The famous John the Baptist. Many of us have heard of or learned about him before. On the surface, it looks like he was one of the first to believe in and follow Jesus. But there is more to his story that many often miss.
Continue reading “A Closer Look: The Lesser-Known Truth of John the Baptist”
We’re always told to forgive people when they’ve wronged us. And ultimately, we should forgive them. But is there a limit for forgiveness? What if, after being forgiven, someone commits that same wrong again?
Think about ex-convicts out on parole. They’ve been released from prison on the trust of the state authorities that they won’t commit any more crimes. What good is that freedom for ex-cons if they break the law again and end back up in prison? They’re given freedom (“forgiven”) with a condition. That condition is to live a new life apart from crime.
Continue reading “You Are Forgiven (*Terms and Conditions Apply)”
If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
Proverbs 25:21
While it’s important to take care of the physical needs of people–even our enemies–you may be surprised to hear that there’s more to this proverb of King Solomon.
Continue reading “Food We Should Give to Our Enemies – The Proverbs Series”
It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way.
Proverbs 19:2
Zeal is defined as enthusiasm, passion, eagerness in pursuit of something–fervor. Maybe you’re a Christian trying to share the gospel. Or rather, maybe you’re someone who wants to help the poor, or work for a world of justice. But if we do these things without sound knowledge of what we’re doing, it’s no good. We might even end up doing the opposite of what we intended, or missing the mark.
Continue reading “Zeal Without Knowledge…It’s Not Good – The Proverbs Series”
People do bad things. Nothing new there. We’ve been wronging each other for thousands and thousands of years. Me too–I’ve done my share of things that hurt others and I’ve also been wronged. And for the first time, I think I can safely assume that you as well have been on the giving and receiving ends of wrongdoing.
Where am I going with this? The concept of forgiveness.
Continue reading “Do I Really Need to Forgive People Who Hurt Me?”
“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm–neither hot nor cold–I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Revelation 3:15-16
To be spat out. Well, that’s serious business. When would one use such uncomfortable words? Wouldn’t it be when we’re disgusted by something? When we’re at a point when we can’t hold something any longer and have to get rid of it?
So why would these words come from Jesus? This warning of calling it quits, this threat to reject. What kind of people would make Jesus say this? From the verse above, we can see that it’s those who are lukewarm. Let’s see what this means.
Continue reading “Don’t Be Lukewarm! How To Not Get Spat Out By Jesus”
“Get behind me, Satan!” These were words that Jesus spoke to his own disciple, Peter. Undoubtedly, Jesus was known for being sharp with his words, but doesn’t it seem a little extreme to call a disciple, who left everything to follow you, ‘Satan?’ But unfortunately for him, Peter had done something to hinder God’s work. Let’s take a closer look at the situation.
Continue reading “Get Behind Me, Satan! How To Not Hinder God’s Work”
If you have been around the church for a while, you’ve probably heard about the ‘Ten Commandments’ or the Law that God gave to the Israelites. Introducing these Laws of the Old Testament brought about a great shift in the way people at the time lived their lives. Now, there was a clear line between right and wrong. Now they had to be mindful and self-controlled about every decision they made.
Continue reading “Why Don’t We Follow the Laws of the Old Testament?”
When many people, religious or not, think about Satan, they often think of something like this: a red demon with horns and a pitchfork, trying to obviously tempt others to sin, to live and take in all the worldly pleasures and wealth, disregarding the consequences.
Continue reading “The Great Deception: How and Where Satan Works”
“It doesn’t matter. I’m going to hell anyway,” they say. Their faces tell it all, God hates me. God only cares about Christians. For one reason or another, many non-Christians often feel like God doesn’t care if they go to heaven or not. Like they’re on some blacklist with a sealed fate. But the truth is, God doesn’t only have Christians in His heart to save and redeem. He looks upon the whole world with this hope:
Continue reading “Who Does God Want to Save? Just Christians or All People?”