Blogs
The "acid test" of whether or not someone is of God is by his actions. Jesus' actions were so miraculous and overwhelmingly consistent with God's Word that any reservations about whether or not He was of God should have been set aside. But, as in Mark 7:13, they had exalted their own traditions above God's Word, thereby making the Word of God of no effect in their own lives. Just as in this instance nearly two thousand years ago, theologians today are sometimes the last to accept a move of God if it violates their traditional beliefs. "The common people heard him gladly" (Mk. 12:37). "Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth" (1 Cor. 8:1).
In spiritual matters, a person can educate himself in theology to the...
YESTERDAY I WAS TALKING ABOUT KNOWING WHETHER OR NOT YOU ARE SAVED BUT THIS MORNING I WOULD LIKE TO TALK TO THOSE WHO KNOW THEY ARE NOT SAVED. I KNOW YOU HAVE HEARD MANY TIMES THAT YOU NEED TO BE BORN AGAIN. MY QUESTION TO YOU IS, WHAT IS HOLDING YOU BACK? IF YOU HAVE FELT GOD CALLING, OR DRAWING, YOU, IT IS TIME YOU MADE A DECISION BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. I KNOW YOU HAVE HEARD THAT BEFORE, TOO, BUT IT IS TRUE AND YOU KNOW IT. I AM SURE A LOT OF CHRISTIANS HAVE BEEN TELLING YOU ALL OF THIS BUT I JUST WANT TO TELL YOU IT IN A LITTLE DIFFERENT WAY.
This man showed great courage in confronting these religious leaders. Even Peter later backed down for fear of this same group of men (Lk. 22:54-62). Certainly one thing that gave him this boldness was that he knew what Jesus had done for him. And even beyond the physical healing, he knew that Jesus had healed him because He loved him. It's our security in the Lord's love for us that gives us the strength to face rejection from others. As Proverbs 28:1 puts it, "the righteous are bold as a lion." The antidote for fear of men is a large dose of the love of God.
One of the greatest truths of the Bible and one of the hardest to comprehend, is that we are the objects of God's love. God didn't just pity us or feel some sense of moral...
WHEN YOU ARE IN CHURCH AND THE PASTOR GIVES THE INVITATION, DO YOU EVER FEEL LIKE YOU SHOULD GO DOWN TO THE ALTER? MY QUESTION IS, WHY DO YOU THINK YOU NEED TO DO THAT? NOW IF YOU ARE FEELING DRAWN TO GO DOWN TO THE ALTER, MAYBE YOU ARE NOT SAVED AND IT IS GOD DRAWING YOU TO HIM. LOOK WHAT JESUS SAYS IN JOHN 6:44 "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day." I WOULD SUGGEST REALLY PRAYING ABOUT THIS AND GET IT SETTLED ONCE AND FOR ALL. THIS IS NOTHING TO PLAY AROUND WITH.
I HAVE TALKED TO PEOPLE THAT SAY THEY FEEL THE NEED TO ASK FORGIVENESS WHEN THEY SIN, AND THEY DO, TO KEEP SATAN FROM HAVING ACCESS INTO THEIR LIVES. HOWEVER, ALL OUR SINS HAVE ALREADY BEEN FORGIVEN, PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE, AND WHEN WE DO SIN, JESUS TELLS US TO ASK FORGIVENESS FOR THAT...
The disciples asked a question that still puzzles many people today. Why is a child born with a physical defect? Is it a judgment of God upon the parents for some sin, or is it possibly God's judgment upon the child for sins that God knows he will commit?
Jesus Himself had previously linked sickness with sin. In this instance, however, Jesus said this blindness was not caused by this man's or his parents' sins.
This has led many people to interpret the rest of this verse as saying that God made this man blind just so that He could heal him and be glorified thereby. From this thinking, many doctrinal teachings have risen about how sickness and other problems in our lives are actually blessings from God, intended to bring glory to God and...
DO YOU KNOW HOW BLESSED YOU ARE? THIS MORNING I WAS THINKING JUST HOW BLESSED I AM AND I AM GOING TO TURN IT INTO A PRAISE REPORT. IT MIGHT NOT SOUND LIKE IT AT FIRST BUT JUST KEEP READING.
Jesus didn't seek to clarify the Jews' misunderstanding of His previous statements. Instead, He made a new statement that those who would not accept that Jesus was God in the flesh (1 Tim. 3:16) could not possibly understand. "Before Abraham was, I am." He not only said that He existed before Abraham, but He was again associating Himself with the great "I AM" statement of Exodus 3:14. This statement could leave no doubt that Jesus was claiming deity in the highest sense of the word.
Jesus proclaimed "I am." This is how Jehovah identified Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:14. When spoken under the anointing power of God, Jesus' pronouncement that "I am he" knocked all of those who came to arrest Him backwards to the ground (Jn. 18:5-6). Jesus was the great "I AM THAT I AM" of...
FAITH IS SOMETIMES DIFFICULT TO TRY TO EXPLAIN TO PEOPLE, EVEN CHRISTIANS. WE KNOW WE HAVE IT BECAUSE PAUL TELLS US IN ROMANS 12:3 THAT WE DO, "God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith."
THE WORD "FAITH" APPEARED 249 TIMES IN THE KING JAMES VERSION OF THE BIBLE AND I WANTED TO READ THEM ALL. I DECIDED TO START IN THE NEW TESTAMENT, SINCE IT IS FROM WHERE I TAKE MOST OF MY MESSAGES. WHEN I FINISHED THERE WERE ONLY TWO THAT I HADN'T READ AND THOSE WERE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT. I WAS VERY SURPRISED THAT THE WORD "FAITH" APPEARED 247 TIMES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT AND ONLY 2 TIMES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT. ONE OF THESE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT WAS IN HABAKKUK 2:4 WHICH IS VERY POWERFUL AND SAYS...
Jesus is referring to the day when men would be justified by putting faith in God and not in their own works. Abraham had this truth revealed to him (Rom. 4:13), and he believed it and was himself justified by faith (Rom. 4:3-4, 9).
Hebrews 11:6 says, "But without faith it is impossible to please him." It was Abraham's faith that pleased God. The Lord promised Abraham that his seed would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore and Abraham believed God. That pleased Him so much that he counted Abraham righteous right then, even though Abraham had not yet fulfilled the rite of circumcision and he was not living a holy life.
According to Leviticus 18:9, it was an abomination (Lev. 18:26) for a man to marry a half sister. Sarah, Abraham's wife, was his...
WE, AS CHRISTIANS, HAVE A JOB TO DO AND WE CAN'T DO IT IF WE ARE WRAPPED UP IN OUR OWN PROBLEMS. WE THINK THEY ARE SO BAD THAT WE CAN'T GET OUT FROM UNDER THEM. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN THIS SITUATION? WELL, I HAVE AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT TRUSTING IN JESUS IS YOUR WAY OUT. THIS IS HOW WE CAN GET OUR PROBLEMS SOLVED. HE SAYS TO ASK AND TO CAST OUR CARES ON HIM BECAUSE HE CARES FOR US. DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?