Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think […]
This commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother (1 John 4:21, esv). When you’re having a problem in any relationship, you can grab a number of tools from your toolbox in an attempt to fix it. Perhaps one of the tools you’ve been in the habit of picking up […]
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to keep your righteous rules. I am severely afflicted; give me life, O Lord, according to your word (Psalm 119:105–107, ESV)! What is God’s will for my life? Am I even on the […]
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant (1 Corinthians 13:4, esv). The bulk of 1 Corinthians 13, the renowned love chapter, can be summarized in three statements: On the majors—action. On the minors—acceptance. In all things—love. Let’s start with the majors. There come times in close relationships […]
Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place […]
“Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. Let us know; let us […]
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him (Psalm 34:8, esv). I’ve often heard enthusiastic preachers lead their congregations in kind of a cheer: “God is good!”—to which the people respond, “All the time!” And of course I couldn’t agree more. God is good, all […]
The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:6–7, esv). When the Apostle Paul set out to develop a case […]
Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him (Colossians 2:6, esv). While the writers of Scripture use many vivid metaphors to describe the Christian life, by far the most common one in the New Testament is a walk. “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the […]
The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:6–7, esv). When the apostle Paul set out to develop a case […]