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What types of people gave Jesus his biggest headache while He was teaching here on earth? I don't mean what sect or group, but what intellectual or spiritual characteristics typified the people who always seemed to be confronting Him? Well, I would beg you to read this and the messages that follow to compare your thoughts on this matter with what I have concluded. The results can be life-changing!

First, indulge me to speak briefly about the term justification. Justification is a word which can be used in everyday language, but which has a more specialized usage in the spiritual…  ( Click for more )

Visualization techniques are modern methods used by athletes and other performers to enhance the outcomes of their efforts. These techniques vary in details but the basics are the same. The performer “sees” himself in a particular desired outcome (as the winner of a race, a star of a show, etc., etc.) and then mentally places himself into that role (including all the feelings and sensations that he might expect and intend to experience). Although these methods produce enhanced performances in the physical realm, there is another visualization technique that God requires…  ( Click for more )

The only justification that counts for eternity is the justification that occurs in the heart of God toward those who find favor with Him. We can justify ourselves, we can justify the deeds of others, and we can even seek to be justified in the eyes of other men, but all that counts for absolutely NOTHING in the courts where souls are weighed in the Divine balances. Today's message will deal with a passage which reveals something of the hearts and minds of a portion on the people with whom Jesus dealt during His earthly ministry.

In Luke 15, Jesus told three parables which directly…  ( Click for more )

Is there anyone who does not wish to believe that he/she is okay in God's eyes? This question, of course, would not be relevant for anyone who does not believe in God. But, among those who are fully convinced that the God of the Bible exists, is there anyone who is content to think that he/she stands condemned before God? To ask this yet another way, as believers isn't it our hearts' desire to be justified before the One who will determine our eternal destiny? Today's message will consider this question from a biblical perspective as well as from a practical personal point of view. …  ( Click for more )

“My enemies reproach me all day long, Those who deride me swear an oath against me. For I have eaten ashes like bread, And mingled my drink with weeping, Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; For You have lifted me up and cast me away. My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass.” (Psalm 102.8-11).

The 102Psalm from which today’s focus text is taken has an introductory statement at its beginning; it reads as follows: “A Prayer of the afflicted when he is overwhelmed and pours out his complaint before the LORD.” It…  ( Click for more )

God's way is a way of clarity and not confusion. Although there is no biblical passage which directly states this fact, the principles that it embraces are repeated throughout the Bible. Any way which is a way of obscurity and confusion is not God's way. Some of the brightest and best minds I have ever known are part of a spiritual way that has produced and continues to produce confusion; my conclusion is simply that their way is not God's way. After all, a tree is known by the fruit that it produces. I am not bitter nor do I hold any disdain for those who still walk this way; I simply…  ( Click for more )

As rational human beings, we justify ourselves (to judge to be right or appropriate) throughout our accountable years. There are also times during those years that we take account of our actions and conclude that we have acted inappropriately or, speaking from a spiritual standpoint, sinned. God created us such that we rationalize (justify) our actions, or our consciences disapprove of our actions. These mental transactions are related to the subject matter of this series, i.e. justification.

There is another level at which justification can take place, but unlike the level…  ( Click for more )

If a person believes that he/she must be right about all essential points of doctrine in order to go to heaven, the most malignant and destructive form of self deception has gone to seed in that person's heart. Yet, this was the religious climate in which I grew up and in which I labored as an adult minister for many years. Please note that I placed the phrase essential points of doctrine in italics; the reason for this will become clear as today's message unfolds and as others follow along this same line.

It is not wrong to want to be right! But, it is wrong to think that one…  ( Click for more )

Self justification (showing oneself to be right) is a slippery slope; it truly is a place where extreme caution must be exercised. On the other hand, the only folks who do not engage in self justification are those who are mentally incompetent to decide such matters! There is one inherent issue that must be perpetually kept in view if we are to be successful in God's eyes in evaluating (justifying) our thoughts and actions. Specifically we must use the right standard to judge ourselves if we are to come away with the right answers.

Failure to use the right standard guarantees…  ( Click for more )

Do we ever justify ourselves? Before you answer this question, I would beg you to complete the reading of this article.

Yesterday we read where Luke wrote about a lawyer who came to Jesus with some very legitimate sounding questions. However, there was more to the purpose of the lawyer than met the eye. First, his very purpose in coming to Jesus was in order to test him (Luke 10.25). Secondly, when he was questioned by Jesus, he responded with the primary motive of justifying himself (Luke 10.29). These few facts certainly do not raise an honest person's opinion of the lawyer;…  ( Click for more )

One of the best known parables, The Good Samaritan, was spoken in response to an insincere question! This doesn't make the answer which Jesus gave any less significant or true, but it does shed light on just how far we are capable of going in order to divert the attention from ourselves when we are wrong and to thereby “justify ourselves.” This message begins a short series on the subject of biblical justification. By the very nature of subject, it will also focus on the systems of false justification that we have invented to ourselves. We begin by noting the events that…  ( Click for more )

Of all the forms of exercise that humans can choose, perhaps the most universally accepted and practiced form is walking. There are all sorts and types of walking that one can do. It can be fast, slow, intense, leisurely, long, short, uphill, downhill, straight, or crooked. It can be in the heat of the day or in the cool of the evening. It can be done alone, as a couple, in a small group, or even in huge numbers to raise funds for some worthy cause. There are almost as many styles of walking as there are people on the earth. Some have such distinct walks that their identity can be…  ( Click for more )

"…[W]e should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ." (Titus 2.12-13). The grace of God that brings salvation teaches the believer a number of things, among them how we ought to look for the second coming of Jesus and the things that will accompany His return. Our focus today will be to look at the phrase "the blessed hope" as it appears in the quoted verse.

