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In Paul's second letter to the church at Corinth, Paul was concerned that they were too susceptible to error. I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. (2 Corinthians 11:3-4)

Interesting. By what means might they be led astray (as the serpent…  ( Click for more )

We know better. We truly do. We know Jesus is the only way to be saved (John 14:6). We know "there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) We know we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) and that any other gospel is a false one (Galatians 1:6-9). We know all this. And still ... we walk into walls all the time. We think that good works will save. Oh, most of us don't run afoul of that too often. Still, we tend to think that if we're good we ought to get rewarded…  ( Click for more )

Everybody knows that boys need dads. They need the male example. They need the influence of a loving male in their lives and in their homes. Well, everybody that is thinking clearly. And everybody knows that daughters need mothers. Like boys and their dads, girls need the influence and example of a loving mother. In both cases, they will perceive that they are supposed to be the boys their fathers are or the girls their mothers are. Conversely, the epithet "mama's boy" is not intended as a compliment. Studies have shown that boys raised by a single mother have more adverse…  ( Click for more )

We all know it. There is a morality problem in our nation ... in our world. All I have to do is mention Harvey Weinstein and we will all nod and say, "That's a bad thing." We are constantly flooded with repeated and new accusations of sexual abuse and harassment and it just doesn't seem to end. It is positively immoral. There is, however, a problem here. We are all in agreement that it is immoral while we aren't very much in agreement just what constitutes "immoral". The difficulty, you see, is that we can't agree on a definition of "morality." Do…  ( Click for more )

Jim Elliff wrote a piece asking, "Why do Some Pastors Deliberately Avoid Teaching Doctrine?" He suggested that "many pastors" have begun to intentionally avoid teaching doctrine. Why? The aim is to encircle more people for our churches by minimizing that which limits us. "The problem is," he says, "it works." Why? "Doctrine does narrow things." And, frankly, there are fewer attracted to sound doctrine than to "tolerable beliefs". The Bible favors doctrine. Paul told the young pastor, Timothy, Now we know that the law…  ( Click for more )

The phrase is actually an Islamic phrase. It refers to Jews and Christians (and a group of people known as Sabians). "The Book" in view, then, would be the Bible. For Jews, it would refer to our Old Testament and for Christians it would be the whole Book. Christians embraced the term in later days declaring, "Yes, indeed, we are people of the Book." Of course, modern Christians are often in disagreement on this point. Modern Christians (self-professed) might consider themselves "religious, but without all that Bible nonsense." They would think it's…  ( Click for more )

One of the disagreements between the Protestants and the Catholics was the issue of assurance. The Reformers believed that God cannot lose any of His own, that He sustains them all to the end. The Catholics were appalled. In the Council of Trent they said, "If any one saith, that he will for certain, of an absolute and infallible certainty, have that great gift of perseverance unto the end, unless he have learned this by special revelation; let him be anathema." (The Council of Trent, Session 6, CANON XVI) Do you believe that it is possible to know that you have eternal…  ( Click for more )

I came across this interesting text in Isaiah. My soul yearns for You in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks You. For when Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. If favor is shown to the wicked, he does not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness he deals corruptly and does not see the majesty of the LORD. (Isaiah 26:9-10)

I don't think this line of thinking comes naturally to us, at least not in our day. I think that it is more natural to think that God only does "nice" things and, in fact, that all "good…  ( Click for more )

We are celebrating the Resurrection this Sunday. In the timeline of events, of course, the Crucifixion occurred first. When else did such horror produce such good? You know the story. You know about His betrayal -- Judas's kiss -- and arrest. You know of His trial. Before they put Him to death, they performed all sorts of cruelty. There were the false witnesses and the scourgings, the beatings and the blood. There were the crown of thorns, the whipping, the robe. It was more than we can imagine. And Scripture says, "He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not…  ( Click for more )

No, not the song from the '70's. What is "respect"? Today it means "admiration". Fine. It may even mean "deep admiration." Okay. But is that always the concept? Maybe not. In Ephesians wives are told, "Let the wife see that she respects her husband." (Ephesians 5:31) "Okay," we think, "that means that she should have a great admiration for her husband." And, of course, at that juncture we run into a problem. You know the problem. Say it with me. "Respect is not given, it is earned." What do we mean by that?…  ( Click for more )

It used to be that "acceptable people" were allowed in the front door, but the "less acceptable people" had to go in through the servants' entrance. You know ... we needed them around; we just didn't want them to be seen. Immanuel Kant, in three separate works, carefully and persuasively explained that it is impossible to prove the existence of God. In the view of many, what Kant managed to do was to usher God out of the front door of the Logic House. You know ... "Sorry. We don't want you in here." Or, "There is no God." Now, of course,…  ( Click for more )

Paul, in his farewell address to the elders of the church at Ephesus, offers them a warning. Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears.…  ( Click for more )

