Ezekiel 22:30

"I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none”

From Background Notes [BN] for Mar 5th & 6th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What strategies would the Church adopt that would adapt its faith to the new world without leaving behind the core values that gave Christianity its distinctive and non-negotiable identity?

Ephesians 4:30

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 27th & 28th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Paul’s deep desire for the Ephesian Christians, and God’s desire for us today, is that we know Him better, grasp and experience His “incomparably great power for us who believe,” and...

Ephesians 4:22-24

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;  to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 27th & 28th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Whole communities must "put off" the old nature and "put on" the new one.

Ephesians 4:17

So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 27th & 28th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Long-standing habits are hard to break, and the habits of the "old nature" require the special work of God, first in the full surrender of our hearts to him, which inaugurates "sanctification", and then...

Ephesians 2:21

In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 20th & 21st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

When Paul uses the language of "temple", he speaks of the "holy temple in the Lord", a rather specific allusion to the "sanctuary" portion of the Temple, the "inner temple", consisting of "holy place" and "most holy place".

Ephesians 2:6-7

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus  in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 20th & 21st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What does it mean to be "seated" with Christ in the heavenlies?

Ephesians 2:10

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 20th & 21st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

As we continue our study of the Church in Ephesians, our emphasis this week climaxes with Paul’s image of the Church as a “temple” or “building,” consisting of a full range of human persons, integrated and framed into the place where God chooses to live.

Ephesians 1:7

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 13th & 14th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

In his letter to the Ephesians thus far, Paul begins to reveal the shape of the church in light of God’s eternal purposes for humankind. In Jesus Christ, God is gathering together a new society, a new world order, with foundations quite different from the kingdoms of the world.

Ephesians 1:3

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 13th & 14th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What invites the blessing of God? What calls for worship in the church?

Matthew 7:24

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 13th & 14th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Unlike his contemporary rabbis, he [Jesus] did not simply quote the opinions of others, but spoke the truth from God Himself.

 

Hebrews 11:21

By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 6th & 7th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

“Faith listens, faith serves, faith trusts, faith loves, faith encourages, faith forgives, faith speaks hope, faith wades in deep, faith gets its hands dirty, faith is a journey!” Thankfully, faith is both a noun and a verb.

Hebrews 11:8

By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 6th & 7th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

For ancient Israel the arrival in the Promised Land was a watershed moment in the long arduous history which began with the story of Abraham.

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 6th & 7th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

When we say, “We believe,” the idea is that our whole life is oriented outward toward the Other in whose hands we confidently place our life.