The Tabernacle Today

The Purpose of Marriage - Matthew 19:1-15The practice of the father of the bride ‘giving away’ the bride goes all the way back to the first 2 chapters of the Bible, Genesis 1-2. We will see Jesus talk about it in today’s passage!Where is one of the biggest places we get to practice giving and receiving forgiveness? Within our marriages!As we look at Jesus’ response to the Pharisees, we are going to see Jesus model for us how to respond to all the “What about this issue,” or “what about that issue” questions that people ask us to weigh in on.Jesus teaches on the purpose of marriage - V. 4-6I love Jesus’ question, “Have you not read?” He’s saying, “Let’s go back to the Bible, and before talking about what’s a sin against God’s design, let’s clarify God’s design and purpose for marriage and sexuality!”In ‘incorporating’ the first marriage in Genesis 1-2, God gave us the purpose of marriage and family. Every marriage starts a new family that is intended to help each other and any children they might have flourish

Psalm 91 WorksheetPsalm 91 uses wonderful poetry for believers to express their confidence that the LORD sovereignly protects and delivers those who are His! We call a Psalm a Messianic psalm when in part or the whole it expresses something that only Israel’s coming Messiah Jesus could fulfill. What I am cautiously calling a “Millennial” Psalm contains aspirations that won’t be completely _____________________ until Jesus reigns on earth as described in Revelation 20.For evildoers shall be cut off; but those who wait on the LORD, they shall inherit the earth…But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. -Psalm 37:9, 11 The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years. YET THEIR BOAST IS ONLY LABOR AND SORROW; but it is soon cut off, and we fly away. -Psalm 90:10 After we read Psalm 91 you will love it and find yourself praying that your loved ones will be enveloped with “Psalm 91 protection.” We are invited to ask th

Forgive From the Heart - Matthew 18:21-35When the child of God Looks into the word of GodAnd sees the Son of God,They are transformed by the Spirit of GodInto the image of God For the glory of God!-Warren WiersbeReceiving and giving forgiveness does for Christians what oil does for a car, it lubricates our relationships, reduces friction, prevents overheating by cooling us off, prevents harmful deposits from building up in us.Matthew 18:21-35Forgiveness goes beyond relational ‘score keeping’ - V. 21-22Peter had already learned that Rabbi Jesus was more loving than other rabbis. Peter probably thought he was being generous by suggesting the new number of 7 times!In saying forgive seventy-seven times, Jesus wants His followers to go beyond keeping track of offenses to cultivating a spirit of forgiveness based on the forgiveness they have received from God.Believers have been forgiven an incalculable sin debt - V. 23-27“On the Day I settle accounts, I will hold them accountable for their sin.” - Exodus 32:34Just

Psalm 90 WorksheetThis is the first Psalm in Book 4 of the Psalms (Psalm 90-Psalm 106). The title says this is “A Prayer of Moses the man of God.” That means this Psalm is the _____________________ Psalm in the Bible. Moses’ _____________________________ V. 1-11Verses 1-2 use beautiful _____________________ (chiastic structure) to state that the eternal God existed before the creation He made. Having established that the infinite God stands above time, in verses 3-4 Moses speaks of God’s sovereignty over finite man, whose earthly life is ___________________ by time and space. The words turn and return in verse 3 come from the same Hebrew word, a play on words that is complimented in verse 13. Because our _____________________ are finite and will ‘return’ to the ground, our only hope is God ‘returning’ to us! But beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness

Helping Each Other Deal With Sin - Matthew 18:15-20God doesn’t stop working in our lives when we first trust Jesus. He puts His Spirit inside believers at the moment of their conversion, helping them grow in Christ. And He also puts believers in local churches so we can help each other grow and be faithful and fruitful followers of Christ.Having dealt with the vertical realm of our sin before God, and having left the sin of non-Christians for God Himself to judge, Jesus now turns to the horizontal realm of relational sins between fellow Christians.Christians follow 3 steps in dealing with sin in the local church:Step 1: One person talks to another, face to face - V. 15“For whoever does the will of My Father in Heaven is My brother and sister and mother.” - Matthew 12:50So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. - Matthew 5:23-

Be Like a Child Again - Matthew 18:1-14Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. - Ephesians 4:22-24Jesus begins this chapter on living in community with other believers by making sure we understand what is actually required for us to get into Heaven and His desire for us to bring others there with us.The importance of a childlike faith - V. 1-5Before we look at what Jesus said to them, note from verse 2 that when Jesus called the child, the humble child came to Jesus without hesitation, ready to do whatever Jesus asked.They were arguing about which of them would be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus let them know that if they didn’t change their attitude and become like a child, they wouldn’t even be in Heaven.What do proud, self-promoting people need to do to make sure they are going to Heaven?

