Know your adversary. But know your Advocate as well. In seeking to reclaim territory for the Rightful Heir, we will encounter the Enemy at every turn. Called Satan, the Dragon, the Devil, Lucifer, the Serpent, and the Accuser among other names, he is relentless in his opposition to all that glorifies the Lord, honors His […]
The Saviour’s standard Our Lord spoke of His Father’s will several times in chapters 4 to 6 of John’s gospel. His statements reveal that will to be of paramount importance. His food First, He told His disciples in chapter 4 that God’s will was, metaphorically speaking, His food. When the disciples queried, “Has anyone […]
His kindness leads us to repentance. “For the Son of Man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them” (Lk. 9:56). In the paragraph where the Lord speaks these words, we are told that the time had come for Him to be “received up” to glory. But He had one more stop […]
Read More… from Not to Destroy Men’s Lives, but to Save Them
Caring, protective leaders is one of the greatest needs today. As elders, we are simply under-shepherds of the Chief Shepherd. There is no greater example of shepherding than that which the Lord provides in His capacity as “the good shepherd [that] lays down His life for the sheep.” In John 10, the Lord describes His […]
Seeking the greatest blessing We all know the joy a gift can bring. Children sometimes make gift lists (one of our sons once helpfully divided his list into “reasonable” and “unreasonable”) in the hopes of things to come. As we grow, our idea of the perfect gift grows with us. At some point, however, we […]
What does perfection look like? In Mark 7:37, the multitude praised the Lord Jesus with these words: “He hath done all things well,” and they were right. But I wonder if we spend much time thinking about what those words mean. Our Lord never did anything half-heartedly or second rate. He is the master worker, […]
Offense or defense? Matthew 16:18 is an interesting verse because most Roman Catholics misunderstand the first half of the verse and many Protestants misunderstand the second half of the verse. This verse tells us, “And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the […]
What are spiritual gifts? They are not: • natural talents • secular skills • evidences of spirituality but they are: • the God-given ability to serve Him in a particular way – Rom. 12; 1 Cor. 12 • manifestations of Christ’s character • the permanent gifts all reflect various aspects of the normal Christian life […]
Maximizing our effectiveness The common expression “It’s not what you say, but how you say it” reminds us of a key biblical principle on the use of our spiritual gifts. The apostle Paul, when writing to the saints in Rome, expressed this same thought. Note Romans 12:8, “…he that giveth, let him do it with […]