Christian Living

Discipline is the Key to Successful Relationships

Proverbs 1.3 teaches that their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives, to help them do what is right, just, and fair. This teaching refers to the purpose of the Proverbs, the wiseimages sayings written predominantly by the wisest person to ever live.

What is the key to wisdom? The key to living a wise life is to live a life of discipline. A simple answer really to a simple question. The doing of the answer is what we find immensely difficult. (more…)

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March 14, 2016
evangelism

How Christians Can Most Effectively Deliver Their Message

2 Corinthians 4.4 describes Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who imagedon’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.

‘The devil made me do it’ is a euphemism for describing why I choose to do the wrong or naughty thing. When the world is askew, when all kinds of bad things are occurring, it isn’t the devil we blame but God. (more…)

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March 4, 2016
Christian Living

Real Men Wanted

1 Corinthians 16.13-14 commands, be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Do imageseverything with love.

This may be my favorite verses in the Bible. I am particularly drawn to the admonition to act like men. We need more of that today particularly in this highly feminized culture where the woman of the year for 2015 was/is a man.

Most Bible translations change the phrase ‘act like men’ to ‘be courageous.’ I like that change because it equates manliness with courage. (more…)

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March 1, 2016
evangelism / Judgement / obedience

What God Requires From Us

Luke 9.60 comments, let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach aboutimage the Kingdom of God.

God requires only a few things from us but He appears fairly adamant about those few things.

First is to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. While we look to make the adherence to this command a feeling within ourselves God measures it by His second command which is to love our neighbor as ourselves. (more…)

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February 23, 2016
Christian Living / heaven

The Blessing of Children

Exodus 1.21 explains, because the midwives feared God, He gave them families of their own.image

What was God’s response to some pro-lifers who defied their king? Bless them with children. What was God’s response to His people who were suffering immense hardship in slavery? Bless them with children.

God’s greatest blessings are children. (more…)

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February 18, 2016
Christian Living

The Power of Weakness

1 Corinthians 2.3 observes, I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling.image

Weakness is a despised attribute in the world even among Christians. We try and pretend its not something God honors but it is.

We turn this godly virtue on its head when we quote the Bible’s promise, ‘when we are weak then we are strong.’ We like that ending strong part pretending we are never really weak. But the verse really means when we are really weak that’s when we are really strong in the eyes of God not man.

The problem is our God models for us weakness and humility over and over but we try and try to ignore it. (more…)

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February 15, 2016
Christian Living / heaven

What Do You Think About?

Romans 13.14 commands, don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.image

Contentment is a difficult virtue to maintain. It seems to last only moments before we move onto the next fantasy relationship or wished for possession that would finally make our lives complete.

If we could record our daily thoughts then replay them at night we might be surprised to find how much of those thoughts are spent wishing for someone or something else. God commands us not to live in this fantasy for many reasons. (more…)

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February 10, 2016
evangelism / Judgement / obedience

God’s Workers or God Robbers?

Mark 11.17 describes, My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations . But you have turned it imageinto a den of robbers!

What is the purpose of Church?

If the Church is the world wide ‘body’ of Christ, the faithful followers of Jesus, then it’s mission is the Great Commission. If the Church is the local building where the followers of Jesus gather then…..it gets a bit more nebulous, at least to the followers. (more…)

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February 8, 2016
heaven / Judgement

What Does it Mean to be Good?

Romans 4.25 describes that He was handed over to die because of our sins, and He was raised to life toimage make us right with God.

Religion is the attempt to make people right with God. Performance is essential for success.

Even the agnostic plays this game by convincing themselves they are essentially good people deserving of heaven if there proves to be a god in the end. Being right with God by the agnostic and the religious is defined as doing more good in life than bad.

But what is good? (more…)

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February 2, 2016
faith / obedience / Suffering

Faith is Working With God through Difficult Circumstances

Esther 4.16 comments, If I must die, I must die.image

One of the heroes of the Bible is the young woman Esther. An oft quoted statement from the book in her memory is ‘perhaps you were made queen for such a time as this.’

The story of Esther is one of tragedy and triumph, of faith and courage, of God’s faithful work behind the scenes when people risk all for His purposes. (more…)

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January 28, 2016