Our world is filled with people who want to speak with authority. Whenever something newsworthy happens, the media searches for authorities or experts who can comment on that particular event or issue. Jesus was notably different than those who seek authority in our world but don’t have it. He both spoke and acted with real, compelling authority.
Jesus healed all who were ill with various diseases: fever, leprosy, paralysis, a withered hand, a flow of blood, a deaf and mute man, two blind men, and raising a dead girl. Luke adds, “And laying His hands on each one of them, He was healing them.”
Matthew was irreligious. As a tax collector, he had been excommunicated from the synagogue and was considered a traitor complicit with foreign oppressors. He was viewed as dishonest, as an extortionist. Still, the spotless and pure Son of God sought Matthew out to be His disciple and friend.
Do you follow Christ’s example in purposely pursuing social interaction with unbelievers to seek their repentance?
Matthew 13 record what is commonly called The Parable of the Sower. But, the focus of the story is actually on the condition of the soils on which the seed falls. The point of the parable is that the reasons that people do not respond to Jesus’ message have to do with the conditions of […]
Matthew 13 records what is commonly called The Parable of the Sower. But, the focus of the story is actually on the condition of the soils on which the seed falls. The point of the parable is that the reasons that people do not respond to Jesus’ message have to do with the conditions of their hearts.
What does the Bible have to say about personal property and private ownership?
Justin Martyr, who lived shortly after the Apostle John’s death, wrote this: “When Jesus was among men, He made plows and yokes and other farm implements.” If it was not beneath the Son of God to work as a craftsman, then surely it is beneath none of His disciples. He has imparted to hard work both dignity and nobility.
If you’re a Christian, one way to walk in your Father’s footsteps is in your communication with others. We should imitate the way our Father communicates in our marriages, in our families, in our church, and in every human relationship.
Where do expressions of attitude begin? In your heart. The words you choose, the tone you use, your body language – all reveal what you’re thinking in your heart. In Ephesians 4:31-32, the Apostle Paul confronts our attitudes and how we express them.
Most of us really don’t know what it’s like to truly be without hope. In Mark 5:21-43, we meet two desperate people looking for hope. One has a dying body; the other, a dying 12-year-old daughter. Their hope has a name: Jesus of Nazareth.
Desperate people are willing to do desperate things. In Mark 5:21-43, we meet two desperate people with nothing in common, except their desire to get to Christ.
One of the greatest dangers to our souls is the deadly danger of familiarity, that is, becoming overly familiar with spiritual things, even with Christ Himself.
Intimate knowledge of Jesus and the Gospel is no guarantee of faith and salvation; in fact, familiarity can be an enemy.
Well actually it’s impossible. It’s completely impossible apart from the work of God in our hearts. And exactly what does that work look like that enables us to imitate God? Well it really starts with the regenerating work of the Spirit. It’s impossible for us (in terms of who we are by nature) to be […]
None of us likes to be ridiculed. Since the gospel is often the source of the ridicule we receive, it’s a temptation for every Christian to be ashamed of the gospel.
Romans 1:16: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
Jesus’ personal diagnosis of legalism is shown in Mark 7: 6-13. His piercing, penetrating omniscience sees into each of our hearts. He knows whether we’re trying to present ourselves as something we’re not.
Intimate knowledge of Jesus and the Gospel is no guarantee of faith and salvation; in fact, familiarity can be an enemy.
Before responding to the sin of others, we each have to deal with the sin in our own heart. Scripture likens it to trying to remove a speck from someone else’s eye but never realizing there’s a massive beam in your own. This happens when our self-righteousness blinds us to our sin. But how do […]
None of us likes to be ridiculed. Since the gospel is often the source of the ridicule we receive, it’s a temptation for every Christian to be ashamed of the gospel.
Romans 1:16: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
What does it mean to present your body as a living sacrifice to God?
When the Scripture speaks of Christians living as a sacrifice to God, it means to continually and perpetually live for Him.
Because a Christian’s body belongs to Christ, we must expend constant effort to obey the Scripture in how we use it.
Before we came to Christ we were all controlled by the mindset of the world. Now that we are in Christ, our thinking must be conformed to the Scripture.
Your thinking will always be shaped by influences outside of you. Therefore, it will either be God and His Word or Satan and his ideas that fill your mind.
Not only are we to reject the thinking of our age, we are also commanded to embrace the will of God.
How does the Spirit of God use the Word of God to renew our minds?
The first part of Christ’s plan for His church is that He distributes spiritual gifts to each true believer. Each believer is called to exercise that gift in a local church.
The first step when dealing with conflict is to identify the true source of the conflict.
The temptations and conflicts that we struggle with in this life flow from the cravings of our own hearts.
It is critical to understand that when you’re involved in a quarrel or an argument with someone else, the true source of the conflict is not the issue being argued. In fact, the problem lies in the desires of your own heart.
Not only must we identify the true source of conflict, we must also recognize the real sin behind the conflict. How do you identify the real sin that lies behind arguing, fighting and quarreling?
Worldliness means to pursue sinful pleasures with reckless abandon in order to find purpose in this life.
Another practical step when dealing with conflict is to properly apply the right solution.
We must continually rely on grace during times of conflict resolution. Specifically, we need forgiving grace, that is forgiveness for our quarreling and our arguing. Secondly, we need sanctifying grace, which empowers us to live in obedience and a whole-hearted allegiance to God.
Pride is the soul’s greatest enemy because it isolates us from the grace of God.
God has sovereignly determined to give grace only to those who humble themselves before Him.
Every time we sin we have concluded in our own minds that we know better than God knows.
How can you cultivate godly sorrow in your heart? You must contemplate the goodness of God toward you and if you really dwell on that truth, it will drive you to a godly sorrow over sin.
There are a number of wrong ideas about Christian influence that are popular in the Christian community today. And undoubtedly we have all been influenced by them.
When Christians become interested in being like the world and the people around us, we become more like rot than the salt we’re supposed to be.
In the Old Testament God promised that He would send a special servant that would be a light and bring light into a dark world.
Jesus is the source of absolute truth and moral purity.
As Christians, we must continually combat the moral and spiritual decay around us by being a light in a dark world.
By being a light in this world, we as Christians show the beauty of Christ and the gospel by our words and actions.
Unfortunately, throughout the centuries this portion of the Sermon on the Mount that deals with salt and light has been abused, misinterpreted, and misapplied.
We are called to be a light in this world and can practically do so by displaying godly character, accomplishing good works, and proclaiming the gospel of Christ.
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