Christian Living / obedience / Prayer

Fulfilling Good Intentions

Matthew 26:41 warns we watch and pray so that we will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing,image but the flesh is weak.

God understands we are a people of good intentions but powerless to fulfill those intentions. Diets prove that to us on an all too frequent basis.

Even deep loving intentions are often unrealized like Peter’s promise not to ever deny Jesus which he failed within hours of making. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. (more…)

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January 26, 2015
Christian Living / obedience

Appeasing God

Matthew 22:36 asks which is the greatest commandment?image

No doubt every religious person from all time all over the planet has asked himself and his god what must I do to please you? Religion is the answer to that question.

Over time and in many places that answer has become quite burdensome to those who seek to please the god of their or others creation.

The One True God made a personal appearance as one of us in Jesus and so the question was asked of Him what must we do to appease You? The answer is simple and immensely difficult. (more…)

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January 22, 2015
Christian Living

Happiness or Joy

Acts 16:34 describes he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God.image

What’s the difference between being happy and having joy?

I would suggest happiness is a result of circumstances and joy is the result of attitude. Feelings tell me whether I am happy or not but conviction tells me I have joy.

Interestingly, God promises joy but not happiness. (more…)

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January 16, 2015
Christian Living

Exclusive or Inclusive or Both?

Acts 15:19 observes that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.image

Whenever we start something new we have to define what it is so we can name it and then determine who is in and who is out. The Christians had this dilemma when starting the Church.

They began by calling themselves The Way, since Jesus claimed to be the Way to heaven and the fulfillment of the Jewish religion as the Way to God and the Way of God. They were first called Christians by pagans because they always mentioned the Christ, this name stuck so that is what they became known as.

The question quickly arose among them for a proper definition of Christian. (more…)

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January 15, 2015
heaven / Judgement / Theology

Why all Religions Can’t get us to Heaven

Matthew 7:14 warns small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.images

This generation finds offensive God’s instruction that He has only one way for entering heaven. It seems more fair, more loving, more gracious for all religions to be acceptable to God so that all people can get to heaven.

The problem with this thinking is that it ignores the love of God and the sacrifice God made for saving people. (more…)

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January 7, 2015
Christian Living / Judgement / money / obedience

Pursuing Treasure

Matthew 6:19 commands ‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.’images

When God lived among us He said, ‘do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth.’ We need to read that again slowly, thinking carefully about His words. God said, ‘do not store up treasures on earth.’

Yet most of us ignore Him. We are like the Israelites we read about in the Bible who constantly ignore God’s commands so we find ourselves shaking our heads at their disobedience and subsequent negative consequences. (more…)

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January 6, 2015
Christian Living / evangelism / obedience

God’s goal for 2015

Malachi 2:6 describes he passed on to the people all the truth he got from me. He did not lie or cheat; he walked with me, living a good and righteous life, and turned many from their lives of sin.images

In this description of one of God’s favorite people, Levi, He is describing the role of the priest. At least among the Protestants, the belief is held that all Christians are now priests. The tribe of Levi has been replaced with the Spirit filled people of God who walk by faith and obedience under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. (more…)

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December 29, 2014
Christian Living / Free Bible Reading Plan / obedience

Seeing More of God

John 14:23 reveals I will only reveal Myself to those who love Me and obey Me.th

God loves everyone but God does not treat everyone the same.

God loves everyone as He demonstrated by coming to earth as a man to die as a sacrifice so that all humanity might be pardoned for all their evil done against God and one another. Yet not all of humanity will receive God’s pardon nor will all recognize Jesus as God the Savior while they continue in this life living selfishly and ignoring the commands of God.

It is only those who love God as demonstrated by obedience to God that see God and experience His presence in their lives. (more…)

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December 24, 2014
Christian Living / obedience

Feeling Bad

John 12:25 warns if you love your life down here—you will lose it. If you despise your life down here—you will exchange it for eternal glory.image

For a long time I understood this instruction from God to mean I was to despise the way I lived in disobedience to Him. I thought if I was really connected with God my disobedience to Him which is so consistent, would grieve me to such a degree that I would despise myself.

My logic flowed from understanding the opposite of this thinking. Those who ignore God have a good time doing those things that displease God without regret or concern (much of the time), so the opposite must be true as well. Those who seek to please God but find themselves constantly falling short must despise themselves for their poverty of godliness. (more…)

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December 23, 2014
Christian Living / Theology

man as God or God as man?

Luke 1.35 proclaims the child to be born will be called the Son of God.images

Christmas is the Christian holiday of celebrating the arrival of God to earth as a man in order to become the human sacrifice for God.

The original sin, and all sin since then, can be boiled down to the single issue of man wants to be god. Our anger is a direct reflection of this inherent bent for our angry feelings reflect our unhappiness with the fact that all is not going according to our sovereign will.

Buddhism, Hinduism and Mormonism all have as their end game the divinity of their adherents if they are faithful to follow their religious teachings. This is the ultimate expression of that inherent desire to be god; the all controlling, all powerful, all worshiped, all adhered to, all envied being we wish we would become. (more…)

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December 22, 2014