In Genesis 48, we witness Jacob’s final blessing. Not just to his own sons, but also his grandsons, Ephraim and Manasseh. In a surprising reversal, the younger is blessed over the older, highlighting God’s pattern of grace that doesn’t follow human rules. Jacob reminds us to bless the next generation not just materially, but spiritually. Most powerfully, this chapter points us to Jesus… the Good Shepherd who redeems, blesses, and includes the undeserving. Whether you’re far from God or a…
Guest speaker, Dave Herring, looks at Psalm 42 and shows us how we can put our hope in Christ, even after we failed him. Dave is a former church planter and pastor. Island Pond Baptist Church is an SBC church in Hampstead, NH, just seconds from Derry, NH. We also have many people at our church from surrounding cities such as Chester, Sandown, Danville, Kingston, Fremont, Plaistow, Atkinson, Derry, Londonderry, Salem, and Haverhill. If you live in Southern New Hampshire,…
In Genesis 46–47, Jacob faces a foreign land when God tells him to leave everything familiar and go to Egypt. Through Jacob’s journey, we learn how to follow God when life feels uncertain: by sticking close to Him in prayer and obedience, trusting Him to provide, and choosing to be a blessing wherever we are. As believers, we are all sojourners in this world, and citizens of heaven who are called to walk with our Savior who is always with…
I want to discuss the term “limited atonement,” which is the “L” in TULIP. TULIP is an acronym used to describe the “five points of Calvinism”, though as we will see, TULIP and the phrase “limited atonement” were not written by Calvin and was not coined until the late 19th Century. Let’s start with a very brief history of TULIP. A Quick History John Calvin lived from 1509-1564 and was an instrumental French theologian, pastor, and reformer. Calvin is closely…
I am really glad you asked this question because this is an important issue for every Christian family to think through. Given that our church has grown a lot over the past decade, and particularly with young families, we have a growing amount of kids who are starting to figuratively sing along with Timon and Pumbaa, “Can you feel the love tonight?” If we, as the parents, do not think through this issue from a biblical perspective, it would be…
Note: This blog expresses the opinion of the pastor and is not an official church policy. The church leaders have started discussing the topic of appropriate uses of AI in the church and will put out a more official policy later on. In Psalm 150:6, the psalmist proclaims, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” But what about things that do not have breath? Specifically, artificial intelligence (AI). Can AI praise the Lord? My worship director and I…
“It is not the outward form, but the inward faith that makes the ordinance precious.” – Charles H. Spurgeon “The value of a sacrament depends entirely on the spirit in which it is used.” – J.C. Ryle “Let us not cling to the signs to the neglect of the things signified.” – John Calvin There’s a post going around lately about those little communion packets. You know, the ones with the peel-back lid and the tasteless wafer sealed under crinkly…