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Devotionals

Self Apologetics

The Apostle Paul actively engaged the people of his generation, logically and persuasively “destroying arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and taking every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). Such is the work of apologetics, evangelism, and discipleship. But this is not only the work we should seek to do in the minds and hearts of others, it is a job that starts

Help Wanted

God tells us in 2 Corinthians 9 that when we serve, sacrifice, or give for the good of his church there is a cascading series of positive effects that should encourage and motivate us to keep at it. He begins with...

Trials and Prayer

When you are on the fence about whether to share your trial, your hurt or your burden

Life and Death

Death is a really big problem for us. The resurrection of Christ advertises to us the availability of the ultimate solution. Many misguided philosophers prefer to speak of the accounts of Jesus’ resurrection as metaphor...

Sober Up

There is a kind of sober, vigilant, circumspect mindset that the Scripture consistently promotes and calls his people to maintain. Paul rebukes the Corinthians both metaphorically and literally: “Wake up...

Weakness

As sinful and fallen people we hate the feeling of weakness. On the other hand, we love feelings of strength, dominance, control, power and independence. But the reality is, that as creatures of the One who “gives all men life, breath and everything else” (Acts 17:25) all of our perceived...

Bearing Real Fruit

Jesus said, “You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16). That kind of straightforward evaluation should not only be applied to “them,” but also to us. In the upper room, not long before his crucifixion, Jesus told his twelve apostles, “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8). At that time, you’ll remember, one of the Twelve was secretly conspiring to betray Christ, cashing in his association with the Messiah for thirty pieces of silver. Judas wasn’t intent

Time

The Bible makes a sweeping and comprehensive point when we are rhetorically asked, “What do you have that you did not receive?” (1 Corinthians 4:7). Consider the magnitude of that question. Scripture goes on to definitively clarify that the Source and Purpose of all the things we tend to feel

Worldly Wisdom

We are far too easily impressed with the “wisdom” of this world. What our society lacks in truth, it tries to make up for with confidence. But with all the assertiveness of our culture, they have yet to settle the disparity between what they sense they need and what they actually have. In the words of

Suffering and Openness

When we encounter tough times we tend to want to isolate ourselves. Because of the pain, fear of embarrassment, or doubts regarding others’ understanding, we often choose to...

Perspectives on the Unseen

To hold a biblical perspective on reality is to affirm that there is more to reality than what meets the eye. In fact, what you don’t see matters far more than what you do see. Paul writes...

Communion

The Bible tells us that we need to take a good, long look at what is going on in our hearts when we partake in the Lord’s Supper. “Let a person examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup...

Disparaging Words

It is almost impossible to get through a week without hearing one Christian disparage another. Unless we are personally invested in the conflict, we usually stand by feeling uncomfortable, while passively allowing our friend to “vent.” But the Bible tells us...

When Bad Things Happen

God has obviously not promised us an exemption from the bad things that happen to people in this world. As Christians we are saved from the coming wrath of God, but for now in God’s providence we are variously exposed to the painful and tragic events that plague mankind. This, of course, was God’s promise in...

Tree of Life

Proverbs 13:12 says that “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” While that principle holds true for all varieties of hopes and desires, the ultimate hope of the Christian life is bound up in the arrival of Christ and his kingdom (Titus 2:13). That is one reason the “tree of life” finds a prominent place in the descriptions of our eternal home in the Book of Revelation (Revelation 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19). So then, if our supreme hopes

Isolation

There is too much spiritual danger inherent in Christians choosing to be isolated. The New Testament model shows us Christians who are interested and involved in each other’s lives. Paul shared his joys and victories, as well as his hurts and struggles...

Biblical Tension

It has been rightly said that we should never use biblical truths in unbiblical ways. We make this costly error at times without knowing it. We may be hailing some aspect of God’s word with a resolute focus while unwittingly beginning to utilize that affirmation to deny some other forthright teaching of Scripture. Take for instance our confidence in the sovereignty of God, which is of course a...

Thinking Christians

One of the great things about real Christianity is that it calls us to sincerely engage our minds and always check out the facts. Unlike those who say that “faith is something that is to be embraced in spite of the truthfulness of the particulars,” the Bible tells us

Christmas Forgiveness

In this season of giving and receiving gifts, let us never lose our focus on the incomparable grace that was bestowed on us when God decided to give us everything that was needed to free us from the consequences of our sins through the life and death of Jesus Christ. It would seem only right...

Fear of God

Here is one of the most simple, yet most serious warnings found in the Bible: “God is opposed to the proud” (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5). The last thing we as God’s children should want is to dabble in the archetypal sin that was the initial cause of all the rebellion and corruption in the universe (Ezekiel 28:14-17). We are shown in God’s word that pride’s antithesis and remedy is the fear of the Lord (Romans 11:20; Jeremiah 44:10; Proverbs 8:13). For those who have repented of their sins

Future Good

Because mature Christians have learned that all good things in this life come from God’s generous hand, they are usually careful to give thanks to him whenever they experience them. And so we should (James 1:17; Ephesians 5:20). But the Bible also calls us to learn to give thanks for the good things we’ve yet to receive – the ones we will experience in the next life! Colossians 1:12 says you ought to be “giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints.” The “inheritance” Paul has in mind