Scriptures: 2 Timothy 3:16 & Romans 15:4
Song of Praise: Doxology
Devotion:
The functions of the Old Testament and the New Testament are often severely misunderstood.
Sadly, many churches view the Old Testament as a sort of rough draft, with the New Testament being the polished up version of God's redemptive tale.
This idea is a woeful fallacy.
God has never failed and has never decided to recalculate His redemption plan.
Before He built the foundation of the Earth, God made a covenant within His triune self to save lost sinners unto Himself.
This is often referred to as the covenant of redemption.
The whole Bible chronicles this covenant’s fulfillment.
The Old and New Testaments do not contradict each other. They are the simple unfolding of God's plan for redemption.
Just like any other book, each chapter builds upon the prior knowledge dispensed.
The Old Testament shows us the mere shadows of God's plan. Slowly revealing more of God's character. The New Testament is the full revelation of God's plan, just as Jesus is the fullness of God.
Each story in the Old Testament softly whispers of God's redemptive plan.
Each Old Testament story points us to Jesus.
The creation account introduces us to the Creator who would one day recreate a broken universe.
The law of God points us to the perfect nature and wisdom of God, and our need for a Redeemer.
The gruesome nature of the sacrificial system helps us understand the importance and need for Jesus' blood sacrifice.
All of the Prophets, Priests, and Kings point us to the three offices that the risen Savior, Jesus, now holds.
Every story and every aspect of the Old Testament is important to fully understand God's plan for redemption.
Jesus' death, burial, resurrection, and ascension have always been God's 'Plan A'.
In the coming days, we will take a closer look at a few Old Testament stories in an effort to grasp the beauty of God's grand plan.
Like a happy ending to a good book, the story of redemption ends with a marriage and a feast.
In order to rejoice in the culminating feast, we must first wrestle through the perils of the plot-line.
Without the harrowing story-line, the resolution and the feast are as cheap as a fast-food value meal.
Benediction:
May the Lord bless you and keep you;
May the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-26
Table Talk Questions:
Do the old testament and new treatment tell the same story?
what do old testament stories point us to in the new testament?
Why is it important to understand the old testament?
Meal: Salisbury steak, Mashed Potatoes, Garlic Bacon Parm Green beans, & Ericha's Magical Cinnamon Rolls
Recipes:
Sonie's Southern Salisbury Steak
Prep and Cook Time: 45-60 minutes
Serves: 6
Patties:
2 pound lean ground Beef
⅔ cup Bread Crumbs
4 teaspoon Ketchup
2 teaspoon Mustard
2 teaspoon Worcestershire
1 teaspoon Garlic powder
1 teaspoon Onion powder
Gravy:
2 packets Brown Gravy Mix
2 cup hot Water
1 teaspoon Ketchup
½ teaspoon Worcestershire
Instructions:
Combine all pattie ingredients in a large bowl and massage with your hands until ingredients are incorporated.
Heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Cook patties on both sides until no longer pink.
Lower temperature to low.
Whist together gravy mix and water until well blended.
Whisk in ketchup and worcestershire and pour over patties in skillet.
Allow to simmer until gravy warms and thinkens.
Garlic Bacon Parm Green Bean
Prep and Cook Time:
Serves: 8-10
6 cups Green Beans
½ pound Bacon diced
1 Tablespoon Butter
2 teaspoon Garlic powder
3 Tablespoons Parmesan Cheese, grated
Salt and Pepper to taste
Start by trimming the ends of your green beans and slice into 2 inch pieces.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the green beans.
Cook until tender 5-8 minutes, drain, and set to the side.
In a large sized skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. drain some of the bacon grease, but not all. Add in the butter, garlic, green beans and parmesan cheese to skillet.
Cook until heated through.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Ericha's Magical Cinnamon Rolls
Prep and Cook Time: 3-3½ hours
Yields: 8-12 rolls depending on size
Rolls:
1 cup warm Milk
1 envelope active Yeast
6 Tablespoons Butter, melted
⅔ cup Sugar
1 Egg
3 ½ cup Bread Flour
1 ½ teaspoons Salt
⅔ cup Mashed Potatoes (yup, roll with it)
Filling:
½ stick of Butter, melted
¼ Cup Cinnamon
1 Cup Brown Sugar
½ Cup White Sugar
Icing:
1 bag of Powdered Sugar
1- 8 ounce block of Cream Cheese, softened
1 stick of Butter, softened
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Whole fat or Heavy Cream (about a Tablespoon)
Instructions:
Rolls:
In a medium sized saucepan, peel and boil about two medium sized potatoes.
Boil until soft, drain, and mash.
Measure ⅔ cup of potatoes and set aside to cool.
In a mixing bowl, add warm milk, and yeast.
Add sugar and allow the yeast to active for about 5 minutes.
Add remaining ingredients, mixing well for about 8-10 minutes. You may need as well.
Allow the dough to rise for about 30 minutes.
*while the dough rises, make your filling and icing.
Filling:
Melt your butter in a small bowl and set to the side.
In a separate small mixing bowl, mix together all of you other filling ingredients.
Set to the side.
Icing:
Mix together the softened cream cheese and butter.
Slowly add vanilla, and then powdered sugar, beating continuously.
Mix well.
In 1 teaspoon increments add just enough milk to bring your frosting to the desired consistency.
*you don’t need much.
Dough:
Once your dough as rested, roll it out onto a floured surface, stretching it onto a ¼ inch, rectangular shape.
Pour the melted butter onto the dough and spread it evenly.
Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture evenly onto the buttered dough, ensuring it reaches even the ends.
From the top of the rectangle, begin to tightly roll the dough down into a long, log-like roll.
Once the dough is rolled, cut the dough log into 2 inch pieces.
Place the pieces into 2-8 inch round cake pans. This bakes the most evenly. or a greased 9x13 pan will also do.
Allow them to rise until they nearly double in size.
That may take anywhere from 35 minutes to an hour, depending on their size and what pan you used.
Bake at 350 F until they become golden brown, don't ever bake them, they will become dry.
A great trick to determine if they are done, is by lightly pressing down on the very center of the risen roll. If it springs back easily, you are likely fully baked.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes before icing them.
Frost with your cream cheese icing and serve warm or cooled.