Resources For "Devoted" Series From Each Harderwyk Preacher
I. New For This Week
Meaning of the Gospel - Here is a helpful video explaining the Greek word for gospel [euaggelion] that we focused on last week in Fusion. CLICK HERE to Watch.
Who Is The Hero Of The Story? - CLICK HERE for a 2-minute YouTube walk through the Old Testament where Tim Keller demonstrates a Christocentric reading of the Scripture.
John Perkins - Story of A God Who Changes Lives - These two books were mentioned in Celebration today. CLICK HERE for the Amazon link to John's early life story in the book "Let Justice Roll Down," and CLICK HERE to see John's most recent word to the church, "One Blood." Both are available in the Harderwyk Library to check out. CLICK HERE to browse our offerings online.
II. From The Commentaries On This Passage
NT Wright offers some beautiful insight into the second part of Acts 9 that will do not have time to touch on this Sunday. Specifically, he focuses on Dorcas and this group of widows in Joppa. Side note: If anyone has the gift of making chocolate truffles - please let your pastor (any one will do, actually!) know right away 😉
"Two other things stand out from this small pastoral interlude. First, there is Dorcas herself, who stands as it were for all those unsung heroines who have got on with what they can do best and have done it to the glory of God. Had it not been for Peter, she might never have made it into the pages of the New Testament, and we have to assume that there were dozens in the early years, and thousands in later years, who, like her lived their lives in faith and hope, bearing the sorrows of life no doubt as well as celebrating its joys, and finding in the small acts of service to others a fulfilment of the gospel within their own sphere, using traditional skills to the glory of God. Luke was right to draw our eyes down to the small-scale and immediate, in case we should ever forget that these are the people who form the heart of the church, while the apostles and evangelists go about making important decisions, getting locked up, stoned or shipwrecked, preaching great sermons, writing great letters, and generally being great and good all over the place. I am privileged to know plenty of Dorcases. The day before I wrote this I met one whose speciality is chocolate truffles. When I meet such people I greet them as what they are, the beating heart of the people of God.
Second, the group Peter visited in Joppa was basically a group of widows (vv. 39,41). As we saw in chapter 6, the widows were beginning to form an important group within the life of the church. There is something poignant about this group, who by definition were all carrying one of life's largest forms of grief, becoming recognized and acknowledged as having, not merely a claim on the general resources, but a significant contribution to make. Do not belittle the ministry of stitching, sewing, knitting and generally providing for the needs of the larger community - especially at a time before anyone dreamed of mass-produced clothes. And do not forget to celebrate, as Luke does here, the fact that apparently ordinary people are not ordinary to God, and that when we tell the story of the great sweep of God's purposes in history there are, at every point, the Aeneases and the Dorcases who smile out of the page at us, like the robin in the garden, and remind us what it's really all about."
NT Wright, Acts for Everyone Part 1. (pp. 154-155)
III. Ongoing Resources
1) Spiritual Formation Resources Page - CLICK HERE - This is still a work in progress, but be a part as we look to build
2) Scotty Smith’s Heavenward Daily Prayers - CLICK HERE to see the daily prayer blog of Scotty Smith. You will see an option to have them delivered to your email inbox each day as well.
3) Simple Lectio Divina Overview - CLICK HERE for a simple introduction of the spiritual practice of a more personal way of experience the Word through contemplation and reflection.
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