Subscription Lists

Have you ever wondered what the greatest sin is - with the greatest consequences? Is it violation of one of the ten commandments? Deliberately breaking one the these commandments had great consequences for the Israelites. Could it be deliberately refusing to love? According to the Apostle Paul, refusing to love is a very serious sin. Love is an even greater quality than faith...and faith is VERY important quality of character. Not conduction our live in a spirit of trust and faith in God, and not living in an attitude of love is certainly very serious in God' sight. (1 Corinthians…  ( Click for more )

How can one rest under a burden, and a yoke? When one needs rest, having a "burden" AND a "yoke" seems like a contradiction of reality. At the very most it would seem very temporary. In addition, the longer the burden and yoke remains on you, the less restful it would be. Anything resembling a yoke would, at best, eventually become anything but restful. Yokes and burdens are for pack animals, cattle and such. Certainly a human would consider any kind of yoke and burden to be anything but restful. But Jesus promised rest - rest while ladened with a burden plus…  ( Click for more )

At times it seems so easy to become discouraged - just discouraged with living in general in our world around us. It's a feeling down deep. It can't be explained, even described in a way that someone else could understand what is meant. Then we realize that this is not God's world. But we must live in it. And by the grace of God, and Christ in us, we will survive. As a Christian leader once said, "I have read the book...AND WE WIN!". But as the world is now, the devil will discourage us any way he can. Down deep we know something just isn't right. If we are Christians,…  ( Click for more )

Undoubtedly we live in a time of peril and danger of many kinds and originations. If one watches television news at all, many of these conditions are evident. Some have said that signs of danger are simple the result of better reporting, and are the result of a shrinking world. Everything is done faster and reported faster, which is true. Awareness is also evidence of more rapid change in almost every arena of our reality. Changes are accelerating at in increasing rate. There is greater alarm. There is greater turmoil. This, most thinking people would agree. Important times and…  ( Click for more )

Ask almost any two people from the same church affiliation, or a different affiliation. and you will often hear condemnation or approval of the partaking of alcoholic beverages. Each side of the issue has convincing arguments for it's stance. Some say its OK in "moderation" (whatever that is...usually determined by personal opinion and practice). One person stated that he had never allowed alcohol of any kind to touch his lips (he lived to be 84 years old). There is another who drank alchohol, smoked every day of his life, and lived to be 100. To make a determination of…  ( Click for more )

Love is invisible. We can know what love is only by the fruit of love. This is the reason God is invisible. God is invisible except through that which He has made and what He does, by the results of His existence. Love must be manifested by the consequences of its existence. Words only do not manifest real love. It may be there, but it must be proven by actions. This the reason Jesus came - to prove God's love by His acts of love. He proved His infinite love the an ultimate action on the cross. He was, is, and always will be Love. Because of His action, as well as by His words.…  ( Click for more )

The book of Psalms is the longest Psalm and also the longest chapter in the Bible. It is perhaps the most loved, the most read, and the most memorized section of the Bible. This Psalm has a theme throughout that is easy to miss because it speaks to so many people in so many different ways. There is a feeling of desperation in chapter after chapter, and verse of verse. Why did the Psalmist write what he did, the way he did, with the emotions that are so profound and inspiring? Try to imagine the emotion that the Psalmist is experiencing as he pens these verses. He is led by the…  ( Click for more )

Regardless of national and world conditions at any particular time, there is one eternal truth that never changes. God in the Person of Jesus Christ is in control of the earth - yesterday, today, tomorrow, and forever. However, down through recorded history, He has allowed nations to progress closer to God's ways or to slowly distance themselves. No nation or people live in a vacuum. Some seem to feel that the world is their place to play with and conduct themselves as they please. And so it seems to be unless one considers and believes Biblical history. The Bible has had much…  ( Click for more )

Its such a small word, this word “sin”, to have such disastrous consequences. A word that has destroyed kingdoms and individuals. It all begins with pernicious thoughts, feelings, and finally escalates to small thoughts, desires, and finally the act that completes the circle of destruction of everything right and valuable. Today it seems to be increasingly the norm. The subject is seldom even mentioned. Immorality has finally been enshrined. The road that was once at least level, has cascaded into a plunge into unspeakable acts. Shame has perished. Now it is Sin City.…  ( Click for more )

It seems that constantly Paul's credentials as an Apostle and minister of the gospel was being questioned and even criticized, and doubted. To some degree, this continued his entire life as a minister of the Gospel. Much of the criticism and suspicion surrounding his ministry arose from his supposed lack of credibility as an apostle because he had not been called during the time that Jesus walked on the earth and personally taught other apostles. He seems to often have to defend his apostleship. Sometimes, his credentials did not seem enough to many of the converts from the Jewish…  ( Click for more )

Can a Christian be perfect? The answer is “no”. And then - “yes”! Sometimes we as Christians become disheartened and discouraged because something we do or hear from others makes us realize that we are not who we thought, or what we thought we had overcome. We grieve within ourselves that we did this or that, or said this or that or - yes, we thought things we should not as God’s children. We are stunned when we are reminded we are not as perfect as we thought. Reality sets in. Then discouragement settles in. To recover we must perform a reality check.…  ( Click for more )

Recently a prayer by Billy Graham circulated via email to those who interested in what he said concerning the spiritual condition of America. It is repeated with the prayer we all can take it to heart and respond in prayer for America. As the American Senate Chaplain prayed many years go concerning our national complacency: "Please turn us Lord...for we are hard to turn!" "Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we…  ( Click for more )