Hope is born of grace. To say it another way, without grace, we would have no hope.…  ( Click for more )

Some things just take time! No one can argue with this statement. Also it seems like the things we want most take an abundance of time to come to pass. At times we may have exclaimed while waiting for a long anticipated event, “It seems like time is standing still!” Today's Little Lift takes a brief look at one such event. It was a long time coming and its effects will be a long time lasting. Consider this truly one-of-a-kind event!

Paul wrote about it when he penned, “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under…  ( Click for more )

Freedom of speech is one of the most revered and precious freedoms which we have in the USA. We can, with very few restrains, literally say anything that we wish to without fear of recrimination from those who might differ or object. This is vastly different from what exists in the majority of the world's population. Governments with state run radio and television stations know nothing of such freedom; every word that is broadcast is carefully scrubbed and polished so as to present only the best side of the government to the listening public.

Freedom to speak, however, does not…  ( Click for more )

Scoop: Code Adam at Temple; Boy of 12Missing! Once again Dr. Luke scooped the other three gospel writers with this unique and interesting story. Whether you are familiar with this happening or not, you will find a blessing in reading it as our current installment of Today's Little Lift.

“His [Jesus'] parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast. When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and…  ( Click for more )

Scoop: Under the Steeple are ALL My People! Luke scoops the other three gospel writers by specifically applying Isaiah's prophecies concerning God's people to all flesh. Israel, according to Isaiah as well as Luke's citation of Isaiah, was not to be the sole recipient of God's blessings announced by the Messiah's forerunner. As we will see, both Matthew and Mark cited a part of Isaiah's prophecy about the comfort that was coming to God's people, but only Luke extended the prophecy to its rightful end, i.e. the Gentiles seeing the salvation of the Lord!

Luke writes, “And…  ( Click for more )

Scoop: Disciples Shout while Thomas Doubts! In keeping with my intention to present a few spiritual scoops as articles, today's message contains one of my all time favorite biblical stories. Were it not for John's gospel, we would have no knowledge of this faith-building event. Enjoy Doubting Thomas!

“Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His…  ( Click for more )

Do you know the scoop? Well, the scoop is this: The meaning of words is fixed by the context. And, the word scoop is no exception. Without context it could mean: 1) A deep shovel, 2) A particular style of neckline on ladies' apparel, or 3) Information of interest that has been obtained and published exclusively. Scoop can be used either as a noun or as a verb. Today's message and a few messages to follow will be about spiritual scoops. For our purposes, a spiritual scoop is information of eternal interest that is stated exclusively by a single biblical writer or speaker.

Here's…  ( Click for more )

As an apostle of Christ, Paul had more authority (power) at his disposal than any person now living! He could heal the sick, cast out evil spirits, strike certain people blind (such as Elymas the sorcerer), and even raise the dead (see Acts 9.12; 13.11; 20.9-12). Yet to Philemon, he wrote, "Therefore, though I might be very bold in Christ to command you what is fitting, yet for love's sake I rather appeal to you…" (Philemon 1.8-10). In spite of his tremendous authority, Paul refused to command Philemon to receive Onesimus back; rather, he appealed to him out of love…  ( Click for more )

Consider the following list of words: Wise, holy, thankful, just, lawful, worthy, merciful, loving, forgiven, fruitful, godly, penitent, righteous, clean, believing, faithful, profitable. Do you like this list of words? Do you see these words as positive human attributes/conditions? To anyone who actually loves God, this list is a virtual recipe for success both here on in eternity. Now let’s turn that list around.

Consider each of the words again from this list. Now, in order to illustrate a point, place the little prefix “un” directly before each of these words.…  ( Click for more )

Snow came to Atlanta last week and caused me to look at the word snow and related matters in the Bible. Three previous messages this week resulted from this brief look into the scriptures. Today's message will be the final one in this miniseries. Lest you think my mind is entirely disconnected, I beg your indulgence in reading until the connection becomes clear.

My father's given names were different. I didn't know exactly how different they were until recently. His first name, Evart, is my middle name; I am the only person of whom I am aware with this name. I did find a town…  ( Click for more )

It was right between the sidewalk and the street, the largest one third of a snowman I had ever seen. I don't know who made it, but it appeared on day one of Atlanta's snow last week. Actually I don't even know that it was intended to be a third of a snowman, but it seemed to fit. It appeared that someone had intended to build a gigantic snowman, but all the energy was sapped out of him/her just from preparing the lower body of the snowman. Besides, even if the person could have managed to make the middle sphere of the snowman's body, it would have taken a construction crane to have…  ( Click for more )

During the sunny but cold days that followed last week’s snowfall in Atlanta, I found it necessary to wear sunglasses when driving for any length of time. I had seen snow before, but not like this. Immediately after the snow fell, a slow and extremely cold rain began to fall and formed a crust of ice on top of the snow. The grass, trees, bushes and everything close to the surface of the earth reflected light from all directions; the indirect light literally hurt!

For centuries, the word snow has been used to describe objects that are extremely white. In fact, the Bible uses…  ( Click for more )