Help Us To Be Conquerors
We have been studying through the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3, learning from God’s commendations and corrections for each church. I urge you to pray this prayer with me: You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created. To You be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. May that be ever true of our church, Lord, that we would live and function to your glory and praise, as Your Spirit powerfully transforms our lives by Your Word and uses us to reach those around us with Your beautiful gospel. Would you incline our ears to all that Your Spirit says, and enable us to conquer, rejoicing in Your Son, Jesus.
Why Do Christians Force Their Beliefs?
Perhaps you’ve wondered before why Christians feel the need to try to “convert” you to their religion. Can’t Christians leave others alone? Beliefs are personal business… why would someone try to push their beliefs on me? I think the best place to start is to ponder what their motivation may be. It is very possible to be a Christian and to miss the mark with arrogance or a superiority complex. But that’s actually not often the case. Take a step back and consider their motives with a different lens!
This is NOT the Year
Happy New Year! It’s 2020, and many of us have resolutions, goals, hopes, dreams. That’s good! We need regular prompts for change and fresh ambition, and if the turn of a new year does that, then press on! We all ought to be regularly stirred by a holy discontent that wrings our souls with desire to grow, to forget those things which are behind and reach forward to those things which are ahead (Philippians 3:13). But, know this: January 1, 2020 is no different than December 31, 2019. Being prompted by the turn of a new year is great… but putting hope in it will leave you devastated. Yes, God’s mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23), but that’s because we will continually need mercy, everyday.
Because God is Holy, Holy, Holy
It’s Christmas time. We remember the incarnation of Christ the King, the Light of the World, the Prince of Peace, laid in a manger. We do well to remember that He came for the purpose of dying on the cross, in order to satisfy the Father’s wrath and redeem sinful humanity. However, we must not forget why that is necessary: God is absolutely holy! It’s been just over 2 weeks since we looked together at the holiness of God during our Sunday morning worship. I still have not gotten over the depths of God’s holiness… have you?? Recall with me some of the proclamations made in Scripture.
How to Benefit from Taking Sermon Notes
Did you know? Nowhere in Scripture are we commanded to take sermon notes! We are urged to be doers of the Word and not hearers only, and to take heed how we listen. To take notes during the sermon is a tool for this purpose, rather than an assignment to complete. How can I make the most of note-taking during the sermon?
Unfinished.
Imagine having an ambition to build a beautiful house, and a costly investment to get started on the foundation… only to later get cold feet and bail without seeing the project through. What now? About 6 months ago, I posed some questions to stir a calculated decision for each one of us: 1. Is your spiritual growth worth it? 2. Is your Christian community worth it? 3. Is your church’s mission worth it?
What’s Wrong with My Bible?!
A disciple of Jesus is characterized by a love and hunger for God’s Word. As Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). As Isaiah put it, the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever (Isaiah 40:8). These were no ordinary words, as we know that all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Imperfect but Heroic Parenting
“Do as I say, not as I do!” Yesterday’s Father’s Day celebration may have stirred up gratitude or bitterness, treasured or sour memories, contentment or regret. Jesus tells us to be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48). But we know that our earthly parents are less than perfect, and we have managed to match them in our imperfections as parents. How then could we ever qualify as “heroes”?
The War Within
Do you find yourself in a cycling battle with sin? Have you found that your efforts to amputate sin in your life are met with rapid regrowth and recurrence of that sin? Do you find yourself crying out, O wretched man that I am! Is victory over your sin apparently in reach, but practically elusive? “I do what I do because I want what I want.”