Christian Living / obedience

Living Counter Culture

Jeremiah 2.19 observes “your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you. Consider imagethen and realize how evil and bitter it is for you when you forsake the Lord your God and have no awe of me,” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.”

“How’s it workin for you?” is a sarcastic question asked to those who keep doing the same thing with the same poor results. We might ask the Church the same question as we have ignored God and His commands repeatedly these past sixty years instead reaping a culture that is growing increasingly more hostile to traditional values or the free exercise thereof. (more…)

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July 6, 2015
evangelism / Titus

Attractive Advertising

Titus 2.10 commands we make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.images

The purpose of this command is so that God’s people can participate in God’s work of making Him known throughout the world. The goal is not just that He would be known but that He would be loved by every person on the earth.

God wants His people to live such attractive lives that people around them feel compelled to know God so they too can love Him.

How are we doing? (more…)

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April 23, 2015
evangelism / heaven / obedience

Loving God First

John 21.15 asks do you love me more than these?image

What are the ‘these’ God was contrasting Peter’s devotion with His love? Fish.

Its not that God was asking Peter if he loved fish more than Him but rather if he loved the fruit of working for himself more than the fruit of working for God.

Peter was hand chosen to be a fisher of men. The cost to accept this calling was to cease seeing himself as a fisher of fish. Succeeding in fishing meant a life of personal gain, good living, great reputation, worldly opportunities.

Succeeding at fishing for men would mean eternal life for some at personal sacrifice even to the point of death. Peter said he loved Jesus more so God told him to go to work building the church. (more…)

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March 31, 2015
evangelism / heaven / Judgement

Are WE on a Mission?

Acts 20:26 comments I am innocent of the blood of any of you.images

The Apostle Paul understood completely his mission to tell others about God’s offer of a pardon to all of humanity through Jesus His Son for all the evil humanity has ever done against God. Paul remembered the warning God gave to the prophet Ezekiel about failure to not warn Israel of approaching judgment.

God intended to hold Ezekiel accountable for faithfully declaring His command to repent lest the people perish without opportunity to make amends with God. Paul understood that God, by entrusting His message to His people of forgiveness through Jesus, held the same expectations for Christians as He had for Ezekiel. (more…)

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January 20, 2015
evangelism / Judgement / obedience

Drawing a Line in the Sand

Matthew 12:30 observes whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Meimage scatters.

On occasion in the gospels, Jesus, God Who has become man, throws down the gauntlet and demands we choose sides. This passage is one of those times when Jesus invites us to separate ourselves into wheat or chaff.

What does it mean for us when God demands we choose but we refuse to even engage the discussion? (more…)

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January 12, 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

Being a Good Example

John 5:17 records “My Father constantly does good, and I’m following His example.”images

Whoever claims to live in Christ must walk as Jesus did the beloved Apostle John wrote in his first letter to the church. How did God the Son walk? He followed the example of God the Father.

How should we as the children live? We should follow the example of God the Son. Simple really but not easy for the requirement of putting others first before ourselves is immensely difficult and to know what Jesus did we must be students of Who Jesus is.

God in Jesus set before us the example of seeking God the Father diligently through the Scriptures and through prayer. (more…)

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December 15, 2014
Christian Living / obedience

True Love

Revelation 2:5 Think about those times of your first love (how different now!) and turn back to Me again and work as you did imagebefore; or else..

While we all have felt love we all know that love is doing more than feeling.

In romantic love the feelings are overwhelming and they cause us to do many acts of good toward the one we love. When those feelings diminish over time too often the acts diminish as well sometimes resulting in a termination of the relationship.

God describes love in a couple of different ways. (more…)

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December 11, 2014
Christian Living

Giving rather than Getting

Luke 12:15 warns, “Beware! Don’t always be wishing for what you don’t have. For real life and real living are not related to how imagerich we are.”

Its black Friday, the day we justify spending hundreds of dollars in order to save hundreds of dollars to give people gifts they want but don’t need. I know, Christmas is about giving. That’s the point though, focusing on giving rather than upon getting. Easy for a few, difficult for most of us.

This annual event called Christmas is the celebration of God coming to earth to live among us as one of us in order to die for us so that He could spend eternity with us. (more…)

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November 28, 2014