Those who engage in Christian ministry don’t do it for themselves. If you want to have an easy life and avoid persecution, opposition, and threats of violence, then Christian ministry is not the place for you. But if you are willing to endure the difficulties of ministry for the sake of God’s glory and for the benefit of God’s people, then perhaps God could use a clay pot like you in his service. Read More ...
The ultimate authority is not an English translation. The real authority remains in the original language documents, the ancient MSS of the Bible. If an English translation does not accurately reflect those ancient documents, then it’s no good. Read More ...
As an apostle, Paul was a representative of Jesus; and such, Paul experienced similar forms of mistreatment. Jesus was beaten, abused, mocked, and murdered. And the early Christians experienced the same kinds of mistreatment; they faced constant peril and impending death. Read More ...
There are many hindrances to the Christian ministry. Satan is trying his best to keep people from understanding the Gospel. He is trying his best to prevent the light of the Gospel from shining. But we also know that ultimately Satan cannot prevent God from accomplishing his purposes. The Gospel is still the “power of God unto salvation,” and it’s our duty to proclaim that Gospel message to those who are lost, perishing, and blind. Read More ...
Can you say with Paul (vs. 1) “We have this ministry”? What ministry do you have? How are you serving “for Jesus’ sake”? Every believer ought to have a place of service in the Lord’s vineyard, in the harvest field. We all ought to be involved in ministry of some kind. And we should make sure to pursue the ministry in a way that avoids these pitfalls and adopts this pattern. Read More ...
The biblical teaching about identity should give us great confidence in knowing who we are and what we are all about. While the unsaved world stumbles around in blindness and confusion about the issue of identity, Christians can be very clear about their identity. God tells us who we are. Most importantly, we are made in the image of God. We are his people, and he is our God. We are priests in his service, citizens of his kingdom, and servants in his vineyard. We faithfully manage his resources and fervently communicate his message to others. Read More ...
Who am I? I am a servant. I serve Christ, his church, my employer, and righteousness. These truths help me identify who I am and what I should be doing. Read More ...
How do we identify ourselves? As citizens of both heaven and earth. We are US
citizens, yet our citizenship is in heaven. While we are here, we should be good
citizens and use our influence for good. But our true, final, and highest allegiance is
to the heavenly kingdom. We identify first and foremost as citizens of heaven. We
want a heavenly value system installed here on earth, and we work toward that end Read More ...
My identity as a priest tells me that I have direct access to God. Jesus Christ is my only mediator, and I can come boldly into God’s presence through Christ’s intercession. I am responsible to participate in spiritual sacrifices (i.e., worship, service) for the benefit of others and myself. Read More ...
One of the most important ways that Christians identify ourselves is “in Christ.” We are united to Christ like a branch is united to a vine, like a husband is united to a wife. We depend on him like a building depends on its foundation or like one part of the body depends on the other parts of the body. Read More ...
Those who engage in Christian ministry don’t do it for themselves. If you want to have an easy life and avoid persecution, opposition, and threats of violence, then Christian ministry is not the place for you. But if you are willing to endure the difficulties of ministry for the sake of God’s glory and for the benefit of God’s people, then perhaps God could use a clay pot like you in his service. Read More ...
The ultimate authority is not an English translation. The real authority remains in the original language documents, the ancient MSS of the Bible. If an English translation does not accurately reflect those ancient documents, then it’s no good. Read More ...
As an apostle, Paul was a representative of Jesus; and such, Paul experienced similar forms of mistreatment. Jesus was beaten, abused, mocked, and murdered. And the early Christians experienced the same kinds of mistreatment; they faced constant peril and impending death. Read More ...
There are many hindrances to the Christian ministry. Satan is trying his best to keep people from understanding the Gospel. He is trying his best to prevent the light of the Gospel from shining. But we also know that ultimately Satan cannot prevent God from accomplishing his purposes. The Gospel is still the “power of God unto salvation,” and it’s our duty to proclaim that Gospel message to those who are lost, perishing, and blind. Read More ...
Can you say with Paul (vs. 1) “We have this ministry”? What ministry do you have? How are you serving “for Jesus’ sake”? Every believer ought to have a place of service in the Lord’s vineyard, in the harvest field. We all ought to be involved in ministry of some kind. And we should make sure to pursue the ministry in a way that avoids these pitfalls and adopts this pattern. Read More ...
The biblical teaching about identity should give us great confidence in knowing who we are and what we are all about. While the unsaved world stumbles around in blindness and confusion about the issue of identity, Christians can be very clear about their identity. God tells us who we are. Most importantly, we are made in the image of God. We are his people, and he is our God. We are priests in his service, citizens of his kingdom, and servants in his vineyard. We faithfully manage his resources and fervently communicate his message to others. Read More ...
Who am I? I am a servant. I serve Christ, his church, my employer, and righteousness. These truths help me identify who I am and what I should be doing. Read More ...
How do we identify ourselves? As citizens of both heaven and earth. We are US
citizens, yet our citizenship is in heaven. While we are here, we should be good
citizens and use our influence for good. But our true, final, and highest allegiance is
to the heavenly kingdom. We identify first and foremost as citizens of heaven. We
want a heavenly value system installed here on earth, and we work toward that end Read More ...
My identity as a priest tells me that I have direct access to God. Jesus Christ is my only mediator, and I can come boldly into God’s presence through Christ’s intercession. I am responsible to participate in spiritual sacrifices (i.e., worship, service) for the benefit of others and myself. Read More ...
One of the most important ways that Christians identify ourselves is “in Christ.” We are united to Christ like a branch is united to a vine, like a husband is united to a wife. We depend on him like a building depends on its foundation or like one part of the body depends on the other parts of the body. Read More ...