Do you have such an eager heart for Jesus to come again? For the Last Day? Are you ready for that day? It’s hard, isn’t it? There’s so much to do and so little time. Our lives are complicated, and money is short There may even be times when you doubt God’s love because of what’s going on in your life and how things in this world perhaps seem so unjust. Tune in to this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge to hear what Malachi had to say about this and how his prophesy ties to Elijah and then Jesus and how that impacts us today.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, from the Old Testament reading from Exodus, we hear God call Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. “Who Am I?” is the key question and leads to some of the most profound discoveries in the Old Testament — also, some of the most profound realizations about ourselves.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, you're invited to hear what might be a different perspective on what it means to be a "saint" and what Jesus was really saying in His "Sermon on the Mount," specifically the Beatitudes. Join us as Pastor Ruffatto opens up the scripture and looks at the actual grammatical meaning and context of "Blessed are..."
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, we listen to what Jesus speaks to some Jews who had believed in Him. He tells them (and us) what it means to be one of His disciples. “If you abide in My Word, you are truly My disciples …” In other words, stay in it, stay with it, rest by it. Yet, Jesus is not merely saying, “Rest in what I say.” He is saying rest in Me and what I am doing for you. And we can rest in Him because Jesus is the Word we hear about in the beginning of John’s Gospel, the Word with God and the Word that was God, the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us. The Word that these Jews had been hearing for years in the Law and the Writings and the Prophets – our Old Testament – is literally standing before them!
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge we hear the Old Testament of story from Genesis of Jacob wrestling with a man all night, prevailing, be touched on the hip, and then given the name Israel by this man. What is this all about? Who is this mysterious wrestler? And what does it mean for us? The answers might not be what you are expecting. The answers are likely better than what you were expecting.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, Pastor Ruffatto discusses Paul’s second letter to Timothy, his assistant who suffers from a bit of timidity. Paul has finished the instruction of details he outlined in his first letter and is encouraging Timothy – and you and me – to fan this live flame-- the torch we carry for Jesus -- because others needed – others now need – to be connected to our heavenly Father through the Gospel of His son Jesus.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, Pastor Ruffatto discusses Paul’s second letter to Timothy, his assistant who suffers from a bit of timidity. Paul has finished the instruction of details he outlined in his first letter and is encouraging Timothy – and you and me – to fan this live flame-- the torch we carry for Jesus -- because others needed – others now need – to be connected to our heavenly Father through the Gospel of His son Jesus.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, Rev. Ruffatto connects the mention God’s provision and protection by way of angels in the Old Testament (as mentioned by Daniel) to the angels of the New Testament in Jude and Revelation. The chief angel whom God mentions is Michael, who is called an archangel in the New Testament. It is through the service of His archangel Michael and all the other holy angels that God cares for and protects his people.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, Pastor Ruffatto unpacks Jesus’ illustrations of salt and light and what they mean to church congregations today. Christians are challenged to create a thirst for Jesus and to be the light of Truth in a dark world.
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge we pose the question: What does an Old Testament prophecy have to say to us today? From Sunday’s Old Testament lesson: “And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the Lord; I have spoken.”
What does this mean for us today? We don’t live a pastoral, agrarian lifestyle. So, who is Ezekiel talking about, and who is he addressing? Is he actually speaking figuratively? What are the realities he’s talking about in his prophecy? Are the realities still pertinent to us today?
Read MoreIn this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge, we discuss Jesus’ difficult to hear teaching, , “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.” And that’s not all. He goes on to say, “any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple.”
Not much “safe space” in His words, are there? But is that really the case? What does this mean? Could it be that there is more hope there than may meet the eye.
Read MoreHumility in Thinking about God Leads Us to Display True Humility Toward Others.
In this episode of Redeemer’s Refuge we ask “How often do you think of God as being ‘high and far away’? Have you ever thought, ‘He is up in heaven,’ ‘He is glorious and powerful, and we – well, are not!’?”
This is most certainly true, right?
Then we go a little further, believing we must make our way to Him – climb toward heaven, ascend in our thoughts and actions in order to be with Him.
But this is dangerous thinking.
While the distance between us and God is real, we must be careful when we consider how that distance is traveled.
Read More