The views of Luther and Calvin regarding the relationship between Paul and James - this is not merely a matter of historical curiosity. Rather, it points towards a way of overcoming the evangelism - social concern polarization. Both Luther and Calvin were committed to the principles of “grace alone”, “faith alone”, “Christ alone” and “Scripture …
Continue reading Berkouwer on “‘Luther and Calvin’ on ‘Paul and James’”
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile (Romans 1:16). The gospel of Jesus Christ began with the Jewish nation, but it did not end there. The gospel is the power of God that brings salvation to people …
At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the …
Without me, you can do nothing (John 15:5). How are we to understand ourselves? When we try to understand ourselves without, also, confessing our faith in the Lord, is there something missing? We look at our life from several different angles, yet, still, we wonder, "Are we missing the point?" Is there something more than …
I am the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). When Jesus spoke these words, he was not showing us a way through which we can save ourselves. He was telling us that he is the way of salvation. He is our Saviour. He saves us. We do not save ourselves.
Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9). Look at Jesus, and see God. We wonder about God. He's so far away from us. Jesus has come near to us. He reveals God to us. Who is God? He's our Father. He's our heavenly Father. He's our loving Father. How could we …
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what …
I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5). What kind of a life am I living? Is my life becoming more and more Christ-centred, or is it becoming more and more self-centred? These …
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (1 Peter …
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”(John 8:12). Everything changes when Jesus brings us out of our darkness and into his light. What does this mean? Does it mean that we will have perfect …
Continue reading The darkness will not triumph over the light that Jesus has shone into our hearts.
'He's a born again Christian.' This phrase suggests that there are some Christians who are born again, and there are other Christians who are not born again. What are we to make of this? According to Jesus, you cannot be a Christian unless you have been born again. There is no such thing as a …
Continue reading The Kingdom Of God: John’s Gospel And Letters
This is the tenth post in a series of ten posts. You may be wondering why this spiritual journey is ending in Job 38. If you read the post, you will see that this spiritual journey isn't ending in Job 38. It's ending in Romans 8:38-39, "Nothing will be able to separate us from the …
We speak about growing in faith, becoming a stronger believer. We speak about growing in grace, becoming a more gracious person. Is this what we learn about in the school of discipleship? Should we not place the emphasis on the faithfulness of God and the grace of God? What are we to say about our …
The Lord refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me (Psalm 23:3-4). "The Lord refreshes my soul." When our desire for spiritual growth is …
Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen …
We grow as disciples as we build our lives on the truth of God. Jesus emphasizes this point very strongly in John 15:7 - “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.” If we are to grow in prayer, we must …
John 15:12-17 Jesus' circle of friendship, discipleship and apostleship: first friends, then disciples and, after that, apostles. * Friendship - the foundation of discipleship and apostleship Personal - Discipleship and apostleship are not based on an impersonal contract of employment. It’s based on love. It’s about people - not numbers. They were known by name. …
In John 8, there are three very important verses, which teach us a great deal about the life of discipleship. These verses are John 8:36 “If the Son makes you free, you are free indeed”; John 8:32 “You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free”; John 8:31 “If you continue in …
Continue reading The School of Discipleship (12): The Life of Discipleship
These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:31). As we read the Word of God, we are led to Jesus, our Saviour. We learn, from 1 Corinthians 15:3, that he "died for our …
Continue reading Responding to God’s Word (40): O the blood of Jesus, it washes white as snow.
"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). When He's in your heart, He has to come out. The Saviour is not be kept to ourselves. He's to be shared with other people. We pray, …
Continue reading Learning from Romans (14): Confess with your mouth. Believe in your heart.
