Normally, on Sundays people around the world fill their churches. Most would identify themselves as Christians. Perhaps because they grew up in a Christian home or because they have some general belief in God. But could there be a great danger in that assumption? Could many, even some who attend church every week, be Christians in name only?
When an observer in Jesus’ time asked, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” He warned that the gate is narrow. And when the people of Joshua’s day claimed that they would serve the Lord, he told them not to take that commitment lightly. Are there many today who have failed to heed those warnings? Are there many who base their relationship with God on something besides the true gospel?
That should be a heart-breaking thought for those of us who truly understand the gospel because it is the most incredible GOOD NEWS ever! Today’s post includes a link to a video that could shake your understanding of what the good news of the gospel really is!
Maybe you go to church or maybe you don’t. Maybe you call yourself a Christian or maybe you’re not even sure you want to. What you do know is that you live with a sense of guilt and confusion. You lack any lasting peace and wonder if it will ever change.
Guilt sometimes leaves us with the vague feeling that we are not good enough and that we deserve whatever happens. But sometimes it leaves us angry and confused about why others seem to have peace and seem so sure of their relationship with God while we live with constant doubt.
The problem with guilt is that it’s more than an emotion. It is a state of being. We are all guilty before a holy God. And there is only one remedy and one road to real peace.
I talked to a young mom recently about Christian parenting. She is struggling with a strong-willed child and looking for some answers. When I began sharing biblical principles, she told me, it’s a different world today where parenting is concerned. What did she mean? Should parents today ignore parts of the Bible’s instructions on parenting? If not, how can we be obedient to Scripture and, yet, wise in the world in which we live?
Things happen in life. Sometimes we’re sinned against. Someone hurts us. A friend betrays us. Other times, it’s a temptation. Someone or something looks good to us. We think we’re not getting something we need … or want. Like Eve, we see something that’s desirable. We may even believe God is withholding something good from us. How will we respond? We’re at a point of decision.
How will you handle your next point of decision and what can help you make a better decision?
We live in a world where the Bible and religious liberty are under siege. Many people point to the Old Testament, in particular, and say it’s outdated and irrelevant. Others want to discredit the Bible all together as something devised by men. They call those of us who hold to it everything from ignorant to mean-spirited.
Is the Bible and the Old Testament, in particular, still relevant? Does it have something to say to New Testament believers? If so, why are some Old Testament laws still valid and others are not?
May is Mental Health Awareness month and there is much being written on the subject. In this and the two previous posts I want to compare psychology and biblical counseling. In the process, I hope to answer two questions:
Has psychology, as we know it today, affected the spread of the gospel?
And has it hindered spiritual growth in believers?
In the first post, I laid some groundwork about the roots of modern psychology. In the second post, I discussed ten presuppositions of modern psychology and some of the problems with them. And today, we’ll look at the presuppositions of biblical counseling and theology, the differences between the two, and how I believe the answer to both of my questions is “yes.”
May is Mental Health Awareness month and there is much being written on the subject. But I would like to pose a couple of questions that I believe need to be asked as we think about people’s mental and spiritual well-being. Has psychology, as we know it today, affected the spread of the gospel? And has it hindered spiritual growth in believers?
When I speak of psychology, I’m referring to it in the counseling or therapeutic sense. This has to do with diagnosing problems and seeking to change a person’s behavior, thinking, attitudes, values, and beliefs in an effort to solve those problems.
I don’t mean to imply in any of my comments that counselors of all kinds don’t want to help people. But as followers of Christ, we need to hold everything up to the light of God’s Word. I hope to do that in this post.
May is Mental Health Awareness month and there is much being written on the subject. But I would like to pose a couple of questions that I believe need to be asked as we think about people’s mental and spiritual well-being. Has psychology, as we know it today, affected the spread of the gospel? And has it hindered spiritual growth in believers?
When I speak of psychology, I’m referring to it in the counseling or therapeutic sense. This has to do with diagnosing problems and seeking to change a person’s behavior, thinking, attitudes, values, and beliefs in an effort to solve those problems.
I don’t mean to imply in any of my comments that counselors of all kinds don’t want to help people. But as followers of Christ, we need to hold everything up to the light of God’s Word. I hope to do that in this post.
We’re working our way through the book of Colossians in these weekly posts. In this lesson, we’ll talk about how Paul could rejoice in suffering, what he meant when he said he was “filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions,” how persecution can be like murder when it’s a crime of passion, the unfolding plan of God, and the mystery that had been hidden from earlier generations.
We’re working our way through the book of Colossians in these weekly posts. And even though we are still in chapter one, speaking for myself, I have learned so much. If you missed the previous posts, I’ll add the links below. In today’s passage, Paul moves from his beautiful hymn about the preeminence of Christ and a sweeping view of His reconciling work in the new creation to a closer look at the people of God and a summary of the Christian life.
