The word for promises implies an emphatic public announcement – not just like we give promises (I’ll be there at 2:00, or I’ll pray for you). When Jesus gives a promise it comes as a priceless gift – to help us survive in the midst of our life’s stressors and...
What kind of church does God use? God uses a church where the gospel is clearly proclaimed! In Acts 11 we learn about the church at Antioch. Antioch was located 300 miles north of Jerusalem and was the third largest city in the Roman Empire, behind Rome and...
Can you do enough to deserve salvation? In 2001, Reader’s Digest asked Muhammad Ali what his faith meant to him. Ali replied, “[It] means [a] ticket to heaven. One day we’re all going to die, and God’s going to judge us, [our] good and bad deeds. [If the] bad...
Do you have trouble sharing your faith? Do you have a hard time engaging with people about the Lord Jesus Christ? You are NOT alone!! So, what keeps Christians from sharing their faith? What is it that keeps you/me from sharing our faith? Is it FEAR? Is it not...
Do you desire a changed life? When Saul of Tarsus started trusting God more, his life took on a whole new dimension – a whole new identity! Jesus changed Saul’s life! We must trust God with everything. When Saul had become the great Apostle Paul, he was able to...
We read in John 16:13, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” In the context of this verse, we...
We read in Luke 16:8b, “For the people of this world are shrewder in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light (Christians).” In this teaching Jesus sets his disciples apart from the dishonest manager. The dishonest manager was a person of this...
Are you “called” to serve God? We read in 1 Timothy 1:1, “Paul, and apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope.” This verse shows us that God saves us and calls us to serve. The word “apostle” reminds us that Paul was one who...
Jesus declared in Matthew 5:17, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets . . .” In other words, what Jesus is referring to is the entire Hebrew Bible; what we call the Old Testament. He did not come to get rid of the Law OR the Prophets. He...
We read in Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” This definition of faith is fleshed out in the remaining verses and examples of lives lived by faith. Faith doesn’t look at what we do. It looks at what God...