May we never turn our back on our heavenly Father, with the camera focused upon our pathetic selves. God forbid that he would ever become a background picture for the glorification of self. May our first request to our Father in heaven, “Hallowed be your name,” put him back at the center of our Christian prayers... Continue Reading

We are the redeemed of the Lord. As such, we are to live lives consecrated to our God and conspicuous of His grace. Our obedience does not earn us any favor with God. It is by Christ’s obedience that we are saved. We live lives of obedience under the banner of His love.    for obedience... Continue Reading

Let us take care in our language and thought to recover and maintain, as best we are able, the biblical emphasis on the church as the people of God who respond to the call of God, to the voice of the Shepherd. Making our own feeble attempt at that, we have a twist on the... Continue Reading

That is a terrifying reality. Everything – every harbored thought, every nursed sense of entitlement, every quiet resentment or lust or whatever – will not be private forever. They will all eventually be laid bare before the One who already knows them. And as if that thought isn’t frightening enough, we are reminded that these... Continue Reading

The Bible itself also warns and sometimes describes evil in some amount of detail. But it does so out of love for others. Warning of the many dangers and threats that exist is always the most loving thing to do. So some believers need to stop shooting the messenger. They need to start being offended by... Continue Reading

The division between these two German-speaking men of God and its sad legacy is a sobering reminder of the danger of dividing over issues that cannot be biblically demonstrated as being primary. When facing Christian division — and our day is equally filled with vitriol and misunderstanding between believers.   A few years ago, while... Continue Reading

Your chief end is not to be the smartest, the richest, the most successful, the most liked or respected. It is to glorify God by dying to self and growing in Christlikeness, which is achieved by the means of grace. Your chief end is not to find ultimate joy and contentment in the things of... Continue Reading

Slow down. Reaffirm that you put your trust in your Father who judges justly. Pray that the Spirit would anoint you with wisdom and grace, as you remember the grace that you have received from Christ. If you have missed this path, you have yet to find the place that Paul gives to righteous indignation.... Continue Reading

The author of Hebrews realized that Christians in his day (as in ours) are capable of giving detailed attention to almost everything (a football game, new clothes, our appearance, school studies)—often, sadly, with one exception: the Lord Jesus. Hebrews teaches that we must reverse that trend. More than that, it engages in reversing the trend... Continue Reading

God is too loving to be unkind and too wise to make a mistake. We can trust him even in the dark times. If we do not know what tomorrow holds, that is OK, because we know and love the one who does. And again, that should be very reassuring and comforting, on the most practical... Continue Reading