Whether it be eastern religions, new age mysticism, or paganism, more than ever, people are interested in the spiritual and the mystical. People are attracted to the mysterious. Spirituality, in its very nature is mysterious. What does this mean for the church? Well…
Zacchaeus was a wee little man. If being short is considered a problem, it was the smallest of his problems. He worked for the Roman government as a tax collector and he cheated the people. Even with these problems, he was interested in Jesus and Jesus was interested in him.
In a column on art restoration, Robert Fulford writes, “A scholar came upon a striking fact: in the year 1516, the Brancacci Chapel in Florence burned half a barrel of oil every day, just to keep its votive lamps flickering. The oil of course produced soot, which floated upwards and coated the art on the walls. Multiply that half-barrel by the days of the year, multiply again by the number of years this practice was followed (say, 400), then factor in the wax from candles lit by individual worshippers.” Believe me, that’s a lot of soot covering up the artistic masterpieces in that chapel.
Superman was a mighty strong man. He could leap buildings in a single bound. He was powerful enough to stop a train. Superman was faster than a speeding bullet. Even with all that strength, if he came into contact with kryptonite, he became very weak. When he was falling down, barely able to walk, did Superman look strong? No! He was unable to do anything. None of us would say, “Wow! He’s weak and that makes him so strong!”
I used to have a friend (I mean cat) named Spunky. He was my best friend for so many years. At the time he died, he had lived with me for over half my life. Spunky loved me no matter what. If I left him alone while I traveled, he loved me when I returned. If I neglected to clean his litter box for a week, he still loved me. I guess to a cat, not cleaning a litter box could be considered sinful behavior. But Spunky still loved me. When I didn’t feed him when he wanted, he may have got mad, but he never stopped loving me.
When I was young, one of my favorite Bible verses was John 3:16. Not until twenty-five years later did I even know what was said in the following verse. I now see that John 3:17 is probably more popular among our younger generations than John 3:16. The reason for this, is because it fits a popular worldview today.
The city of Venice is one of the most beautiful places in the world. Have you ever wondered how happy the people in Venice must be? They can never be depressed or unhappy can they? After all, they live in Venice.