The Sin of “In-Sliding”
The Bible warns against the sin of backsliding (1 Corinthians 10:12). Jeremiah often used “backsliding” to describe the unfaithful descent of Israel and Judah into idolatry and immorality (Jeremiah 3:6, 8, 11-14, 22; 8:5; 31:22; 49:4). Israel’s backsliding angered the Lord (cp. Isaiah 57:17). Yet, God was ready to forgive the backslider who presented himself […]
A God-Centered Life
Life is full of disappointments, whether it be the loss of a job, your vehicle breaking down at the most inconvenient time, or worst of all, the people that we are closest to letting us down. However, God will never disappoint us; He will never let us down. God is the only secure, unchanging center […]
Godly Sorrow
An American minister, Gardiner Spring, once said regarding godly sorrow, “It is one thing to morn for sin because it exposes us to Hell, and another to mourn for it because it is an infinite evil; one thing to mourn for it because it is injurious to ourselves, and another thing to mourn for it […]
Higher Ground
It is not from thinking alone that we make spiritual progress, but from thinking, doing, and then learning from what we’ve done. Whoever makes an honest attempt to do what God’s word has taught him to do, that person, James 1:25 says, “Will be blessed in what he does.” It is not possible for us […]
Who Packs Your Parachute?
Charles Plumb, a U. S. Naval Academy graduate, was a jet pilot in Vietnam. After 75 combat missions, his plane was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile. Plumb ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent six years in a Communist Vietnamese prison. He surveyed the ordeal and now lectures on lessons learned […]
Is Your Heart Full of Love?
God is love and he created man in such a manner that he too could have a heart full of love. But a heart full of love does not necessarily mean that one’s heart is right with God. It is possible for our hearts to be overflowing with the wrong kind of love. The word […]
Church Closings
[Author’s note: I was recently asked to speak at the closing of a congregation. Here are a few of my remarks, with much of the specifics omitted.] There are no 2,000-year-old congregations in existence. The Lord’s churches in Corinth, Ephesus, and Philippi eventually disbanded. As to why or how or when we do not know, […]
Jesus’ Sign to His Nation
John 2:13 records the first Passover of Jesus’ personal ministry. John specifically mentions three Passovers (2:13; 6:4; 11:55), and once the writer mentions “a feast of the Jews” which some ancient manuscripts translate “the feast of the Jews” (Jn. 5:1). Some commentators conclude this to be a reference to an additional Passover which, if so, […]
How Important Are the Contents of Our Heart?
The text of Luke 11:24-26 reads, “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. Then he goes and takes with […]
Doing the Best That We Can Do
As strange as it sounds, we can accomplish the greatest things in life when we learn to work within the limits that have been set before us. If we expend our energy worrying about our obstacles and complaining about our setbacks and limits, there is very little good that we will be able to accomplish, […]
