Gospel for life with Nathaniel Timmermann

Bold Builders obey

To build God's congregation and house requires that we do things that seem abnormal to us or are so unusual that it is hard to imagine they will lead to a great place. This challenge rings out to us, and we obey, only to discover that God really is our father and he will do for us what we ask in his name. Haggai 1:12-15

Bold Builders

The people of Israel returned to Judah and found a land in shambles. Surprisingly, they had the courage, the heart to stay. When there is lots of work to do, will we stay? This is a time to live out of grace. This is a time to be bold builders.

Haggai 1:1-11

Encouraged by the encourager

The Holy Spirit teaches us everything so that we can have peace. Not just happiness or comfort or the sense of tranquility, but the awesome awareness that we are with the God who is perfect, holy, and set apart. 

This is what Phyllis Curtis discovered. John 14:25-27

Pray your way through the fight. Pray for your life

If we don't see the level of the spiritual fight we are in, we won't see the unique way that the armor of God equips us for this fight. F18s, M1Abrams, and other serious equipment might seem the best fit for the fight, but we are really properly equipped when we can ask God for what we need. 

Ephesians 6:10-20

Work out your worry. Watch your Father.

A crisis can cause any of us to become caught in a chain of negative thoughts about the future. What if's and what about's abound. When we look at the Father, we can work out our worry. Luke 12:22-34

The Final Failure

In the years leading up to 587/586 BC, the nation of Judah and the city of Jerusalem fell down. It was the final failure of a long and storied nation. It experienced the consequences of all its failures. And yet the people were not destroyed completely. There was a savior, a rescuer from the final judgment. What we should do then is to stay, to wait, even if we think he has walked away. 2 Kings 25

The failure of idolatry

Is religion about being a good person? If so, why did an entire nation fail because of something else entirely? Not politics, not economics, and not even morality.

2 Kings 17, especially 7-37.

The failure of corruption

In 1 Kings 21, powerful officials use a weak system to take advantage of a citizen. The failure of corruption destroys not only the citizen, but eventually the officials too. Where is justice? At the cross.

The failure of despair

Everyone deals with sadness, failure and struggles in life. We should reflect on those failures and how we feel. When we do that, we've got to learn to separate how we feel about ourselves (despairing of ourselves) from how we feel about life in general. Elijah teaches us. 

1 Kings 19

Know the Truth So We Can All Live

The story of Abraham and Abimelek, Genesis 20:1-18. Abraham did not just tell a version of the story. He himself first believed a version of the story. That was the start of his failure.