Father of the Inklings

The Command, Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, may also seem an illusive one. A moment's reflection, however, reveals this as one of the most down-to-earth of all Jesus' Commands.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings ....

Among the "spiritual" Commands, few are so illusive as this. Jesus concludes his Do not be anxious about your life discussion of the birds of the air and lilies of the the field in Matthew 6 with the words: Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read b...

One of the profound mysteries of the Christian Church is that human goodness has not comprised more focus in its theology. While it is true that greater good has been done throughout history by Christianity than any nation, movement, or creed, one is hard-pressed to find goodness at the center of any doctrinal teaching.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More informa...

If we transplant Peter's question and the Lord's response from Matthew 18 into the sixth chapter where the theme of forgiveness emerges out of the Lord's prayer, we would have a succinct teaching on prayer, forgiveness, and the reach of forgiveness.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inkling...

We noted that forgiveness is one of the least understood components of Christian doctrine. Sadly, it is misunderstood by Christians and non-Christians alike.    From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings . Visit  Amazon  to purchase The Commands and other books by Michael Phillips.

Righteousness is one of the more curious character qualities of the committed Christian disciple. Jesus tells us to let our light shine before men, but to pray, fast, and do good in secret. If it is visible obedience by Christians that changes the world, why are we also commanded to be invisibly righteous?   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this a...

It is fearfully easy to read the Do Not Commands and assume, "Oh, I would never do that." Because the context of examples used by Jesus sometimes seems so ludicrously absurd, we too easily overlook our own glaring presence in the midst of the Gospel pages.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the...

Created by his hand and in his image, all humanity are God's children. Yet we are put upon this earth to become something more, to become true sons and daughters of chosen obedience. Given life and, in time, independence, our destiny is gained by yielding back that independence into the hand of our Creator, and thus, by that relinquishment, discovering eternal childship.   From The Commands by Mic...

Countless sermons and devotions have been based on Jesus' exchange with the man we know as the "rich young ruler." The first three gospels recount the story using largely identical words and phrases. Indeed, this passage is one of those upon which scholars base their conviction that Matthew and Luke founded their writings upon Mark's gospel.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael...

From the elusive Command, Lose your life, we now encounter one of the most down to earth of all the Commands: Be a servant. No mystery exists here. We all know what it means to serve, to put someone else's need ahead of our own...the good deed, the kindness shown, the helping hand, the burden shared, the load lifted, the feet washed, the cup for the thirsty wayfarer. Opportunities for service are...

Most of Jesus' Commands are reasonably straightforward, easy enough to understand, uncomplicated, unambiguous. Easy to obey--no. Easy to understand--yes. It is not usually a question of being confused about what is required. Rather it is a question of how serious we are about wanting to obey.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar wri...

The great moral teacher interpretation of the life and impact of Jesus Christ is surely one of the most naive perspectives ever proposed for such an important historical figure. C.S. Lewis has memorably argued that anyone making the claims Jesus did must either be a lunatic, a madman, or what he claimed to be. It is not merely Jesus' claim to be one with God that is astonishing and revolutionary,...

The enormity of this Command is of such scope and magnitude that it is impossible to overstate. If Love is the first Command, this surely represents one of the most important dimensions of Love itself. Indeed, unity with our fellow man is one of Love's significant visible expressions. If we would "Be righteous," this is where it begins.  From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimba...

It has been mentioned before that Jesus occasionally uses overstatement and exaggeration to get his point across. This is obviously again the case here. No one seriously believes this Command is to be obeyed literally. None of Jesus' own disciples, to our knowledge, obeyed this Command as it stands, nor did Jesus expect them to.  From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More...

The Commands of Jesus seem to come in two broad categories: Those that are straightforward and relatively simple to obey...and those that are impossible to obey.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings . Visit  Amazon  to purchase The Commands and other books by Michael Phillips.

There are fewer more perplexing, misunderstood, misappropriated Commands in the Gospel than this. How many disappointments have been based on grandiose prayers for healing, for financial provision, for restored relationships, and for thousands of other good and worthy things... that have not happened? We have all experienced the ache, frustration, and confusion of unanswered prayer.   From The Com...

It is sometimes difficult to know how to live in the practical reality of Jesus' admonition in the latter half of Matthew 6: Consider the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. They neither sow nor reap, yet your heavenly father cares for them. So don't worry about what you shall eat or drink. We are all familiar with his words. But do they not often sound just a little too idealistic?   Fr...

Jesus does not stop with commanding belief in general, not even belief in God. He zeroes in with yet more precision and specificity by also commanding belief in him. This further dismisses the notion that Christianity may be equated with being a kind person and trying to do good in the world. Those are good things. But they are not Christianity.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Mic...

We find ourselves looking at a series of Commands subject to widely varied interpretation as we attempt to navigate the conundrum between the temporal and spiritual components of the Christian life - Love God, Love man... Give to the poor, Believe.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings...

From probably the most down-to-earth, if we may even phrase it thus, a most unspiritual among Jesus' Commands, we turn to one of the most spiritual: Believe.  From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings . Visit  Amazon  to purchase The Commands and other books by Michael Phillips.

Observe how much of Jesus' time was spent among the infirm, sick, destitute, crippled, blind, and demon-possessed.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings . Visit  Amazon  to purchase The Commands and other books by Michael Phillips.

Imbalance has always been the Achilles heel of Christianity. It might truly be said that imbalance in following the Commands of Jesus is responsible for the greater share of the unbelief in the world. Does anyone doubt that if every Command of Jesus had been sacrificially lived by his followers, not only would the world have been largely converted to Christianity, life would be a good and pleasant...

The first command Jesus issued specifically to his disciples is found in a simple but life-altering challenge: Follow Me.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on this and similar writings may be found at  Father of the Inklings . Visit  Amazon  to purchase The Commands and other books by Michael Phillips.

Most are familiar with the tradition behind Jesus' words in the above passage. Many sermon illustrations have explained the right of Roman soldiers in Palestine to compel any citizen to carry their equipment for a mile. To enforce the practicality of the life he would have his hearers lead, Jesus said to carry the burden two miles instead.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael K...

Humility in our day has fallen on hard times. Such can be said for most of the attributes of Christlikeness. But humility is especially embattled. The contrast between the world's perspective and that of Jesus is drawn with yet starker clarity when we substitute the word Jesus used to describe humility--meekness.   From The Commands by Michael Phillips. Read by Michael Kimball. More information on...