A Refuge in Times of Trouble
How will we handle troubled times? The inspired psalmist, King David, writes, “But the Lord shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment. He shall judge the world in righteousness, And He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness. The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, A refuge in […]
Faithful Unto Completion
One of the great qualities of God is His faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22-23). One of the great qualities of Jesus’ disciples is faithfulness (1 Corinthians 4:2; Revelation 2:10). Nehemiah’s enemies wanted to make some final efforts to defeat the completion of the building project in Jerusalem. They did not want the walls rebuilt because they feared […]
Faithful Stewards
“Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful” (1 Cor. 4:2). Paul said this in reference to his stewardship of the gospel as an apostle of Jesus Christ. However, the principle goes beyond the apostles. Each Christian is a steward in one way or another. Some are appointed as elders or deacons, […]
Faith and Friends
In Daniel 3, Nebuchadnezzar set up an image and commanded the people to worship it. This included three Hebrew worthies: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. The three men refused to worship the image, even after being threatened by being thrown into a fiery furnace. They knew he would make good on his promise (Jeremiah 29:22), but […]
Fairest Lord Jesus
Little is known of the origin of this beautiful hymn. It has been suggested that it was sung by German crusaders in the 12th century as they made their trip to the Holy Land. Others believed this was one of the hymns used by followers of John Huss (Moravian believers that were driven out of […]
The Failure of Others
Often, when a person is confronted with sin in his life, a response is given, “But, she…,” “But, he…,” “But, they…,” followed by some failure of the one or ones indicated. In other words, because someone else, or some group of people, did not do right, neither has the one now guilty — “It is […]
Excuses for Sin
Mankind is certainly creative at coming up with ways to minimize, justify, and excuse sin. We live in a day and time when people around us are failing to take responsibility for their actions. We make excuses for what is done or not done. We believe some behavior is excused due to the environment in […]
Evidences of Enthusiasm
Colossians 1:9-10 says, “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in […]
Evidence of Societal Decline
Sociologist Carle Zimmerman, in his book, Family and Civilization, studied the disintegration of various cultures and suggested eight specific patterns of domestic behavior which were indicative of societal decline in our time. One of the patterns included an increasing interest in and spread of sexual perversions and sex-related crimes. People in America, Italy, and Britain […]
Finding Meaning in Tragedy
Tragedies happen to someone, somewhere, every day. The fires in Maui certainly qualify as a tragedy. As of the date of publication, 114 people have lost their lives (and there is feared to be many more). Victims have been found in scenes that people compare to Pompeii after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Families have […]