Grace presents us with one great demand.
I know it seems strange to see the words “demand” and “grace” in the same sentence. Usually we view grace as the means by which we gain acceptance by God without carrying out works of the law. After all, as Paul reminds us, by “works of the law no one will be justified” (Galatians 2:16).
Many try to earn their salvation. Continue reading “Grace’s one great demand”
“Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Mark 14:38, NASB) Jesus’ ordeal on the cross was not only extremely painful, it was humiliating. It was not only … Continue reading Why Peter failed, and Jesus didn’t
We think truth is hard and unpleasant. For the most part, man’s truth is exactly that. God’s truth, however, is sweet and blessed. It is something to be loved and cherished.
Love for truth is important because it has to do with eternal salvation. Rejecting love for truth results in loss of salvation, 2 Thessalonians 2.10: “They perish because they did not accept the love of the truth in order to be saved” (HCSB).
In the context of this verse, although some things are difficult to understand, several principles appear clearly. Continue reading “Love for truth is love for Jesus”
The threads of salvation are interwoven through every page of Scripture. Certainly, we should do all we can to understand them.
Sometimes the terminology eludes us because we don’t use it in daily life. Propitiation is a prime example. We find it in Romans 3:25; Hebrews 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 4:10 and since it pertains to our Lord and our salvation, it’s imperative that we understand it. Continue reading “What is propitiation?”
When we boil things down to survival, our perspective crystallizes. Continue reading They had nowhere else to go
“Unless you repent, you will all…perish” (Luke 13:3).
Most people cannot imagine Jesus saying, “You will go to hell if you do not change your ways.” I’m not sure if the scholars of the Jesus Seminar cut that phrase out, attributing it to some other source than the “real” Jesus, but it wouldn’t surprise me. Most people like the idea of what they deem to be God’s positivity – his love, his longsuffering, his grace – leading us to repentance. But can suffering and death do the same thing? Continue reading “Are some of Jesus’ sayings too harsh?”
The patience God exemplifies is remarkable. Thankfully, he’s longsuffering and loving (Romans 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9). Continue reading “Break the bad patterns of life”
During the holidays, we pray that you and all of yours may be deeply blessed by your time with family and with your friends and loved ones, and by the food and other things “that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth” 1 Timothy 4.3.
Our greatest prayer for those who are not yet in Christ is that they may have faith that obeys the Lord, and not just any faith; that they may know the truth which saves; that they may enter into Christ through repentance and immersion in water.
All other blessings are far inferior to the greatness of knowing God and the call to follow Jesus. Continue reading “The greatest prayer we can pray”
Jesus fashioned a whip of cords and drove the money changers out of the temple because they had made his Father’s house just an ordinary place of business (John 2:16).
Something interesting happened with the Lord’s disciples. These Galileans remembered King David had written, “For zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me” (Psalm 69:9 NASB). The disciples applied this verse King David had written of the Christ directly to Jesus. Continue reading “Attitude”
Walk through a shopping mall. Randomly ask people what Jesus can do for their lives. If people are willing to chat, what would they say? For those who know something about Christ, the predominant answer would likely relate to salvation.
To be sure, the good news about Christ crucified centers upon salvation. However if we limit salvation’s impact to being rescued from our sins and becoming God’s people, we will overlook a massive component of God’s work on our behalf.
Continue reading “The impact of salvation: more than just forgiveness”