Dear members and friends of IBCZ, In the times of prophet Hosea, the people of Israel had started to worship the Syrian-Palestinian weather god (or gods), Baal, and were involved in various religious acts according to the worshipping habits “demanded” by this god. This came in strong contradiction with their
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, In a couple weeks, the year 2020 will come to an end. It has certainly been a year unlike any other. The Covid virus disrupted our lives in ways we would not have imagined. And yet, in the midst of whatever disappointments and hardships
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, This coming Sunday, Nov. 29th, is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent includes the four Sundays before Christmas, and so it leads us into the final days of the year. Probably many of us will be happy to see 2020 come to an end.
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, In the sermon last Sunday, I challenged us in one particular way relating to our use of time. I asked us to consider what the impact on our relationship with God would be if for every hour we spent watching television, we spent one
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, This past Sunday we considered the second half of the phrase from the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” We saw that the word “forgive” literally means “to release.” When we forgive someone who has hurt us or wronged
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, Chinese Christian leader and author Watchman Nee (1903-1972), made this observation about prayer: “Our prayers lay the track down upon which God’s power can come. Like a mighty locomotive, his power is irresistible, but it cannot reach us without rails.” Last Sunday in our
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, Last Sunday we considered the phrase in the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We noted that the kingdom of God in Scripture is not about a place but it refers to the rule
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, Last Sunday in our study of The Lord’s Prayer, we considered the phrase, “Hallowed be Thy name.” We saw that central to this part of the Prayer is that we would pray that God’s name be regarded as holy and good through our lives,
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, Last Sunday we considered the beautiful image in Jeremiah 18:1-6 of God as the Potter and us as the clay. God wisely shapes and forms us so that our lives come to match the wonderful purpose He has for us. Even when we sin,
Continue readingDear Members and Friends of IBCZ, Last Sunday we considered what is known as The Parable of the Rich Fool, found in Luke 12:16-21. It’s about a man whose crops were so bountiful he had to build bigger barns to hold it all. Thinking he had enough wealth to last
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