Entrusting Your Life to Jesus - Matthew 17:14-27All Scripture is breathed out by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. - 2 Tim. 3:16-17All the Scriptures were perfectly written between 1500 BC & 100 A.D. But the printing press wasn’t created until A.D. 1455. That means every fragment and copy of the Bible was hand-copied before the printing press.Why we can fully trust that the Bible we have from copies is TRUE:Tens of thousands of copied manuscripts, unlike any ancient document.Remarkable consistency across 2 MILLION pages of biblical text.Understandable differences as copies were made over centuries.Earliest texts to help clarify what the original text said.In today’s text we are going to see Jesus interact with people during some very frustrating moments in life. We will see Him exhort us all with words and deeds that show we can entrust our lives to Him.Matthew 17:14-27Disci

Only Jesus - Matthew 17:1-13When the child of GodLooks into the word of GodAnd sees the Son of GodThey are transformed by the Spirit of GodInto the image of GodFor the glory of God-Warren WiersbeJesus said some of them would get to see Him as the glorified Son of Man - 16:27-28Today’s passage fulfills what Jesus spoke of in 16:28 – Jesus’ transfiguration was a preview of His coming Kingdom spoken of in Dan. 7!Jesus’ ‘inner circle’ got to see Him as the glorified Son of Man - 17:1-2The word for transfigured is the word metamorpoo (G 3339), which occurs 4 times in the New Testament. It means to change from one form into another, to transform (see Rom. 12:2; 2 Cor. 3:18).Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we KNOW that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who thus hopes in Him purifies himself as He is pure. - 1 John 3:2-3Jesus brings together saints from different ages - 17:3Moses was the great lawgiver and Elijah was

The Cross Centered Life - Matthew 16:21-28“The chief danger that confronts the coming century will be religion without the Holy Ghost, Christianity without Christ, forgiveness without repentance, salvation without regeneration, politics without God, heaven without hell.” - William Booth (1878-1912)In today’s passage we will see Jesus rebuke Peter for ‘Satan-like’ thinking, and clarify that before the Messiah rules the world from Jerusalem He first must die on the cross for the sins of the world. Jesus also makes clear that all believers also have a cross to bear before they go to Heaven.Matthew 16:21-28In the next chapters we will see Jesus make a “bee-line” for the cross. But first He needed His disciples to understand 2 things – Who He is, and what He is going to do in this ‘first coming.’Jesus emphatically declares His coming death and resurrection - V. 21All Israel was obsessed with the prophetic passages about the Messiah being the King who would rule righteously from Jerusalem. They had minimized passag

Confessing Your Faith in Jesus - Matt. 16:13-20“Worry is misuse of your imagination.” - Mark GregstonIn the next chapters we will see Jesus make a “bee-line” for the cross. But first He needs His disciples to understand 2 things – Who He is, and what He is going to do in this ‘first coming.’Christ enters Caesar’s city, “the gates of Hell” - V. 13aThis city was built to honor Caesar Augustus, who had died in AD 14. There was a Temple there to worship him. They had coins with his face on them: Some said “Caesar is Lord,” others proclaimed him the Son of God.The crowds don’t really understand who Jesus is - V. 13b-14The Son of God, the Creator of mankind had become a man, and He liked calling Himself the Son of Man. That He is referring to Himself is clear from verse 15 when He says, “But who do you say that I am?”Jesus wants to make sure His disciples do understand - V. 15-16You in verse 15 is in the plural. Jesus is addressing all twelve of the disciples before Him!In contrast to the dead and impotent gods and

