Subscription Lists

On a large scale basis, the world has seen an extended time of relative peace and prosperity. Of course, there are still many conflicts and many areas where believers are killed for their faith. But the world as a whole has not been at war since World War II. This is almost seventy years of relative peace and prosperity across the globe. The history of man, however, has been the rise and fall of empires as stronger armies come in or a nation-state grows complacent and weakens from the inside. Even in the time of King David, it was routine for nations to go to war seasonally to secure…  ( Click for more )

One of my interests is economics, and I have been very involved in watching the current crisis unfold throughout the world, though particularly in America. Many have opinions on how to fix the problem, but I find that most are wildly in error. In fact, out of the many voices that speak to the issues in the media, it is only a very small minority who I believe understand even the basics of what makes an economy thrive and grow. At one point, one such economist spoke the truth at a conference only to be told by the moderator that he needs to realize that he is going against the grain…  ( Click for more )

Sometimes when difficult things come into our lives, we wonder why. Though we must be willing to trust and obey even if we don’t know why or aren’t given that answer for some time, we do need to distinguish between tempting and testing. Satan tempts; God tests. Tempting is for our failure and destruction; testing is in order to make our faith stronger. Testing reveals to us where we are in terms of our faith as God already knows whether or not we will pass a given test. It is as we go through the fire of testing and trial that we can be strengthened, sanctified, and…  ( Click for more )

2 Corinthians 5:7 gives a reminder and exhortation that believers are to "walk by faith, not by sight." "Walk" speaks of how we live our lives, conduct ourselves, behave, and use the time and opportunities God has ordained for us. Walking "by sight" speaks of choosing to live based upon how things naturally appear, feel, and seem at first glance. Those who walk by sight rely upon fleshly instincts and temporal pleasures to make decisions. They are concerned with the present rather than the eternal and with blending in with the world rather than…  ( Click for more )

Many men desire to be good fathers, but the criterion that really counts is whether or not they are godly fathers. Here are four Biblical principles that, by God’s grace, will lay a sound foundation in helping fathers become godly fathers.

First, godly fathers are first godly men. It doesn’t work for fathers to bail out and say to their children, "Do as I say, not as I do" (Matthew 23:3). Children must be able to see an example of Christ in their fathers. Paul says to his spiritual children in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be imitators of me, just as I…  ( Click for more )

Today, salvation is by no other name except through Christ (Acts 4:12). But Hebrews 1:1-2 tells us that it is only in these last (i.e. New Testament) days that God has spoken finally and definitively through His Son. It says, "God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world." Of course, Christ was involved in the writing of the Old Testament Scriptures, but in the New Testament, His person and work is now…  ( Click for more )

If you have grown up in the church, you are probably familiar with the terms clergy and laity. Clergy is generally considered to be anyone who is ordained or doing the work of the ministry, usually full-time in nature. The laity is made up of the "lay people" who are not formally trained in the ministry and who typically do not serve full time. Now why does this matter and why bring it up? Man-made terminology that is not in the Bible can lead to dangerous distortions of the Bible. The terms clergy and laity strike me as having a condescending tone to those who are not seen…  ( Click for more )

After speaking about not judging our neighbor before dealing with the sin in our own hearts lest we become hypocrites, Jesus speaks a very important principle that often gets overlooked. He says in Matthew 7:6, "Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces." Let’s take this piece by piece.

First, He says that we are not to give what is holy to dogs. What is holy is anything that is set apart, pure, undefiled, and Christlike rather than worldly. We know God…  ( Click for more )

Genesis 11:1-9 is the account of the Tower of Babel. Now we should note before we read this passage that Babel was and is a literal location on earth near the Euphrates River in the Middle East. It could also be translated Babylon, as in the case of the Babylonian empire which encompassed the region many years later or as in Babylon as symbolized by the evil world empires and forces that have pervaded the earth throughout history and will certainly be in play in the last days (Revelation 14:8,17:5,18:2). This is important because the sins of the people of Babel of old will be repeated…  ( Click for more )

For the Christian, the name of Jesus is certainly valued. I mean, we pray in His name, we recognize Him as part of the Trinity, and we know He was the sacrifice for sin. But the thought that has been troubling me is whether or not we as a church are continuing to value Him as highly as we ought to. Or, to put it another way, do we value the name of Jesus in the same manner and to the same degree that the early church valued it? I was struck by hearing the following passage from Acts 5:40-42 which says, "They took his advice; and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them…  ( Click for more )

Jesus said in Matthew 7:7, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you." There is a huge theme that runs through Scripture about the culpability, responsibility, and accountability of man to seek the truth (Romans 2:6,10:9-10). God doesn’t force someone into salvation or to do the right thing. Of course, He is sovereign over all things, including salvation (Romans 8:30), but He gives each and every person the chance to choose for themselves their own eternal destinies (Joshua 24:15). Even beyond the choice of receiving…  ( Click for more )

In 1 Samuel 7:12, we read, "Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far the LORD has helped us.’" Samuel rightly understood that the victory of the Israelites over the Philistines was a result of the work of God on their behalf. It was God who thundered and enabled the defeat of the Philistines (v. 10). In a very simple and symbolic gesture, Samuel picked up a rock, set it at a particular geographic location, and named it "Thus far God has helped us" as a remembrance of what God had done…  ( Click for more )

