It has been *said that studying and teaching the Bible involves bridging a chasm between two worlds. One side of the chasm is the Bible with its audience and their cultural, historical context. On the other side is the audience of today with its own context. The challenge in understanding the Bible is not only being able to comprehend the words on the page but to understand what those words meant to ‘them and then’ in order to understand what it should mean for ‘us and now’. To help bridge the gap, the below information has been compiled to provide you with a guide as you read through the prop ..read more

“And the soldiers led him away inside the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters), and they called together the whole battalion. 17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on him. 18 And they began to salute him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 19 And they were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him and kneeling down in homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to crucify him.  21 And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, w ..read more

One of the criminals who were hanged railed at [Jesus], saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” -Luke 14:34-36 Jesus, Remember Me I cannot bring you anything. No offering of worth, worthy to gain your remembranc ..read more

This past Sunday we sang “All Sufficient Merit” for the first time in our church gathering (here is a link to the song). It is a gospel-filled song and I hope that this Easter season it is an encouragement and reminder to you of the great salvation we have. Perhaps the first question someone might have about this song is what is meant by merit? Many of us have been ingrained with the idea that grace (a free gift) and merit (something earned) are opposed to each other, and for good reason. Ephesians 2:8-9 says “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it i ..read more

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. - Isaiah 53:5 Check out the Judgment and Mercy Conference messages here. Wake up, brew your coffee, and commune with God in His Word. Pause for some sustenance. Toast a slice of whole grain bread. Spread butter and jam, it's more palatable that way. Take a bite. It’s sweet. Maybe strawberry rhubarb with a kick of tart on the backend (my favorite). Or maybe it’s that pomegranate jelly gifted to you during the conference last week ..read more

When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tel ..read more

“Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,  To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:  2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hol ..read more

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5 Check out last Sunday’s sermon here.  Question: Does darkness not overcome light, or does darkness not comprehend the light? Students of the Bible might scratch their heads after reading John 1:5 in both the English Standard Version (ESV) and the New American Standard Bible (NASB). The ESV reads that, “...the darkness has not overcome it [the light].” The NASB reads, “...the darkness did not comprehend it.”  Which is correct? It comes down to the interpretation of the Greek Word, καταλαμβάνω (pronounce ..read more

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”  - Matthew 7:24–27 Check out last Sunday’s sermon here. Jesus is exceptional ..read more

Dear Ridgeview Bible Church Family, I am very excited to begin serving the church full time in the coming weeks. My first official day will be September 30, 2023. I am grateful to the elders for providing me some time in my current role at Chadron State to help my department make staffing transitions. Between now and that time, I plan to help with preaching and continuing the work of a lay elder, adding pastoral tasks as time allows. Liz and I appreciate your prayers through this busy season. I believe our church has two needs in the coming months. These needs are not new. We have been challen ..read more