If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:11)God is eager to bless me. Just as I am eager to give good gifts to my kids, God is eager to give good gifts to me. When I pray, God unleashes blessings into my life. I realize

Listen closely. For just a moment, tune out the Christmas music and television commercials. Do you hear that slow creaking and cracking noise? It’s the sound of Satan’s skull being slowly crushed underneath the foot of our conquering Savior. Now we suffer. Now we experience cancer and migraines and anxiety and singleness and sadness and loneliness

Back in the 1980s one of the more popular Bible verses I heard was “There is therefore now no condemnation…” (Romans 8:1). This verse was used to cover people who desired to do whatever they wanted, but did not want any of the associated guilt. The problem was that many people forgot the rest of the verse… “for those who are in Christ.” Once Christ

God can be trusted with your protection. We can invest in a top-of-the-line security system for our homes and take all sorts of pre-cautionary measures to protect all that we have, but ultimately God is the one who protects us and keeps us safe. The Psalmist tells us: "I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safe

Before these events take place, Jesus participates in the Last Supper with his followers, in which he breaks the bread and passes around a cup of wine, signifying His sacrifice. In the Garden of Gethsemane, he pleads with the Lord to take away the cup of wrath from him but also submits to the Father's will. The apostles fall asleep during these hou

Come to Jesus for rest Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” MT 11.28-30 Confess your weariness to the Lord I am weary with my moaning; every night I f

4. Will There Be a New Temple in Jerusalem?“And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desola

The object of this latter part of the chapter is to show that the providential care of God, whether miraculously by means of angels, or by disposing the hearts of men to accomplish His purposes. The apostles, in no wise terrified, return, full of joy at being counted worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus; and every day, in the temple, or from hous

“Notice, it was Jesus’s words that God used to bring about the faith. He wasn’t doing miracles at this point. He was speaking. In fact, he was going back and forth with the Pharisees and the crowd — those who were blind to what he was saying. And as people listened to his words, they believed. Faith comes by hearing — the word of Christ (Romans 10:

We would be wise to test our modern ideas of sexuality, politics, gender roles, and every other issue against church history as a whole. As I look out over the battles being fought in churches I find it remarkable how closely many of the battles resemble the fight for democracy in the United States. This probably isn’t a good thing. Our battles mus

Recognition – I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. Psalm 9:1Faithful – Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Psalm 23:6Obedient – Give me understanding, and I will keep your law and obey it with all my heart. Psalm 119:34Repentant

Modesty reflects the most current update of our hearts. Philippians 2:5 reminds us “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” Do clothes, finances, relationships, speech, the passions we pursue, and the food we consume get in the way of others seeing Christ in us? 1 Corinthians 10:31 encourages, “So whether you eat or drink or what

It is terribly confusing when people say that the only righteousness that has any value is the imputed righteousness of Christ. I agree that justification is not grounded on any of our righteousness, but only the righteousness of Christ imputed to us. But sometimes people are careless and speak disparagingly of all human righteousness, as if there

The Exclusivity of Early Christian Worship A fundamental aspect of early Christian worship was its exclusivity. Only Jesus was to be worshiped. Whatever other religious loyalties one possessed before coming to Christ, they had to be abandoned and full devotion given to Jesus the King.One might think the Roman state wouldn’t care about such things.

1. Simple instructions. The instructions are all presented in visual diagrams, even the instructions to call IKEA if you have a problem. Their directions to build a bed, cabinet, shelving, and everything else are based on the principle of simplicity. It is a great reminder about how leadership directions should be given to those under our care. If

1. “There is no command that says I need to go to church every Sunday.”I have never understood this one. It is either innocently ignorant or intentionally dishonest.I wonder if we would say the same thing about our jobs. “There are no verses that say I need to show up at 7am, like my boss says, so I’m sleeping in.” And the same goes for verses abou

God's Power is Greatest When We're at Our Weakest. When Paul begged God to take away his thorn (whatever it was), God said this to him:But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)This is one of those scriptural double take, spew the water in surprise moments. It doesn’t make sen

Why Do I Feel Unworthy? There are more reasons than can be counted why Christians who believed they were saved by a God who loves them feel unworthy of His love years after being saved.Reasons can range from backsliding in faith, doing or believing something that you know you shouldn’t, or even hiding from a task God has called you to do.For many,

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. More than anything else, t

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.So I pray something along these lines:“Father please forgive me and Kristi our tresspasses. And please forgive each of our children and grandchildren for their