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A Savior

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  John 3:17-19 17  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18  “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  19  And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.   When the phone rings and you don’t recognize who is calling, or when the doorbell rings and you don’t know the person standing in front of you, what’s the first thing that goes through your mind? I want to know what they are there for.  I want to know why they are calling me or standing on my front porch. We have here Jesus giving us His reason for coming to this earth. He came to save us.  Though He will one day judge the earth, the priority of His first coming was not to be the judge, but to save. God’s heart is that people w
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When We Are Anxious

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  Philippians 4:6,7 6  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7  and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.   This verse, besides John 3:16, is probably the most memorized verse of Scripture that today’s Christian knows. Why is it so hard to follow though?   Let’s be honest, when it says, “Be anxious for nothing”, how many of us say, “Come on!”   I mean we have bills to pay, kids, homes, cars, jobs, relationships, and so many more things that can bring anxiety into our lives. We are anxious because to some of us, some things are simply out of our control.   Some of us are anxious because we feel like we can control some things, but they are spiraling out of control.   So then, how do we do this?   Do we just dismiss this verse and go on?   No, absolutely not! Let’s look at the rest of the verse. When we are an
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True Praise

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  Read Revelation 5 John’s revelation of heaven’s throne room is a picture of true praise. He describes the place exploding with worship and adoration of Jesus. Those present—the elders and “myriads of myriads” of angels (Rev. 5:11)—are motivated to sing their love of Christ because they know who He is. He is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). He is the Lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5), the only one worthy to judge the earth and bring forth its renewal.  What motivates believers to lift hands and voice in worship—shouldn’t the reason be to praise the Savior for who He is? To do that, we must take the time to know as much as we can about Him. That happens through regular Bible study and prayer that is less self-focused.  Once we glimpse a side of Christ’s character that’s bigger and more amazing than we realized, there will be a yearning to know more. We hunger and thirst for God because only He can truly satisfy (Matthew 5:6).  Praise is part of a cycle: Learn mo
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Are You Willing To Wait?

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  Lamentations 3:24-26 24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!” 25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him. 26 It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For the salvation of the Lord. Many Christians struggle with waiting. There are a lot of things we want right now—and we usually have the ability to follow through on our desires. In fact, that’s what the entire credit card industry is all about: Have it now; pay later. But possessions aren’t the only thing we’re in a rush for. Some people are so eager to be married that they make an unwise choice regarding a mate. Others are in such a hurry to become successful and well-respected in their career that they look for shortcuts to get ahead.  So why might the Lord have us delay? One reason is to protect us. Those who can’t say no to their own desires end up enslaved to them. God wants us to be mature believers who have the character and self-restraint to wait for Him to pro
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How Is Your Most Important Relationship?

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  Psalm 119:33-40 33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes, And I shall keep it to the end. 34 Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart. 35 Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it. 36 Incline my heart to Your testimonies, And not to covetousness. 37 Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things, And revive me in Your way. 38 Establish Your word to Your servant, Who is devoted to fearing You. 39 Turn away my reproach which I dread, For Your judgments are good. 40 Behold, I long for Your precepts; Revive me in Your righteousness. Once we trust Jesus and become a child of God, we have a responsibility to mature spiritually. This includes: • Getting to know our heavenly Father. The Bible gives us detailed descriptions of God’s attributes, values, and thoughts, and it also includes accounts of His Son’s life on earth. As we meditate on Scripture and what it reveals about the Lord, our sense of conne
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God Does Not Want To Be Distant

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  John 1:12-13 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Our Creator never intended to be distant from mankind. Instead, He has always wanted an intimate, loving relationship with us. We know this because … • He sent His Son. Christ came to earth so we could know God the Father. Jesus is His exact representation; His words and works were the same as God’s (John 5:19; John 12:50). Therefore, when we look at the Son, we are seeing the character of our Father in heaven. • He adopted us as His children. Through salvation, God invites us to join His family (John 1:12). This close relationship with our heavenly Father lasts for eternity, providing us with support, encouragement, and love.  • He is our friend forever. By calling His disciples “friends” (John 15:15), Jesus revealed a special aspect of His relationship wit
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God Teaches Us How To Forgive

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  Matthew 18:21-25 21 Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. 23 Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ 27 Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. 28 “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ 29 So his
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