All the parts of the body are different, but all are necessary, and all should be functioning in love, unity, humility, appreciation, and commitment as we serve God by serving one another. Read More ...
The Bible uses the phrase “as a father” three times, and in each case, the authors tell us what fathers do or are supposed to do for their children. So I’d like to look at each of these three verses and see what they have to tell us about the biblical responsibilities of fathers. Read More ...
One of the marks of a healthy church is that it is able to continue steadfastly in fellowship. That is, the members of the church are able to work through their differences, deal appropriately with frictions and offenses, and maintain their partnership in spite of these problems. They intentionally pursue fellowship and refuse to let minor annoyances diminish fellowship. Read More ...
Christianity presents a certain lifestyle, a set of behavioral expectations that all Christians are supposed to uphold. If professing believers do not fulfill these expectations, then something is wrong—something out of order. We call that “sin.” And that’s what Paul is addressing in this last chapter—disorderly behavior among the members of the church. Read More ...
Psalm 128 reflects the biblical picture of the good life. In this picture, the family is happy and blessed because they fear God and walk in his ways. God sustains them through the work the man does, and God blesses the couple with a home full of children. Read More ...
Every generation has to receive the biblical traditions, hold on to them, and pass them down to the next generation. Those traditions give us stability; they prevent us from being shaken in mind and troubled. As we stand fast and hold the traditions passed down to us, God will comfort our hearts and establish us for every good word and work. Read More ...
Our responsibility is to proclaim that message so that the unsaved can respond to the call in repentance and faith. Those who respond that way show that they were elected, sanctified, and called. Those who don’t respond that way demonstrate that they had no love of the truth and had pleasure in unrighteousness. Read More ...
Implicit in all of this is responsibility or accountability. That is, they had the choice of loving the truth or loving error. They chose the unrighteous deceit of the Antichrist instead of the truth of the Gospel. That will result in their damnation; they will not be saved because of their own choice. Read More ...
The apostles set a good example for us in testifying to the resurrection of Jesus. That’s what we ought to be doing as well. And we need to rely on God’s power and grace to proclaim this message. We cannot convince anyone that Jesus rose from the dead. The only way anyone believes that message is that God’s power and grace convince them. We are not responsible to make other believe; we are responsible to testify—to proclaim the message, to tell what we know. We cannot control how others respond, but we can control whether we tell others. Read More ...
Salvation is an escape from this promised retribution and judgment that God will pour out on the wicked. If you want to avoid God’s judgment, then you must repent and seek God’s mercy. Forgiveness comes to those who repent of their sins and trust in Christ for salvation. Read More ...