Romans 12:2

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

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

If family is truly one of our church’s Core Values, then we face the challenge of coming to terms with the Chicago style social realities in front of us...

Revelation 21:1-2

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

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

Placing this material about the new city as the climax of Revelation also makes it the counter-point to the image of Babylon, the old city that is collapsing.

Isaiah 61:4

They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.

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

Of note, is the shift from the first person singular, [in the previous verse] referring to Messiah, to the third person plural, referring to his people...

Luke 24:49

I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

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

Chosen to be Zion, the city of God in the days of David, Jerusalem remained vital for the earliest followers of Jesus. The phrase “beginning at Jerusalem” complements the instruction, “do not leave Jerusalem,” and finds fulfillment when Jesus calls his disciples “my witnesses in Jerusalem.”

Luke 12:15

Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

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

What Faith Promise means to the church is a heart-felt appeal to God’s people, based on biblical principles, for a unified approach to giving. As a complement to the tithe, Faith Promise offerings gather up the overflow of blessed lives, and direct new resources into carefully managed missionary work.

Ecclesiastes 5:19

Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God.

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

Having wealth means nothing, if we do not have the God-given ability to "enjoy it.” Our reading of the previous text[s] helps us to see that possessions are only enjoyed when they are put to divine purposes, and when we put faith in God and not in the possessions.

Leviticus 27:30

A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord.

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

And that is true whether we are in harsh economic times or in a bull market. The economics of the kingdom inverts the natural order of the Empire. The royal order of God encourages trust and incentivizes faith among its citizens.