There are many different kinds of prayer. A silent prayer of thought only, a short prayer of thankfulness for a meal before we eat, a prayer for safety in our unsafe world. Silent prayers at night after retiring. There are prayers in many different modes. Many pray only in desperation caused by an event in their life. Some prayers are what one could call “canned prayers” - prayers that with repetition become almost meaningless and simply ritual. Perhaps there is a time for this kind of ritual admiration, but personal prayer should be an intimate, honest, and loving conversation…  ( Click for more )

Have there been times when you thought, "what am I going to do now!" There are always moments in all our lives when there seems to be nothing else we do. It is common to the race. We live in uncertain times in an uncertain world. As someone has summed up this feeling, we do not even have "wiggle room" - there is nothing left to do. Perhaps you are struggling with an important decision that there seems to be no clear road to take. We may be faced with a financial crisis, a health crisis, a family crisis or - a spiritual decision that may seem to have no clear…  ( Click for more )

Did you know that you can assure that in the future you will not regret events in your past? Keep regret away from your heart by surrendering your heart, mind, and body - your whole being to Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. This will keep your present life so as to serve you in the future because you have no regret. Your memory will then conjure up peace of mind and service to others and to Jesus Christ without any hindrances of sadness and regret. (Proverbs 4:23). The present will eventually become your past. Then the past will serve rather than cripple you. Also, strive to…  ( Click for more )

Christ has done it all for you and me! Christ became sin In our stead - so that our sins would not be counted against us. When we are without belief in Jesus Christ, our relationship to sin is: We can live with it... We can ignore it... We can flee from it... Or, we can leave it all at the foot of the cross. It is possible to live with the first three at the same time. Regardless, if it is there, it is still ours. It sticks like glue. It follows you, pursues you, and - if not gotten rid of, it will kill eventually kill you spiritually, and possibly physically.…  ( Click for more )

He could have…He was a human in every sense of the word, even is we are. If He had married, He would become an adulterer. Why? Man and woman in the flesh are given the blessing of marriage for several reasons. The primary one being the population of the earth, which includes all the blessings and lessons to be learned by a man and a woman duly and properly joint to each other. By marriage the man and the woman become in a sense “one flesh”, but two spirits. The differences between the two definitions are the primary method God chose for each to grow up spiritually.…  ( Click for more )

The world is in trouble. America is in trouble. Most thinking people would probable agree. At the risk of seeming simplistic, the key to any nation's troubles is national Sin. Such a small word, and such eternal meaning, and such momentous consequences for ignoring it. The solution to national troubles is national repentance. The troubles and turmoil of any country are the results of it's spiritual condition and lack of knowledge or response to, the God who made them. It doesn't matter if a nation claims to be a Christian nation or not. There are spiritual laws that God has built…  ( Click for more )

The Two Evils Some refuse to allow themselves to believe in God, and especially Jesus Christ, complaining that “God is not fair”! Of course, God is completely fair. The problem is in the understanding of the meaning of fair, as it relates to the evils they see in the world. Understanding that there are two kinds of evil will help us to view evil more clearly. There are two kinds of evil relating to God and mankind. There is a moral evil that proceeds from the heart of humans that originated with the disobedience of Adam and Eve, and passed to subsequent generations…  ( Click for more )

Christ has done it all for you and me! Christ became sin In our stead - so that our sins would not be counted against us. When we are without belief in Jesus Christ, our relationship to sin is: We can live with it... We can ignore it... We can flee from it... Or, we can leave it all at the foot of the cross. It is possible to live with the first three at the same time. Regardless, if it is there, it is still ours. It sticks like glue. It follows you, pursues you, and - if not gotten rid of, it will kill eventually kill you spiritually, and possibly physically.…  ( Click for more )

There is a great misunderstanding - almost universal - that is rampant in society today. It has been the cause of great endeavors and efforts resulting in a misdirection and misunderstanding of Christian belief and works. The use of the name "God" in vain (not just as a curse word), needs to be understood. Especially in regard to eternal life. It is a popular belief (almost universal) throughout secular and pseudo-religious society. Simply put, this belief says that if one desires to be saved spiritually, one must believe in and come to Jesus Christ in repentance and…  ( Click for more )

There is a prophecy recorded in the book of Amos which seems to indicate a universal gospel "famine" in the world. A time when the Christian Gospel message will no longer be available. Perhaps not even allowed by the powers in the world at that time. Prophetic occurrences are sometimes tucked away within other events and conditions that were extant when the writer wrote, that are dual in meaning, and predict an occurrence or condition in the world many centuries later. Some of these are for the end times - world conditions not long before the return of Christ. …  ( Click for more )

Many in our world have sought for, worked and sacraficed for, a "lasting peace" for hundreds of years. Thus far it has eludeded them. Compromise has always been a strategy in world conflicts, although sometimes just an option if all else fails. The bottom line finally becomes just the best deal you can get, not what the peacemakers would like. Diplomacy assumes a give and take approach to world affairs and crisis. For nations, it is forced by war or national interests, and in this age, possible world destruction. However, one war, one completed international agreement…  ( Click for more )

Christ has done it all for you and me! Christ became sin In our stead - so that our sins would not be counted against us. When we are without belief in Jesus Christ, our relationship to sin is: We can live with it... We can ignore it... We can flee from it... Or, we can leave it all at the foot of the cross. It is possible to live with the first three at the same time. Regardless, if it is there, it is still ours. It sticks like glue. It follows you, pursues you, and - if not gotten rid of, it will kill eventually kill you spiritually, and possibly physically.…  ( Click for more )