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In: Bible and Theology, Gospel, Post-Modernism, Sin and Holiness

“for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.” (1 Peter 1:24-25) An internet meme asserts that Jesus said Christians will be known by their love, not by their doctrine. Even pastoral sermons can fall into this trap. Yes, trap. The problem with this meme is two fold. One, it presents a false dichotomy, pitting love and truth against each other. The scriptures on Christian love are a vital part of soundRead More →

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In: Bible and Theology, Idols, Post-Modernism, Prayer and Devotions

“May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 15:5-6) Longing for peace and harmony in your relationships? This blessing in Romans points us to the only source of reconciliation: Jesus. It starts with prayer, filling up on encouragement and endurance from the Lord, opening up to his power to bring  each of us into accord with him. The more like him each of us grows, the more harmony we will have with oneRead More →

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In: Faith, God's promises, Post-Modernism, Prayer and Devotions

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” (Romans 11:33) Paul says this in the midst of a three or four chapter long discourse on the salvation of the Jewish people, where he struggles between God’s promise Israel is His chosen people, the surety of God’s promises, and the fact so many Jews had chosen to reject the Jewish messiah who brought us salvation. To a degree, in this verse, Paul is lifting up his hands and praising God for a plan he indicates here that he doesn’t understand. From our vantageRead More →

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In: Bible and Theology, Gospel, Post-Modernism, Prayer and Devotions

“For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” (1 Timothy 2:5-6) The context of this verse says, if I understand Paul’s complex sentence structures correctly is: Pray for all people, including all government and authority figures Pray that those in authority would allow God’s people to live peaceful, dignified lives (i.e. free of persecution) It is also good to pray for those who don’t know Christ that they might be saved because God desires all know Him andRead More →

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In: Abuse, Adultery, Bible and Theology, Gospel, Marriage, Post-Modernism

“Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor.” (Proverbs 21:21) So pursuing righteousness gets me righteousness and life. Pursuing kindness gets me honor? Interesting. The Church today has a hard time pursuing both righteousness and kindness. The devil fights us because either one  isn’t enough. We need both to find life righteousness, and honor. So all he has to do is keep us from being one or the other–and we can be more easily tricked into thinking we’re following Jesus properly in either half way state. The devil also likes to get us focused on the opposite problem than the one weRead More →