Ezekiel 36:37

This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Once again I will yield to Israel’s plea and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 30th & May 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

There is a dual implication in the use of "sheep" ― one which we cannot escape. Yes, Israel had been like sheep "led to the slaughter" of exile. And, yes...

Ezekiel 37:5

This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 30th & May 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

For if the dead can rise, is not God truly for us? And if God is for us who can be against us? (see Romans 8:31).

Genesis 15:5

He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 30th & May 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

On that day when God made his covenant with Abram, He was embarking on the mission of bringing back his lost creation.

Matthew 6:33

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 23rd & 24th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

From our study during this inauguration series comes the reminder that we are called to be a holy people in the world, set apart by God for His purposes, plan, and politics. Responding to this call is the experience of sanctification which begins when we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior, then continues for the rest of our lives.

Matthew 4:19

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 23rd & 24th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

To become a Christian means receiving a vocation, not in the professional sense but in a confessional one. The word vocation has historically been associated with sacred roles within the Church, and yet the wider usage refers to what we commonly describe as “the call” to follow Jesus.

Luke 1:32-33

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,  and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 16th & 17th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The kingdom of God, made present by Jesus’ presence, moves the world forward through the dips of crisis toward the final form of God’s righteous rule, toward what theologians call the eschaton — the purposeful end.

John 18:36

Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 16th & 17th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What sets Jesus apart is his understanding of “power” in that arrangement and the refusal to use violence as an instrument for social change. What sets Jesus apart is his commitment to redeeming a lost world rather than destroying it;

Isaiah 46:9-10

Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 9th & 10th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

To join our lives to the narrative of God’s pleasure is the essence of the plan fulfilled. In vetting our own lives to the plan of God is the best way to live and the only way to die.

Isaiah 14:26-27

This is the plan determined for the whole world; this is the hand stretched out over all nations. For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?

From Background Notes [BN] for Apr 9th & 10th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Those words flowed from the steadfast love of the covenant Lord. While the plan in question began with Israel, it ultimately reaches the climax through the kingdom ministry of Jesus...