There is joy and peace in believing. Once we know Jesus and the forgiveness he has granted us through faith, joy and peace begin to flow. The problem is if our faith weakens and our spiritual-mindedness begins to diminish, so does the joy and peace that flows from it. There is peace in knowing that we are no longer at … Continue reading Joy and Peace in Believing
When we read God's statement in scripture where he says, "For this very purpose I have raised you up," commonplace religion has conditioned us always to expect the reason to be something positive for the person addressed. Perhaps God raised this person up to save a group of people from genocide, like Esther. Maybe God raised this … Continue reading For this Purpose I Raised You Up
Throughout history, we see the church expand and contract not only in size but also in terms of its faithfulness to Jesus Christ and his word. Today, in North America, the visible church as a whole seems to be in a time of decline. Many churches are shrinking or closing, and many others are giving into the … Continue reading The Remnant is Like a Fuse
“You have access to a world of knowledge on the phone in your pocket, but you have no wisdom.” Would this be something God would say to many of us in the church today if he were to speak to us in the same way he spoke to the church in Laodicea in the book of Revelation? … Continue reading If the Letter to Laodicea was Written to Us
Spiritual emptiness can manifest itself in countless ways, but in our culture, one of the ways it reveals itself is in shopping to find fulfillment. This is the kind of shopping that seeks to medicate a dry and thirsty soul with consumer products. In a consumer culture like ours, fulfillment shopping is exactly what we should expect. Many people will … Continue reading Never Shop on an Empty Soul
Put yourself in this situation. It is somewhere between 70 and 95 AD, and the church is under siege by the world. You have seen Nero take some of your brothers and sisters in Christ, tie them to poles, cover them in tar, and set them on fire to light his parties. The enemies of God have even … Continue reading When Downcast, Look to the Throne
We all tend to examine others more quickly than we examine ourselves. How many sermons have we sat through only to critique the pastor afterward without ever considering how we measure up to the text he was preaching? Below is the second sermon I had the privilege of preaching this weekend, addressing this tendency. CLICK TO READ MORE...
If we have been nursing secret sin and not been exposed, that is because God has not decided to reveal it up to this point. Nothing we do is unknown to God, and in his omnipotence, he could expose us at any moment if he so chooses. Sin is only as hidden as God allows. We see … Continue reading Sin is Only as Hidden as God Allows
My biggest struggle with daily devotions is not carving out the 20 to 30 minutes needed to read the word and spend time with God. The most difficult part is slowing down my heart and mind enough to get anything from it. Here is the challenge. I usually wake up to an endless list of tasks … Continue reading My Biggest Struggle with Daily Devotions
We have already given too much of our lives doing things godless people do. It is time we consider ourselves dead to sin (Romans 6:11). We were born in iniquity. Adam's sin brought condemnation to us all (Romans 5:8), and before we complain that we should not be condemned for Adam's transgression, let us be sure that we have done … Continue reading Consider Yourself Dead to Sin
The Fight of Faith 