Dr. Case Thorp | Matthew 18:21-35

The story of the unforgiving servant reveals the pain we endure when we FAIL to forgive – and the blessing when we do.

Dr. David Swanson | Jeremiah 29:1-10

The third part of our look at belonging involves place or "stabilitas" – the security of investing in a place. We’ll learn from Hebrews 11 – always on a journey towards "home" – the promised land – we never arrive – but place becomes a placeholder for what we will one day know.

Dr. David Swanson | Exodus 20:12-17

The second part of our look at belonging is about people. As we journey mree deeply into belonging to God, we journey with a people, a people uniquely set apart for God's Kingdom and pleasure. We "belong" to the Body of Christ, to the people of G9d, as first outlined in the second half of the ten commandments. What does it look like to belong to one another?

Dr. David Swanson | Exodus 20:1-11

As we think about the three elements of belonging, presence with God is where we begin. The first four commandments help us frame what that looks like and HOW we can experience the presence of God in more meaningful ways. We BELONG to God.

Dr. David Swanson | Lev 24:1-9

We recognize all the ways God is present to us and we celebrate that!

Rev. Tanner Fox | Leviticus 21:1-4; 22:1-3, 31-33

With Jesus as our Great and only High Priest, what are these rules and prohibitions for the priests good for? How should they be seen or used in the church today? The NT reminds us that the call to be holy as God is holy remains in place. And we are even told that, in Christ, we are a royal priesthood. As a royal priesthood, it is good for us to ask, what mediating role are we to play and what sort of life are we to live. I will offer the idea that Jesus’s salt and light metaphors teach us much about our priestly role in the world! 

Dr. Jack Peebles | Leviticus 19:1-5, 9-10; 20:7-8

Four times within Leviticus, God offers this command: “Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.” Holiness is a condition of our hearts created by God, and a way of behaving lived by us. Born out of our relationship with God, it works from the inside out. Leviticus 19 and 20 cover the ways in which holiness is ordered and lived out in relationship to others.

Dr. David Swanson | Lev 18:1-5, 24-30

Of all the chapters in the Bible, this one may be the most specific on prohibitions regarding our sexuality. God has given us a great gift, and it is to be honored and protected, used as prescribed. In that way, God is honored, which is our purpose.

Dr. David Swanson | Lev 17:1-11

God calls us to a life of worship for very particular reasons, including by the "blood."

Bret Allen | Lev 16:6-10, 20-22

God's desire for us is to be in His presence. But to be in the presence of a Holy God there must be atonement for sin. It's God's great love for us and desire to be present with us and in relationship with us that motivates the Day of Atonement and ultimately the cross of Jesus Christ. Oh, the love of God!!