Beware of Fungus Among UsWhen the child of GodLooks into the word of GodAnd sees the Son of GodThey are transformed by the Spirit of GodInto the image of GodFor the glory of God-Warren WiersbeCriswell looked at the older man and said, “Yes, brother, I agree. I think we as Christians should confess our shortcomings and sins to one another. Could we start with you?”Today we are going to see Jesus warn His disciples to avoid the false teaching and false lifestyle of both extremes – legalism and liberalism.Matthew 16:1-12The folly of asking THE sign for a sign - V. 1They disagreed fiercely with each other, but something had brought these fierce rivals together – hatred for Jesus. It still happens today!In their rejection of Jesus, they made the same mistake proud and unbelieving sinners still make – they put Jesus on trial, not realizing He is the very Judge we must all give an account to. If they didn’t repent, there would remain on the path to Hell.The foolishness of rejecting THE sign all other signs point to

The Ultimate ProviderWhen the child of GodLooks into the word of GodAnd sees the Son of GodThey are transformed by the Spirit of GodInto the image of GodFor the glory of God-Warren WiersbeBiblical Traits for Fathers to Pursue:PATTERN PARTICIPATOR PROVIDER PREPARERFor to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. - Isaiah 9:6In a very real sense Jesus is the Everlasting Father of all who are born again. Isaiah 9 tells us when the Messiah comes we will be ‘full of wonder’ at Him; we will view Him as the best Counselor; as the Mighty God in human flesh; as the perfect Father figure; and the Prince of our peace.Matthew 15:29-39Jesus the Great Participator - V. 29-31You can’t spell the word gospel without the words “GO” and “SPELL.” God uses us as we ‘go’ and ‘spell’ out the ‘good news’ to others in word & deed.But we can be like Jesus and walk beside our children, a

Feel free to like, share, and comment on this post - how has the Lord been working in your life this week? If you do not have a church home, we would love to welcome you to the Tabernacle family. Please connect with us via our website (link below). We hope to see you next Sunday!_________To learn more about The Tabernacle, check out our website and follow us on our social media platforms!Visit our website: www.thetabernaclefamily.orgConnect with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thetabernaclefamilyCheck out our YouTube channel at: www.youtube.com/@tabdanva

Wash Your Heart First - Matthew 15:1-20When the child of GodLooks into the word of GodAnd sees the Son of GodThey are transformed by the Spirit of GodInto the image of GodFor the glory of God-Warren Wiersbe“And when the one with a discharge is cleansed of his discharge, then he shall count for himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes. And he shall bathe his body in fresh water and shall be clean.” - Lev. 15:13In today’s passage Jesus criticizes those who put external man-made rules like ritual hand-washing on an equal level with biblical commands. Ironically, they often rationalized disobeying God’s clear commands, showing they had clean hands but not clean hearts.Matthew 15:1-20When man-made traditions crowd out simple faith and obedience - V. 1-9There were 2 big problems with the Pharisees approach:First, all that focus on the external non-essential ‘fencing’ of the law became so important to them that it crowded out matters of simple faith and obedience, loving God and loving others.The s

When God Walked on Earth and Water - Matt. 14:22-36“Here the royal army was again stopped by a sudden rise of the waters, which had only just fallen (almost miraculously) to let the enemy over, who could not else have eluded Lord Cornwallis’ grasp, so close was he upon their rear.” - British General Henry Clinton“We have…abundant reasons to thank Providence for its many favorable interpositions in our behalf. It has at times been my only dependence, for all other resources seemed to have failed us.” - Gen. George WashingtonMatt. 14:22-36Unless you believe that I AM, you will die in your sins. - John 8:24And now, Father, glorify Me in Your own presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed. - John 17:5The Old Testament records around 85 miracles over 4,000 years of history. Jesus worked 42 recorded miracles in just over 3 years. The N.T. after Jesus records about 25 miracles over the next 30 years. Clearly the frequency and type of miracles Jesus did during His 3 years of public ministry demon

