I am called to persevere according to His guiding instructions and under His grace if I am to extend His priceless invitation to those around me who have yet to know Him. I am also to be an encourager toward brothers and sisters in Christ. At the next turn, it is I who will need encouragement.
Read MoreThe Lord reminds us often that He will not leave or forsake us, but He does not remove our freedom of choice to remain with Him.
Read MoreOur God is the God of encouragement. He generously affirms every effort that is praiseworthy. We should be confident also that every rebuke is given in perfect love, with our best interest at heart.
Read MoreJesus knows the difficulty of persevering. He patiently endured the worst possible treatment from fellow humans, having left His divinity behind to enter this world as fully human.
Read MoreThe first serious danger facing the infant church was not a threat from outside. Jesus addressed the problem thus: “I have this against you, that you have left your first love.” (Revelation 2:4) Oh, beloved, it is possible for our involvement in good things to move us away from the best and most essential thing!
Read MoreThe church in Ephesus is the church in its infancy. This parallels the first of the four horsemen in Revelation 6 where we see Jesus riding forth on a white horse, who “went out conquering and to conquer” (v2) with the pure gospel message that was sent into the world to give people victory over sin.
Read MoreBeloved, as you face trials and uncertainties, hold on to your riches! Nothing in this world compares to your relationship with Jesus. For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. (1 Corinthians 1:20)
Read MoreIn order for the building and planting to commence in my personal life, it is highly likely that there are things that need to be rooted out, pulled down, and destroyed. By the way, the name Jeremiah means “Yahweh throws” perhaps in the sense of laying a foundation . . .
Read MoreLike Jesus, Jeremiah was despised and rejected by his own countrymen. It is important to understand what is meant by the word that is translated “despise.” Nowadays, we tend to think of despising as an active loathing or hatred, but its use in the Bible is a passive attitude . . .
Read MoreAnd, while the Word repeatedly condemns the worldly system of idolatry: holding up manmade ideas and traditions above Biblical teachings—God also communicates His welcome to any and every individual who chooses Him over the world’s popular ideologies.
Read MoreA true penitent does not, in the wake of gaining peace, forget his past sins. He also gains a deep concern regarding the negative influence he has been on others. He thinks of the ways that his course has led others into evil and attempts, however he can, to lead them back to the right path.
Read MoreIn His Word, Jesus builds my faith by imparting to me hope for things vastly more wonderful than my wildest imagination could conjure up. Through the power of His Spirit, He is able to uplift each of us – to gain a view of the riches of heaven with our spiritual eyes . . .
Read MoreWe tend to be spiritually deaf in the area of preparation for hardship and tribulation. Of course, we all desire the blessings from the hand of the Lord, but sadly we tend to have greater esteem for those relatively temporal blessings from His hand than for the eternal blessing of a close and unbroken fellowship with God Himself.
Read MoreLittle by little he withheld from God that unswerving obedience which was to make Israel a peculiar people, and he conformed more and more closely to the customs of the surrounding nations.
Read MoreWhen two opposing doctrines are presented in the mainstream of Christian teaching, it is obvious they cannot both be correct. Therefore, it is vital to clarify! Playing the “ostrich” is not a defense for failing to distinguish between truth and error. Truth may hurt, but error can kill.
Read MoreAt the end of time, BABYLON THE GREAT will also be defeated in very short order. She is a conglomerate of the mother church and her harlot daughters who, under the deceptive leadership of the dragon, have exerted power over the nations.
Read MoreThe people were busy; so very busy with what they deemed important. There may have been a few in the crowd who were almost persuaded, but even these allowed the peer pressure and scorn of others toward Noah to affect their own personal decisions.
Read MoreThe spirit of compromise weaves half-heartedness, procrastination, and peer pressure together. Oh, how hesitant people are to speak or do differently from what everyone else is doing!
Read MoreBeloved, we are rapidly moving through the stream of time toward the great Day of the Lord! When Jesus cited in Matthew 24 the details of what would be going on in the world just before His return, the signs of His coming, it is encouraging to remember that the last detail mentioned is wonderful news . . .
Read MoreThis echoes back to the days of Constantine when pagans began to pour into the church after he “legalized” Christianity (313AD). The inestimable evils of compromise have been taking their toll ever since.
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