Ronnie W. Rogers
This passage gives insight into the very nature of the gospel encounter. We see the genuine offer of the gospel, and the need and urgency to accept it, which the listeners can do; or they can reject it with full knowledge and remain in their sin. “So Jesus said to them, For a little while…
Read MoreMay my day, my thoughts, my words, my plans, and my deepest emotions be enraptured by gratefulness, be enveloped in thankfulness, and may my thankfulness not be in stale sayings as I speak all the while sauntering the walkways of complaining and self-pity. Oh my Lord Jesus please once again forgive me. May my thankfulness…
Read MoreI have a strong desire to enable people to more readily recognize the unmitigated determinism within every aspect of Calvinism. [1] This serves to make dialogue regarding the merits and liabilities of Calvinism clearer as well as enabling everyone a better opportunity to be aware of what they are actually embracing when they don the…
Read MoreI remember the first time we implemented church discipline in my former church. It was the greatest spiritual challenge the church had faced. The process took over a year, and it ended with removing a young lady and others leaving because of her removal. But that was not to be the end of the story.…
Read MoreI have practiced church discipline for over thirty years, and here are some of the practical reasons often posed to me against the practice of church discipline. It was abused in the past When the subject of church discipline surfaces, someone will inevitably point to the abuses of the past as reason enough to squelch…
Read MoreThe term discipline, both in the Bible and in everyday usage, displays various nuances depending on the particular biblical or life context. The ideas communicated by discipline are that of chastening, instruction, nurturing, training, correction, reproof, and punishment. In the negative sense, the idea of punishment is most prominent. In the positive sense, things like…
Read MoreMy Lord Jesus, I pray You will keep me strong to continue my calling to “equip the saints” and to “preach the whole counsel of God” (Eph 4: 11-12; Acts 20:27). It seems I am surrounded by people, movements, and pressures to let other things push this to the side. To let such things as…
Read MorePeople often tell me God feels distant. They do not sense his presence as they once did. This is not because God has left us, but it is often because we are seeking him in ways he is not to be found. We cannot find God in our own way, or based upon our personal…
Read MoreThe imagery of a “wall of separation” was actually in use prior to Thomas Jefferson’s famous use of the phrase, and so it is wise to find out how it had been used in the context of religious freedom in America. This is particularly important in light of the fact that Jefferson used it while…
Read MoreMay I praise You God with every breath and for every breath, the grand, minor, and even the humbling for even they remind me of Your greatness and grace. “Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised, and His…
Read More