Christian Living

Many years ago, a man told me that if I ever needed someone to go to a person in the church who was in sin, he was more than willing to go. He said, “That type of situation does not bother me; I do not mind having to rebuke a brother for his sin.” He…

We dare not confuse divine unity with organizational unity. Christians are one in Christ, which does not require the existence of organizational unity (John 17: 11, 22-22). The mere reality of different churches or even denominations is not necessarily demonstrative of disunity. This is because our unity is not derived from an organization but our…

God instituted marriage (Gen 1: 21-25) to eliminate solitude (Gen 2:18), and for the only proper relationship for sexual intimacy and procreation (Gen 1:28; 1 Cor 7: 1-5). According to Scripture, there simply is no such thing as homosexual marriage, and Christians should avoid speaking as if there is. Speaking of homosexual marriage does not…

If Scripture teaches anything about spiritual warfare, it is this; the more faithful you are to God and the more God uses you, the more Satan seeks to destroy your relationship with God, the work of God through you, and you. It seems that the reality of God’s provision to enable us to withstand Satan’s…

We need no divine empowerment to be harsh. It seems to me that we do not need the power of Christ in our lives to treat others hurtfully, unkindly, or dismissively. Christians seem to possess natural resources sufficient for the task of insensitivity. Of course, even carnal Christians are wise enough to masquerade such strictness…

Zeal is not the test of godliness, nor can zeal make one godlier. Zealousness can even be a detriment to godliness if one’s definition of godliness is derived from the intensity of one’s zeal rather than the clear teaching of Scripture. Frequently we find people who claim to be Christian, and may very well be,…

Since we are not God, everyone will be humbled. There are three kinds of humility in the Scripture. First is a false humility, which is fashionably demonstrated by the Pharisees of the gospels as well as their contemporary protégés. Second is a forced humility, which is the lot of all who choose to exalt themselves…

In the shadows of self-confidence lurk many dangers like succumbing to temptation, seeking self-glory, and hurting those for whom Christ died. Perhaps the most serious consequence of self-confidence is that such testimonial presents a false Christ to the world and thereby denies the gospel and the grace provisions of sanctification. “I am the vine, you…

If Christians were once again to be lost and destined to hell, but still remembered all we knew about Christ and salvation except how to be saved again, we would desire more than anything else in all the world that those who know Christ as Lord and Savior would present us with the clearest display…

Repentance is a friend that leads to God, and such a friend should always be eagerly embraced. A friend is someone who always seeks to help us be our best and seeks to bring us closer to God by making us more like Christ. Repentance is such a friend. Repentance brings us to God in…