John 5.41-42 states, your approval means nothing to Me, because I know you don’t have God’s love
within you.
Having this attitude would certainly go a long way in helping the Church live more like Jesus. God as Man, Jesus, sought the approval of One, God the Father, but He called all those who love God and seek to obey His commands His brothers and sisters and mothers. (more…)
1 Peter 3.12 promises, the eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to
their prayers. But the LORD turns his face against those who do evil.
This promise is what we would expect from a God Who is good. It makes sense to us that a good God would watch over those who do good and hear their prayers. It also makes sense to us that God would oppose those who do evil in the world.
There is a disconnect however from this logic and some of our experiences. Evil in the world is a problem for people. (more…)
James 4.3-4 claims, you want only what will give you pleasure. You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the
world, you make yourself an enemy of God.
What do you think, is what we really want only what gives us pleasure? I’m thinking that God is correct, what I want most and most often is what will bring me pleasure.
God’s description of this malady? Adultery! (more…)
Psalm 46.10 proclaims, be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be
honored throughout the world.
God is at work in the world making Himself known, working to reconcile the world to Himself. When men are at peace with God men are at peace with each other.
It is the enemy of God who comes to steal, kill and destroy thus motivating the havoc we experience in families and nations. (more…)
Ecclesiastes 12.13 summarizes the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.
Biblically speaking the wisest person to ever live was king Solomon. He was made wise by God in response to his request of God for ruling over the people of God.
The book of Ecclesiastes is king Solomon’s observations from a long life guided by wisdom. His conclusion is the summary verse for today: fear God and obey His commands. (more…)
2 Timothy 1.7-8 explains, God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and
self-discipline. So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord.
A lot of Christians know the first verse but don’t understand its connected to the second verse. The purpose of the promise is to equip Christians for their mission.
The work of God is the bringing of His Kingdom to earth as it is in heaven. Step one is for every knee to bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Savior and Lord of all. (more…)
Leviticus 18.3-4 commands, do not act like the people in Egypt, where you used to live, or like the people of Canaan, where I am taking you. You must not imitate their way of life. You must obey all My
regulations and be careful to obey My decrees, for I am the LORD your God.
The other day I was accused of not being very Christian. The accusation was from a person who did not claim to be a Christian. This person, who didn’t use the ‘product’ seemed to know how the ‘product’ was to be used and according to him, I was doing it wrong.
While I wont get into the details the point is that people, in addition to God, expect Christians to live differently. Christians too believe this but struggle to differentiate their words, behaviors or habits from the rest of their culture. (more…)
Mark 12.34 observes, realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, You are not far from
the Kingdom of God.
Knowing and doing are not the same. We inherently know this in our dealings with people, especially family. We know our spouse loves us but sometimes their actions are hurtful. We know our children know what they are to do but they often fail to do what they have been made responsible to do.
On and on it goes in our experience of the gap between knowing and doing, both in our own lives as well as the lives of others. (more…)
1 Thessalonians 4.3 describes God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin.
An obvious difference between Christians and non Christians is or should be, behavior. This is so because our predisposition and the natural behavior of the non Christian, is to do whatever we want to do.
If we claim to be followers of God, servants of God, children of God then we will begin to conform our behavior to the will of God. The will of God is a reflection of the character of God. (more…)
Colossians 1.28 explains, we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ.
This verse most succinctly defines the occupation or purpose of every Christian: to bring people to Jesus and help them know His will.
When God lived on earth He began His work by inviting men to follow Him so that they could become fishers of men. When God left the earth entrusting His work to the care of men He commanded them to go and make disciples. (more…)
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