I’m going to begin with a shocking claim. 1 John is – shocking - a Hebrew epistle written to the twelve tribes scattered abroad (Gal. 2:9). This is not our mail. This was not written to the Body of Christ, although there are many timeless principles here, especially all the verses about the love of... Continue Reading →
“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called” (Eph. 4:1) Here’s a monumental point to be made about this verse: A worthy walk is fundamentally one that embodies the values found in the Gospel that called you to salvation. Paul's arguing that the... Continue Reading →
On yesterday’s podcast, Pastor Hal and I had a conversation about the Christian news articles that came out recently proclaiming the death of Mariology in the Catholic Church. CBN said, Pope Leo Declares Jesus Alone Saved the World, Rejects Title of Mary as 'Co-Redeemer'. One Christian writer asked, Is the Vatican Discouraging Marian Devotion? Evangelical... Continue Reading →
Luke 15:11 And he said, A certain man had two sons: 15:12 And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 15:13 And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey... Continue Reading →
7 Principles of Forgiveness “When we consider Eph. 4:32 and Col. 3:13 about forgiveness, we usually take away from those verses that our motivation to forgive is because God forgave us, which is true. But consider the fact that in Eph. 4:32, God the Father didn’t forgive you for your sake. He forgave you for... Continue Reading →
Many today either “go to confession” or through a confession process asking forgiveness again and again. There are verses that speak of asking God to “forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” And the familiar verse: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to... Continue Reading →
Can you guess who I’m referring to? The Maniac at Gadara. This story is also told in Matt. 8:28-34 and Lk. 8:26-39. Typically, Mark gives abbreviated accounts of events, but on this occasion, Mark gives the longest version of this story with the most details. So let’s read Mark 5! I’ll occasionally interject other details... Continue Reading →
So what does Paul teach us about how to handle a scandal in a church? Let’s say you have discovered that your beloved grace pastor has been doing something really, really stupid for a long time. How should you and your church handle a scandal? The Dangers of Secret Sins First, how about we address,... Continue Reading →
OK, first off, I would like to have a show of hands to demonstrate how many people agree with any other person 100% of the time. OK, do I have any takers at 50%? That is what I thought. You can hardly find two people who agree on more than a few key issues. Everyone... Continue Reading →
Do people go to Hell with their sins forgiven? Two quick comments: I would not break fellowship with saints who hold that view, even though I strongly disagree. I’ve also seen some extremely disgraceful behavior over this debate. In some cases, I think awful behavior merits being marked and avoided (Rom. 16:17), because they're offences... Continue Reading →
It’s often easy to see how a person can get caught up in performance based religion. Simply put, people tend to look at a single verse, without context, and build their doctrine based on the incomplete knowledge they have been given. One such instance can be found in Psalm 18:20: The Lord rewarded me according... Continue Reading →
Sometimes I don't know exactly what I’m going to write about until I actually sit at my desk, in front of my computer. In this case I’m at my seldom used desk at our actual church building. This is a rare event, indeed! With the advent of the automobile, and electronic communications the church office... Continue Reading →
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20) One of the most abused Scriptures, out of many, is Matthew 18:20. This verse is used so often as a verse that proves that the Holy Spirit is present “when two or three are... Continue Reading →
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not... Continue Reading →
Maybe it's just my imagination? But, it seems there is much more backbiting, and bickering, now happening between like minded Believers. Well, let me take that opening statement back. It's not my imagination. It is fact! There is, after all, nothing new under the sun. You see; there is something inherent in every single person... Continue Reading →
(Col 2:6-10) "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: {7} Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. {8} Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after... Continue Reading →
Forgiveness is a timeless principle across all ages. You might remember the story of Esau forgiving Jacob after he stole his birthright. When they met again in Gen. 33, Esau had 400 men with him, ready to destroy him. But when he saw his brother bow to him repeatedly in humility, Esau forgave him. Gen... Continue Reading →
https://open.spotify.com/episode/64lKFN143e3ldiDMHvkIyF?si=beb6e74aa55b404e "For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they... Continue Reading →
Below is my all-time favorite article by Pastor Doug Dodd, who graduated to be with the Lord a few years ago. This beautiful piece of writing helped me to realize that, yes, Joel, Paul is telling you in Romans 6 that you've literally been freed from the power and bondage of sin. PTL! Some of... Continue Reading →
I was moved by a story I came across the other day via Faithwire about Shelby Houston, the teenage daughter of a police officer who died in the line of duty. Her father’s name was Richard Houston. He was a 21-year veteran of the Mesquite Police Department. He was shot and killed responding to a... Continue Reading →
SUPPLY OF GRACE 