...“‘These people honor me with their lips,but their hearts are far from me." (Mark 7:6) As I was sitting at a busy intersection waiting for the light to change, I couldn’t help but notice the huge Playboy logo on the back window of the SUV in front of me. A few moments later, the light … Continue reading The Single Greatest Cause of Atheism
Grace Notes
Don’t. Give. Up.
Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. (Luke 18:1) Alvin J. Vander Greind shares the following story in Discipleship Journal: Johnny Jones, living in a middle-class suburb in central California, committed to pray for five blessings on five neighbors for five minutes a … Continue reading Don’t. Give. Up.
An Unsettling Picture of Jesus
"Then Jesus said to her, 'Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” (Matthew 15:28) What we have in Matthew 15:21-18 is, at first glance, an unsettling picture of Jesus. Here’s the scene: a Gentile woman, whose daughter is possessed by a demon, seeks out Jesus. She knows full-well Jesus will recognize her as … Continue reading An Unsettling Picture of Jesus
What’s Love Got To Do With It? (Everything)
If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could … Continue reading What’s Love Got To Do With It? (Everything)
Called to…..Suffer?
Take [with me] your share of the hardships and suffering [which you are called to endure] as a good (first-class) soldier of Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 2:3; Amplified) Dr. Erwin Lutzer has been pastor of The Moody Church in Chicago since 1980. After listening to a sermon of his the other day on Paul’s “thorn … Continue reading Called to…..Suffer?
Finding Jesus In an Asylum
Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. (Romans 3:24-25) It's … Continue reading Finding Jesus In an Asylum
Bitter or Better: It’s a Choice
[Job said], "The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD." Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God. (Job 1:21-22) It had been 25 years since I’d visited with him. We attended college together. We were members of the same fraternity. We had … Continue reading Bitter or Better: It’s a Choice
How To Handle a Critic
Some of [the Pharisees] were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely….[The ungodly] are grumblers and fault-finders... (Mark 3:2; Jude 16) Recently, I ran across an article written by Charles Lowery entitled, “Arrows in the Back.” A long-time pastor, teacher, and professional counselor, Lowery knows what he’s talking about when … Continue reading How To Handle a Critic
Better Than Kevlar
“But Thou, O LORD, are a shield for me…” (Psalm 3:3) Psalms 3 presents a number of ‘firsts’ in the Psalms: the first to exhibit a Psalm heading (A psalm of David….); the first psalm to attribute its authorship to David; the first occurrence of the rather enigmatic term ‘selah’ (which scholars believe means “pause, … Continue reading Better Than Kevlar
America’s Crisis of Biblical Illiteracy
[Jesus said to them,] "Your problem is that you don’t know the Scriptures. (Matthew 22:29, nlt) Several years ago, the George Barna Group asked basic doctrinal questions to over 6000 adults representing all major church denominations. What Barna discovered will shock you: • Only 41% believed in the total accuracy of the Bible. • Only … Continue reading America’s Crisis of Biblical Illiteracy