The Vision of Jesus5 G Living:Do everything you do for the Glory of GodDo everything you do for the Good of your fellow manDo everything you do for the Growth of your fellow believers in ChristDo everything you do to get the Gospel to unbelieversDo everything you do with a grateful heartMatthew 14:13-21The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. - Moses in Deut. 29:29Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. - Shlomo (Solomon) in Proverbs 3:5-6The compassionate vision of Jesus - V. 13-14May it be said of us that we saw, we had compassion, we acted to help meet physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs – just like Jesus.The creative envisioning of Jesus - V. 15-18What the disciples said about sending the people away made common sense and fit conventional wisdom, but Jesus often c

Bad Mom Good Mom - Matthew 14:1-12Welcome to Real Housewives of the Roman Empire. I changed the names a little, but that’s the background for today’s Bible passage in which we will sadly read of the death of John the Baptist.Matthew 14:1-12As Matthew 1-13 relate to John the Baptist, he was like a booster that helps launch a rocket into space. Once the rocket gets up, the booster has done its job and falls back to earth. One stage is over and another begins.Bad moms are offended by preaching that calls them to repentance.Herodias was offended by the preacher because he called out her sin. I sure wish she had done what I have seen many guilty sinners do over the years -Repent of their sin, receive God’s forgiveness, and rebuild their lives around God’s truth, as David and Bathsheba did in their generation.Bad moms fail to protect their children and instead influence them to sin.Now before looking at the good mom, let me state clearly that we are all sinners who need to turn to Christ for salvation and forgivene

Psalm 89 WorksheetPsalm 89 is the ___________________ Psalm of Book 3 of the Psalms.Only 4 Psalms have 50 or more verses. Psalm 89 is the ____________________ longest.Which Psalm has the most verses? Psalm 119, with 176 verses. Then comes Ps. 78, with 72 verses. Then Ps. 89, with 52 verses. Ps. 18 has 50 verses.Psalm 89 remembers the LORD’s unconditional ________________________ with David that because of God’s mercy (hesed) and faithfulness (emuna and emet) David’s descendant the Messiah will rule Israel forever, even though it doesn’t seem possible to Israel’s exiles when the Psalm was written.As we read Psalm 89, look for the occurrences of mercy (or steadfast love) and faithfulness.There are _____ occurrences each of Hesed and Emuna in Psalm 89, and they are together in 5 verses. Hesed and Emet occur together in verse 14.<><Yahweh’s steadfast love and faithfulness are ______________________ V. 1-2I really like verse 2 – God’s love and His faithfulness are Heaven’s _______________________ foundati

The Why the What and the HowThis is the annual time when I get to urge our Tabernacle Family to live by the collective purpose that God has given us in God’s word.The why our church does what it does is the same why every individual Christian is to do what they do – for the glory of God – to seek to bring God the love and praise He so richly deserves.The Mission of the Tabernacle is to reproduce faithful and fruitful followers of Jesus Christ.The How is our TABERNACLE AcronymTeaching of ScriptureAdoration and PrayerThe 8-week prayer challenge: For the next 8 weeks (until VBS), fast through at least 1 meal a week as you pray for many people to be saved in church and at Vacation Bible School).Baptist PrinciplesEvangelism and MissionsEven with the Pandemic stall, we have baptized 113 people since 2017; In the comparable time before I came the Tabernacle baptized 101 people. I baptized 216 people in my first 8 years at my previous church.We budget roughly $8,250 a month for our church ministries; $6,500 a month f

The Passion Prayers of Jesus“Our technologies permit us to manipulate time and space. They leave distance annihilated, cause things to grow and improve productivity.” - Michael KratsiosIf you are a born again believer, there are two ways that you have already experienced spiritual time travel.The first way is that the Bible teaches that if you are a believer, you were crucified with Christ (Gal. 2:20), died with Christ (Rom. 6:8), buried with Christ (Col. 2:12), raised with Christ (Col. 2:12), made alive together with Christ (Eph. 2:5), raised up with Christ to heavenly places (Eph. 2:6), fellow heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17), are one spirit with Christ (1 Cor. 6:17), will be with Christ after death (Phil. 1:21, 23), will return with Christ when He returns to earth (Rev. 17:14, 2 Tim. 2:12).The second way is that in the last 72 hours of Jesus’ passion week, He prayed many specific prayer requests that still get answered today 2,000 years after He prayed them!The prayer of restoration for believers.“Simon, Simo