These are challenging times to be a believer. There is a huge clash of worldviews. The truthfulness of God’s Word is being attacked on many fronts. Perhaps, you are being attacked personally for standing for the truth. How should a believer respond to those attacks?
Also, read about the source of our strength, the value of staying where God has placed us, and the importance of earnestness in prayer.
James said God’s Word is like a mirror. What do we look for when we check our appearance in a mirror? Possibly to see what doesn’t look right, where we might have dirt on our faces or something else that isn’t how we want to look. What should we look for when we look into the mirror of God’s Word? Paul’s letter to the Colossians gives us some ideas. In fact, the chapter might be considered a checklist for Christian maturity. Why not take a look into the mirror of God’s Word and ask yourself, “Which of these characteristics describe me and which don’t?”
Itching ears, false worship, and the queen of heaven: what do they have to do with one another? We might say they all have to do with our theology or how we view God and his Word.
And we all have some kind of theology. It may be formal or it may not. It may even be the result of things we have heard and practiced for many years, even as children. But because something is popular, our religious tradition, or “the way we have always done it,” doesn’t make it biblical.
In today’s Old Testament passage, God condemned the nation of Israel for their false religion and idolatry. Centuries later, when a Samaritan woman met Jesus and pointed out what was popular in her religious tradition, He told her, “… those who worship [God] must worship in spirit and truth” (Jn. 4.24)—spirit, with the right heart attitude, and truth, according to His Word.
So what has formed your theology? And is it biblical?
Recently we’ve talked about how to have peace in place of the anxiety and distress so many are facing today. We also looked at various kinds of legalism, including how it might look in our parenting, how some of our politicians are too much like one of Israel’s kings, the test of genuine faith and so much more.
A quick scan of the links below will show you the wide variety of subjects we’ve covered. There are links to the posts here on the website and to the YouTube version.
I hope you’ll check out a few.
God had a problem with those in Jeremiah’s time. So, He sent the Prophet to warn them of coming judgment. Instead of listening, their leaders assured the people they were fine with God. After all, they were His people, they had His temple and He would never let it be destroyed. And when the Prophet and others tried to speak the truth, it was a reproach to them. They hated it and refused to listen.
Sadly, many of our leaders today have, also, compromised the truth. Rather than biblical morality, they are more concerned about popularity, being politically correct, and being re-elected than the well-being of the nation, spiritually or otherwise.
Even many of our spiritual leaders seem more concerned with not offending anyone than with speaking the truth. While we can’t fully understand all the motives, it seems that selling books and filling their churches are more important. Even whole denominations have twisted the truth to accommodate the culture in which we live and have deceived many.
And from our New Testament reading, how did the Apostle Paul pray? Could his prayers become a model for ours and hold a key to how we should pray for our families, our leaders, and our nations?
Jesus said in Matthew 11 that He came to give us rest or we could say peace in our souls. Are you enjoying that kind of peace of mind? Or are you full of anxiety, restlessness, and discontent? If it’s the latter, it turns out that learning to enjoy God’s peace of mind is neither impossible nor mysterious. You can read more in today’s post.
How much do you and I want to know Jesus? The answer reveals a great deal about our hearts. The Apostle Paul who had all the Jewish credentials: education, a great family pedigree, as well as, his own achievements, said he counted it all as garbage, literally “dung,” in comparison to the ability to actually know Jesus. So, how much do you really want to know Him? In today’s post, we’ll talk about the how and why of doing that.
Is holiness just boring legalism?
Sadly, that is the perception of many. But growing in holiness is not becoming a dry, boring, legalistic fuddy-duddy. Rather, growing in holiness is to have the peace and joy that all of us want in our lives. It’s to become more like Christ, to have the wisdom to live a God-honoring life, to make wise decisions, and to avoid painful consequences. It’s to shine the light of a life well-lived in a dark world.
If that’s true, shouldn’t we all want to grow in holiness? If so, how do we do it?
And by contrast, how do some people end up pulled down into so much darkness? How does a habitual liar become one or some other life-dominating sin become a way of life? How does a truly evil person become that way?
God says He’ll complete the work He has begun in us which is the process of transforming us into the likeness of Christ. But do we often suffer unnecessarily in the process because we’re determined that our way is better than His?
Angry children—we see them in the grocery store, in the schoolyard, on the news, and possibly in our own homes. While all of us, including our children, are responsible for our choices, as parents we are warned not to provoke our children to anger. Two ways we do that are by living a hypocritical lifestyle and parental role reversal. We may be guilty of those or other ways without even realizing it.
We’ll, also, look at the armor of God, what it is, and how we put it on. It’s not as mysterious or mystical as it might seem.
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