When Tim Tebow was in college playing for the national championship, he had "John 3:16" written under his eyes and 93 million people googled John 3:16. Exactly 3 years later in the first round of championship play-offs with Denver against the Steelers, Tebow encountered some interesting statistics. He threw for 316 yards, with 3.16 yards per rush, 31.6 yards per completion, and a time of possession of 31.6. Oh, and the Nielsen TV ratings for the game peaked at 31.6. Coincidence? The truth is that John 3:16 is among the top 10 best known verses in the Bible. (It used…  ( Click for more )

It's Valentine's Day, so of course we have to talk about love. We all know what love is. It's that warm, gushy feeling we get when we feel affection for another. Oh, sure, that's too vague. The dictionary puts it like this: Love is "a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person", "a feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, as for a parent, child, or friend", or "sexual passion or desire". Yeah, that's the love we all know and love. (Yes, that was intended to be humorous.) The Bible does include some of that. The Greek…  ( Click for more )

In Acts 8 we are introduced to a character named Simon. He is a magician (however that is meant) (Acts 8:9). Up until Philip arrived preaching the gospel, Simon was regarded as "the Great Power of God" (Acts 8:10), but when Philip showed up it says, "Even Simon himself believed" and was baptized (Acts 8:13). Well, now, this is good stuff. An evil "magician" repents and comes to Christ, baptism and all. So it's a bit strange how the story plays out. Some time later Peter and John arrived and started praying over new converts. They laid hands on them…  ( Click for more )

Picture the sequence. Two people meet ... maybe at a cafe or in an alley or wherever. One says, "Did you bring the stuff?" The other nods. "Did you?" Yes. So they hand each other the bag or the attache or whatever they're carrying. Each takes a look at the new one they acquired. "Yep, it's all there." So one walks away with Christ's righteousness having successfully exchanged it for his sin. Silly? Sure. But I think…  ( Click for more )

Among the pro-abortion crowd the chant is for "the woman's right to do with her body as she chooses." Now, the pro-life side will raise the objection, "Yes, but that baby your killing isn't 'your body'." Still, is it true? Do people have the right to do with their bodies what they choose? On the surface, despite all certainties to the positive, I think it's quite clear that we don't. I mean, there is the obvious. You can't kiss your elbow no matter what you choose. You can't tickle yourself. You can't sneeze with your eyes open. Then there is the legal. Suicide…  ( Click for more )

(There appears to have been a "Live as if" outage for a week, so I'm just giving you this one again ... in case you missed it.)

Biblical Christians consider themselves "people of the book", so to speak. We aim to be serious about Scripture. The Bible is our sole authority on matters of faith and practice. It is God's Word. And we're serious about that. So we read it for all it's worth. We try to understand and try to conform our lives and minds to what God has to say. Why is it, then, that we seem to be so blind to some of the obvious things? When I was…  ( Click for more )

Biblical Christians consider themselves "people of the book", so to speak. We aim to be serious about Scripture. The Bible is our sole authority on matters of faith and practice. It is God's Word. And we're serious about that. So we read it for all it's worth. We try to understand and try to conform our lives and minds to what God has to say. Why is it, then, that we seem to be so blind to some of the obvious things? When I was young, I was told, "Never use 'never' and always avoid 'always'." (If you didn't smile at that, you missed the joke.) Those extreme…  ( Click for more )

There are those today who suggest that the concept of the church choir is outdated. However, if we look at the history and purpose of the choir, I suspect we will find that this ought not be the case. The “church choir” has its origins not in Roman Catholicism or in Christianity at all, but in the Old Testament. The first “church choir” was appointed by King David some 3000 years ago. These choirs were far more serious than anything we have today. Now these are the singers, heads of fathers' households of the Levites, who lived in the chambers of the temple…  ( Click for more )

Here's a New Year's resolution for you. I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection…  ( Click for more )

What is Christmas really all about? It's about white. You know, "white Christmas", like the one I'm dreaming about. Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow (Psalm 51:7).

Yeah, white ... like snow. Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without trees. Trees symbolize Christmas. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us -- for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree" (Galatians 3:13).

The tree is an important component of Christmas. It's not possible to think of…  ( Click for more )

That was the famous question from Pilate (John 18:38). He walked away when he asked it, so I don't think it was an actual question, but it is certainly one worth asking. Anyone who has followed my stuff here knows that I'm often about words, definitions, meanings, that sort of thing. And it wouldn't be far fetched to think that I might want to pursue the definition of "truth" as a word or concept. But, this time, that's not my aim. Let's just go with the basic understanding. "Truth" is simply that which corresponds to reality. I don't think that would be too…  ( Click for more )

It would be difficult for anyone with any reasoning capacity and reasonable knowledge of the Bible to argue that "no-fault divorce" is a good thing biblically. I think it is abundantly clear that divorce, both biblically and in society, is a bad thing. The Scriptures describe the marriage bond as two becoming one. This is more than a mere metaphor. There are bonds formed that make a married couple one body, one soul, one spirit. Paul warned against sex with a prostitute for this very reason (1 Corinthians 6:15-17). Divorce, then, is a very literal rending of a union.…  ( Click for more )