When it comes to our relationship with God and the salvation of our souls, there are very few things that are more important than faith.  Without it, we can have no favor with God. Hebrews 11:6 (ESV) 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must […]

Romans 12:2 (ESV) 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.  The word “transformed” in this passage is metamorphoō, meaning “to change into another form” (Vine).  We […]

Religious error is dangerous in many ways.  Even from a physical standpoint, error has ruined many lives over the years.  For example, so-called prosperity preachers have deceived many people into giving them their life savings.  They tell them it is the will of God that they give a seed offering as a way of showing […]

What a blessing it is to have the Word of God in our lives.  Paul reminded the Jews of such in Romans 3.  After telling them that they were sinners just like the Gentiles (Romans 2), he anticipated that they would ask, “Then what advantage has the Jew” (Romans 3:1).  He was always prepared to […]

Settling into a mediocre Christianity is a danger we all face.  Drifting to a place where we go through the motions when serving God, not giving Him our all, is easy.  Jesus condemned the church at Laodicea for being lukewarm. Revelation 3:15-16 (ESV) 15 “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would […]

The cross of Christ will always be one of the great paradoxes of all time.  The day that Jesus died for our transgressions was at once the darkest and the most joyous the world has ever seen.  Without the cross upon which Jesus shed His blood for the forgiveness of our sins, we would be […]

Do you like who you are?  If not, it is certainly in your power to do something about it.  People can change if they desire to do so.  We all need to look in the mirror from time to time and honestly assess the direction of our lives and how we are living.  Sometimes we […]

The word zeal (zēlos) is an emotional word that can denote something good or bad.  It literally means “to boil,” and figuratively, “to seethe with emotion.”  In classical Greek, the word referred to either the noble passion of zeal or the ignoble emotion of jealousy.  In the New Testament, we find the word used 17 […]

As long as we are in this world, we must fight against materialism.  It does not matter if you are rich, poor, or in-between, the devil will use the material things of this world to steal your heart from God.  Being attracted to the material things of this world comes naturally to man because we […]

Are you a consistent Christian?  One of the biggest deterrents to being a strong Christian is inconsistency.  Being consistent in our service to God is far more important than being great at any one thing.  It is the only way we can assure ourselves of being ready when Jesus returns.  Do not just take my […]