Galatians 4.19 comments, Do you know how I feel right now, and will feel until Christ’s life becomes 
visible in your lives?
The key phrase here is ‘until Christ’s life becomes visible in your lives.’ This is the goal of God in the development of our character. We are to bear the fruit of the Spirit, doing the work of Jesus, in the way of Jesus, for the glory of God and the welfare of humanity. What does this look like? (more…)
2 Corinthians 13.5-9 challenges, test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don’t drift along
taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it. I hope the test won’t show that we have failed.
In every endeavor where we measure performance we test. From academia to sports to the lab we test in order to determine strength, truth or ability. In Christianity, we tend not to test. (more…)
2 Samuel 16.11-12 describes, my own son, my flesh and bone, is right now trying to kill me; compared 
to that this Benjaminite is small potatoes. Don’t bother with him; let him curse; he’s preaching GOD ’s word to me. And who knows, maybe GOD will see the trouble I’m in today and exchange the curses for something good.
David was immensely humble before God. He saw life’s circumstances as being part of God’s plan for his life – whether good or bad. David had received many good promises from God and many great evidences of God’s favor toward him. These things always took place in the midst of trouble and difficulty. (more…)
Ezekiel 21.13 describes, testing comes. Why have you despised discipline? You can’t get around it. 
Decree of GOD, the Master.
The human condition is filled with trials and tribulations, some worse than others but none are immune from such experiences. It is because the world rebelled against God so many years ago, now the seed of disobedience reigns within it. Weeds grow, things break, animals attack, people hurt one another, hurricanes occur, the list goes on. Testing comes to all and all of us are tested at various times. (more…)
2 Corinthians 2.9-11, reminds us, the focus of my letter wasn’t on punishing the offender but on 
getting you to take responsibility for the health of the church. So if you forgive him, I forgive him. Don’t think I’m carrying around a list of personal grudges. The fact is that I’m joining in with your forgiveness, as Christ is with us, guiding us. After all, we don’t want to unwittingly give Satan an opening for yet more mischief—we’re not oblivious to his sly ways!
The health of the church is the responsibility of each of the members. The key to church health is each member seeing themselves as having an ownership interest. How does a church remain, become and develop it’s health? By living according to God’s Word. (more…)
1 Corinthians 15.58 invites, don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident 
that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.
This is our mission, the Great Commission. We are to conduct this mission with our whole heart, throwing ourselves into this work, knowing that eternal reward awaits when we face our God and give account for the life we lived on this earth. (more…)
Ezekiel 9.3-4 describes, the Glory of the God of Israel ascended from His usual place above the 
cherubim-angels, moved to the threshold of the Temple, and called to the man with the writing case who was dressed in linen: Go through the streets of Jerusalem and put a mark on the forehead of everyone who is in anguish over the outrageous obscenities being done in the city.
How many people would be marked by God today who grieve over the dishonor so prevalent against God in our society? So many grumble about the lawlessness. So many shake their heads at the violence but who is in anguish over the godlessness we see in the news daily? (more…)
1 Corinthians 9.19-23 records, even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I 
have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!
The purpose of the Christian life, the work we are to do, is to win people to Christ in order for God to accomplish His purpose of not seeing anyone perish but for all to come to eternal life. (more…)
Enter your email below to get your free resource, periodic news, and new blog post notifications.