In God’s mind, the heart is the central issue (1Timothy 1:15,2 Timothy 2:22, Matthew 5:8). He is not interested in externalities, showmanship, performance, or smiles falsely pasted on our faces. He cares about who we really are on the inside, and therefore, so should we (1 Samuel 16:7). When we come to Christ, He gives us new hearts that can and do desire the things of God (Ezekiel 18:31;36:26,2 Corinthians 5:17), though our hearts can be corrupted and definitely need continued sanctification (2 Corinthians 7:1, James 4:8). But we ought to consider…  ( Click for more )

I am a firm believer in the sufficiency of Christ (John 16:13, Philippians 4:13) and in the sufficiency of His Word (John 17:17) such that even a believer isolated on a remote island (such as the apostle John) could still be comforted, encouraged, and enabled to grow in Christ. However, the Scripture does not in anyway advocate "lone ranger" Christianity. God’s desire is quite the opposite, in fact. His plan and purpose for building His kingdom is a corporate purpose (Ephesians 4:1-16). Granted, it is accomplished by individual believers who are held accountable before…  ( Click for more )

David prays a very admirable prayer in Psalm 139:23-24 saying, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way." David is quick to understand and admit that he is prone (as we all are) to hidden sins (see Psalm 19:12), errors of heart of which we are not yet aware. Once we become aware of them, we need to deal with them, and it is David who sets an example of being proactive in this process. Rather than waiting for sin to happen and the consequences to result, David…  ( Click for more )

If you have ever felt restless in your spirit, this message is for you. Perhaps you sense spiritually that something is just wrong or off, but you are not yet sure what it is. There is a strange lack of peace, perhaps combined with an increasing sense of internal panic and anxiety. "Where are all of these feelings coming from?" you might wonder. Well, I have been there myself too many times to count, and I want to proclaim to you the truth of God’s Word that has repeatedly led me to freedom when this internal quandary develops. May God speak freedom, life, joy, and…  ( Click for more )

Women face many lies against true womanhood to the extent that there is often great confusion about what it even means to be a woman. Some say that womanhood is casting off "enslavement" to a husband and climbing a corporate ladder in the workplace, politics, or some other professional area. Some say that womanhood is only doing work at home, period. Some say that womanhood is defined by wearing or not wearing fashionable clothes, makeup, jewelry, etc. For others, womanhood is defined by having children, and in some cases, how many children one has. Women will always find…  ( Click for more )

In 1 Kings 2:1-3, we have David’s final words to his son Solomon. It says, "As David’s time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, 'I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man. Keep the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn.'" If we want to know what true masculinity is about, this passage provides us with…  ( Click for more )

In John 6, Jesus taught at length about His having come from heaven and being the only way to the Father. He used the illustration that people would need to eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to enter heaven. Many found the teaching difficult and abandoned Christ. Of course, those who had ears to hear would have recognized that Jesus was simply saying to believe in Him, that He was the giver of life, and that His truth had to be spiritually ingested and applied at the deepest heart level. This would require an allegiance to His teachings, a faith that was willing to follow…  ( Click for more )

Dating as the world defines it and as many in the church have accepted it is to play the field, explore yourself, figure out the type of person that you are compatible with, spend a lot of time, energy, and emotion to get close to them, and hope it works out. Some even think that the physical area must be explored to test compatibility and to be able to make good relational decisions. This process is plain and simply one self-interested person interacting selfishly with another self-interested person where both are trying to find out what works for them and get what they want. Dating…  ( Click for more )

What an incredible opportunity and experience the disciples had, getting the chance to walk and talk with Jesus, God in the flesh in their very presence. They could look into His eyes, touch His hands, and in the case of the disciple John, even recline his head upon Jesus’ chest (John 13:23). Jesus had called His disciples friends (John 15:15). They had spent several years together, learning and studying under this Master Teacher. But as the death of Christ neared, He spoke to them about having to leave them. He understood that this would bring them sorrow (John 16:6), but they…  ( Click for more )

Paul says in Galatians 5:16, "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh." We can go two ways when it comes to any decision we daily face. We can obey the Lord, thereby walking by the Spirit, or we can disobey the Lord, thereby walking in a fleshly manner. So when the battle for righteousness rages, how can we choose rightly and walk after the Spirit?

We must understand that we all still have flesh even though we are born again in Christ. The Spirit indwells us and makes it possible for us to please God, but we still have human…  ( Click for more )

A true disciple of Christ is not the person who names the name of Christ when the spiritual weather is fair but when persecution will certainly arise. He lives for righteousness even when every emotion, temptation, and fleshly desire prompts him to do otherwise. He lives a life of service, sacrifice, and surrender. His goal is to serve and give and love because he knows that is what he is called to and that is what others truly need. It is in his relationship to Christ and in this alone that he finds the fullness of joy. A true disciple of Christ denies himself and gives up control.…  ( Click for more )

Let us make no mistake. "Christianity" or "evangelicalism" is in big trouble. Many people have their ideas of what must change, but their ideas are far too shallow, far too human. So let’s cut to the chase and find what God wants in order to bless His true church.

What makes the church grow in number and in health? What makes people want to read their Bibles? What makes truth advance and lies be exposed? What defeats the works of the devil and advances the kingdom of God? Is it a movement? Is it revival conferences? Is it sound doctrine? Is it a new reformation?…  ( Click for more )