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Making Christian History

2/13/2016

First Time in 1,000 Years
Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra
Christianity Today

...We call upon the international community to act urgently in order to prevent the further expulsion of Christians from the Middle East. In raising our voice in defence of persecuted Christians, we wish to express our compassion for the suffering experienced by the faithful of other religious traditions who have also become victims of civil war, chaos and terrorist violence.

We bow before the martyrdom of those who, at the cost of their own lives, have given witness to the truth of the Gospel, preferring death to the denial of Christ. We believe that these martyrs of our times, who belong to various Churches but who are united by their shared suffering, are a pledge of the unity of Christians. It is to you who suffer for Christ’s sake that the word of the Apostle is directed: “Beloved … rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that when his glory is revealed you may also rejoice exultantly” (1 Pet 4:12–13)...

Full Declaration
Vatican Radio
Official Vatican Network

Pope Francis and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russiamet in Havana, Cuba on Friday(12 Feb) to sign an historic joint declaration.
The official English translation of the full joint declaration is below:
Joint Declaration of Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God the Father and the fellowship of the holy Spirit be with all of you” (2 Cor 13:13)...

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The Book of Hebrews

2/3/2016

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Facing Today with the Book of Hebrews
John D Barry
Bible Study Tools

When we read the book of Hebrews, we encounter a community of Christians living in a time of trial, a community not so different from yours or mine. They, like us, are struggling to understand God in the midst of suffering. The message of the book is our message—their story is our story.

Throughout the book, the author of Hebrews states that the community must learn to hold fast to their confession and all it entails. In this study, we will learn what type of confession the author had in mind and how it was to be personally and communally lived-out. By learning what the book states in its own right and in its own context, we will learn what God is saying to us in our circumstances.

Deeply rooted in the sermon delivered to the Hebrews is a sense of urgency. The same sense of urgency exists today. We too suffer from war, lack of community, and spiritual depravity. Our study of the book will help us understand the pressing needs of a previous generation and answer the cry of our own. Understanding how God equipped ancient believers, we will understand how God can outfit us. In this ancient text, we find modern answers...

Week One:
Open the Book, Read It and Pray

Week Two:
Open the Book, Read It and Take Notes

Week Three:
The Connection between Long Ago and Today

Week Four:
The Son's Identity

Week Five:
Support for the Son's Unique Superiority

Week Six:
The Anointed Son

Week Seven:
Inheritors of Salvation

Week Eight:
What We Know Now

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.

For to which of the angels did He ever say,

“You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You”?

And again,

“I will be a Father to Him
And He shall be a Son to Me”?

And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,

“And let all the angels of God worship Him.”
And of the angels He says,
“Who makes His angels winds,
And His ministers a flame of fire.”

But of the Son He says,

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
And the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom.
“You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness;
Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You
With the oil of gladness above Your companions.”

And,

“You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth,
And the heavens are the works of Your hands;
They will perish, but You remain;
And they all will become old like a garment,
And like a mantle You will roll them up;
Like a garment they will also be changed.
But You are the same,
And Your years will not come to an end.”

But to which of the angels has He ever said,

“Sit at My right hand,
Until I make Your enemies
A footstool for Your feet”?

Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?

Hebrews 1:1-14

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