, you need to go and purchase Jesus , Continued by J. D. Greear.  It is a helpful book on the Holy Spirit and Christian life.  I definitely think it will be included in Go Deeper Class next year.  Here are more quotes from Chapters 6-7: A heart that truly understands the gospel overflows with gratefulness to God. Extravagant grace produces extravagant givers. Realizing the love of God for us produces love of God in us. God steers moving ships--ships driven by the winds of worship, gratefulness, love to God for what he's done, and compassion for those he cares about. Wonder at his sacrifice for me compels my sacrifice for him, making it a joy and delight. The Holy Spirit, you could say, is always leading to the cross or from it, to carry its message of healing to others. Our waiting is not passive, however; it is extremely active. Because we already have the Holy Spirit, we don't sit around in inactivity, waitin...

I have often wanted to read a book by Brennan Manning.  I have had the book, The Ragamuffin Gospel , for many years but it has not made it to my "reading list."  This past week, I started reading it. It offers a good perspective on the gospel.  Here are some quotes from the first three chapters of the book: The institutional church has become a wounder of the healers rather than a healer of the wounded. All that is good is ours not by right but by the sheer bounty of a gracious God. Grace is the active expression of his love. Our experience of God's unconditional love must be shaped by the Scriptures. Love is a far better stimulus than threat or pressure. . .In terms of spiritual growth the faith-conviction that God accepts me as I am is a tremendous help to become better. For experiencing God's love in Jesus Christ means experiencing that one has been unreservedly accepted, approved, and infinitely loved, that one can and should accept oneself and one...

Do you want to be ordinary?  Is this a bad word?  What images come to mind? Average, mediocre, passive? I am reading through Ordinary by Michael Horton with a group as an online book discussion.  I have read two chapters up to this point.  Part of me is not fond of the word, ordinary.  I want to believe that through the Holy Spirit's power, we can be extraordinary.  I would like to see God do amazing things through us that can not be explained as ordinary.  However, the author is sharing some good thoughts.  Here are some quotes from the first two chapters: We are called to grow in a personal relationship with Christ. We are also called to love and serve others--our fellow believers and our neighbors. And yet, the tendency of the evangelical movement has always been to prioritize extraordinary methods and demands over the ordinary means that Christ instituted for sustainable mission. What we are called to do every day, right where God has pl...

This week, someone from Hesston MB asked a great question.  The question was, how would you define "going deeper"? It was such a good question that I decided to answer it on the blog. For those who do not know, "Go Deeper" has been our focus at Hesston MB over the last few years.  We believe this happens as "disciples make disciples." Below you will see a poster that shows that through God's Word you can go deeper by reading it, memorizing it, meditating on it, and sharing it. This obviously is focused on the Bible.  So, I began thinking more about how I would define "go deeper" and decided to focus on two words in Scripture: grow and depth. Below you will find the verses that I chose that related to the topic of "going deeper": For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power t...

Happy May Day! I am so excited about the growth I am seeing around my house. I love going for a quick walk every couple of days to see how the plants are growing and if anything is budding. Things are growing so quickly with all of the rain. Thank you God, for the rain! This got me to thinking about growth in other areas of my life. First and most important is growth in my spiritual life. Just like the new flower brings excitement, so too does growth in areas such as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). What about you? Are you experiencing growth? The first step is a personal relationship with Christ. If you do you not know Jesus, you need to start there. We are all sinners saved by grace. Grace is a free gift from Jesus. Have you made that decision to follow Christ as your Lord and Savior? Once you have the personal relationship, you need to grow in that relationship by getting to know Jesus better ...