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The Canaanite World; a divine council under the “head or lead god” El Elyon Long before Israel existed, the peoples of Canaan worship a high God called L – the ancient creator, the father of gods and men, the head of the divine council. He was called El Elyon = God most high El Shaddai = God of the Mountain, and El Olam = everlasting God come on my God, Almighty These titles appear in the…

The direct link between Jews and Samaritans is that they were historically related peoples who both traced themselves to Israel, but they became separated by religion, politics, and mutual hostility. In the New Testament era, Jews generally regarded Samaritans as outsiders and often avoided close contact with them. Shared ancestry Samaritans were not viewed as completely foreign in the same way…

Getting Righteous and a Future Guarantee. For Paul, there was a distinction between “right-now” salvation and the “future promise” that being SAVED meant. In contemporary terms there is a phrase called the “Judicial Model.” It was Paul’s way of describing the dual approach of understanding RE-gaining a right-relationship with God through the sacrificial purpose of Christ’s death AND the…

Pastor – Preacher – Leader “A Quick List” The Nine PREACHING Goals Always Do These! Intentionality: Address the message premise directly. Avoid hesitation. Relevance Theory: Connect the premise personally. Relate the message to individual experiences. Outside Criticism: Seek authoritative verification to support your premise. Be Provocative: Use thoughtful, memorable phrases to engage your…

Climbing StairsBy: Rev. Ed Schneider, MPTh https://a.co/d/0cfG8LRlEbook Review “I just finished reading Climbing Stairs: Investigating Successful Vision Planning for Church Growth, and I have to say… it genuinely stood out. The way it blends practical leadership, biblical grounding, and real-world organizational insight feels both empowering and deeply resonant. Reading it, I felt motivated,…

The following resource has been constructed from a wide variety of sources. The summaries are my own. Rev. Ed Schneider, MPTh. It is not a secret that one of the foundations of my teaching starts with the premise that it never matters what the Bible says, unless or until you know what it means. Another example of the building blocks of how I construct Christian education lessons involves…

Highlighted Quotes from Ed Schneider, pastor of Vergennes Church. Www.VergennesChurch.com/media Subject:Discipleship and costly following “When any individual continues to proclaim great ideas without the willingness or intention of living out those ideas in real life, that person is simply recruiting followers and not making disciples.” “The church does not exist to keep people comfortable…

From a Christian perspective, is the common understanding of the word “Destiny” wrong? The answers can vary depending on the context of its use and the foundational understanding of the one using the term and whomever may be listening. Talking about “Destiny” in Christianity is not simply a non‑orthodox import from Greek mythology, though popular uses of the word can drift toward non‑Christian…

Across the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the basic scene of two men being crucified with Jesus is agreed upon. However, the descriptions of the behavior of those men differs notably, especially between Matthew, Mark and Luke. In other words, all of the gospels strongly establish two others crucified. Also, it cannot be argued the same four gospels DO NOT agree about the character,…

Before Each Died, They Had Something Important to Share. Read carefully and think. Four reasonable attestations concerning Muhammad, Buddha, Confucius and Jesus. All of these people profoundly influenced billions of others. This claim can in no way be refuted. All of the above leaders were controversial, both in their own time and to this day. All of the four individuals were in their own…

Making the message plain. Welcome Home Central Idea: God never saves anyone to walk alone; in Scripture, believers are joined to Christ and joined to a local body for worship, growth, service, and witness. 1. God Saves Us Into a People (Not Just a Person) • Acts 2:41–47 – Those who believed were baptized, added to the church, and continued together in teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread,…

Rev. Ed Schneider, MPTh A two scriptures to begin. Proverbs 1:32 – “For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them.” Proverbs 18:2 – “Fools have no interest in understanding; they only want to air their own opinions.” Why do far too many people want to pretend they should teach to others ANYTHING about the Bible….when most are practically clueless…

A few thoughts about caring for others I was on my way today to the 325th funeral that I have officiated over the course of the last several decades. As I was getting myself ready and placing all of the clergy clothing that was necessary, it did not get lost on me the privilege that I have had to help others deal with, express, and sometimes circumvent in a healthy way the early stages of…

Ed Schneider, MPTh “leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about taking care of those in your charge.“ (Simon Sinek) “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” (Mahatma Gandhi) “if you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.” (Booker T. Washington) “if serving is beneath you, leadership is beyond you.” (Anonymous) “The very essence of…

Message: Adam, Moses, Jesus and You.  Romans 5:13-20 CEV 13 Sin was in the world before the Law came. But no record of sin was kept, because there was no Law.  14 Yet death still had power over all who lived from the time of Adam to the time of Moses. This happened, though not everyone disobeyed a direct command from God, as Adam did. In some ways Adam is like Christ who came later. 15 But…