I once encountered a professing Christian who boldly declared he had not sinned in over ten years. The Apostle John's words resound: "He has deceived himself, and the truth is not in him." False teachings occasionally surface, suggesting that individuals can rise above the struggle with sin entirely in this life, but the Word of … Continue reading If We Say We Have No Sin
The following is a guest post by Pastor Rob Golding of First Artesia Christian Reformed Church. He also writes for the Westminster Theological Seminary Magazine. Christianity entails many divine ironies—the dead man lives; the humble woman is exalted; the servant is the King; finding life is losing it; salvation is not by works; the Son of … Continue reading Christian Maturity and Secular Infancy
I had nearly destroyed myself. I could feel the stress coursing through my body, and I knew the source. My love for the pleasures of this world was straining my soul. I had been seeking my meaning in them, and their uncertain nature made everything I was standing upon unstable, which had caused me to collapse in fear. Then something extraordinary happened.
If you are a Christian, you battle with sin. I do not need to list examples of the struggles with the flesh you may have. The minute you read the title of this post, you most likely had a specific battle in mind. You have within you both flesh and Spirit, and the two are … Continue reading 5 Truths About Your Battle with Sin You Hate to Admit
Run for your lives! Do not stop anywhere in the plain. Do not look back! Escape to the mountain, or you will die! (Genesis 19:17). This is still the gospel message. We are in danger of God's judgment and must escape from it if we would live. We must not stay anywhere in all the … Continue reading Living on the Borders of Sodom
I have been having more difficulty writing lately. I think it all started in January when work became extremely busy. It is not that I stopped using my creative energy; it is simply depleted by the end of the day with my other obligations. In one sense, this shows my priorities are correct. After my … Continue reading Writing As a Spiritual Discipline
Desiring to be a moral person is not the same as hungering for righteousness; This beatitude is much more than that. The first three beatitudes focus on our lack. In poverty of spirit, we realize we have nothing that can contribute to our good standing before God. In our mourning, we lament that fact. We no longer rejoice in our sinful autonomy; instead we weep because we know what it deserves. In meekness, we stop struggling against God and begin to submit to Him because we have no way of salvation in ourselves. In our hunger for righteousness,
You may know a sheep from a swine, when both have fallen into the same mire, and are, in fact, so bemired, that neither by coat nor color can the one be distinguished from the other. How then distinguish them? Nothing more easy! The sheep, a type of the godly, strives and struggles to get … Continue reading Dirty Sheep or Dirty Swine?
When we first set out, we hope to be spiritually rich--but the Lord's purpose is to make us sensible of our extreme poverty. We wish to be something--but He is teaching us that we are nothing.
An awful thing has happened. I was traveling, when, during the night, some of the wicked men of Benjamin arose and came after me with the intent to kill me. They raped and killed my concubine, so I divided up her body parts and sent them to the rest of the people of God so … Continue reading The Christian Civil War
The Fight of Faith 