"No one ever spoke the way this man does" (John 7:46). There was something different about Jesus. There was something special about him. Jesus spoke with authority - "My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me" (John 7:16). Jesus spoke with power. In John 7:37-39, Jesus speaks of "rivers …
Continue reading The Word and the words (9): Speaking with authority, speaking with power
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12). "There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the …
"I am the light of the world" (John 9:5). "It is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). In John 8:12, Jesus says, "I am the light of …
"I am the good shepherd" (John 10:11). We read what Jesus says about himself. We read about who he is. "I am the good shepherd." As we read these words, our thoughts turn to the 23rd Psalm. "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, …
Continue reading The Word and the words (12): Jesus – the good shepherd …
"I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die" (John 11:25). Jesus speaks to us with realism - we will "die." He speaks to us with hope - we will "live." Jesus' words find an echo in the words of Paul - "The wages of …
Continue reading The Word and the words (13): Jesus – the resurrection and the life
"I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness" (John 12:46). "As he (Saul of Tarsus) neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you …
Continue reading The Word and the words (14): A light from heaven
“Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later " (John 13:36). "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go …
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). "Apart from me you can do nothing" - This doesn't do much for our pride! Jesus hits the nail on the head! He's absolutely right! …
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). We long for peace. We pray for peace. We have trouble. We wish it would come to an end. Our hearts long for the glory of heaven. …
Continue reading The Word and the words (17): Take heart! I have overcome the world.
"Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent" (John17:3). Eternal life - everything changes when we come to know the Lord. We receive new life. This life is the beginning of eternal life. Again and again - we are reminded that our life on …
Continue reading The Word and the words (18): Looking toward heaven – and praying
"Jesus said - 'My kingdom is not of this world... '" (John 18:36). Jesus spoke with power. Jesus spoke with authority. His power and authority came from above - from heaven - from God. Jesus' enemies could not understand him. They didn't know what he was talking about. We begin with the soldiers. They treated …
Continue reading The Word and the words (19): More than the king of the Jews
"These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name" (John 20:31). We have read of Jesus - the living Word of God. We have read his spoken words. We read his words in the written Word of God. Through …
Continue reading The Word and the words (20): Eternal life – Faith in Jesus – Love for Jesus
Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29). As we read these words, our thoughts go back to the words of Isaiah 53:6 - "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all", …
Continue reading Let us rejoice in our Saviour, crucified for us and risen for us.
"So Jacob and his household started on again. And the angels of God came to meet him. When he saw them he exclaimed, “God lives here!” So he named the place “God’s territory!”" (Genesis 32:1-2). Grace finds us. God comes to us. He decides where and when and how he will meet us. When we're thinking …
Questions, questions, questions... Some people ask plenty of questions - but they never expect to get an answer. They enjoy asking questions - but they're impatiently dismissive of any answers that might point us in the direction of God. What are we to say to such people? We can't impose our answers on them - …
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). In our troubled world, bad things happen. There's no getting away from this. That's the way it is. Who knows what lies ahead of us? None of …
Continue reading In our troubled times, Jesus gives us his peace.
Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him (Hebrews 11:6). There are plenty of people who say that they believe in God, but they do not earnestly seek him, and they do not come to him …
Continue reading God’s Word still speaks to us (71): Saved to the uttermost
One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see! (John 9:25). Our eyes have been opened. Jersus has opened our eyes. What a contrast there is between what we were without Christ and what we have become through Christ. In Ephesians 3:17-24, Paul contrasts the darkness of our old life and the …
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). Here, Peter is speaking about his Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is exalting the name of Jesus. This is what we must do. We must exalt the name …
"The Light shines in the dark, and the dark has never extinguished it" (John 1:5). Jesus is the Light of the world. We are to be like John, who said, "Make the way for the Lord straight" (John 1:23). Like John, we are to say, "Look! This is the Lamb of God who takes away …
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit, fruit that will last (John 15:16). When we think about our own decision to believe in Christ and follow him, let us not think that this is the first thing we must say about our faith …
Continue reading Christ’s love for us comes before our love for him.
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15). You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse …
Continue reading Searching the Scriptures and finding the Saviour
But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him (Acts 2:24). This turns the world's way of thinking on its head. It's the exact opposite of what the world says to us. The world tells us that people don't …
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). The word, "enlightenment", means different things to different people. To some people, it has to do with breaking free from God. For other people, it …
Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:30-31). Some people will tell us that talk of miracles is a …
What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8). Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’... Love your neighbour as yourself (Mark 12:30-31). "To act justly and …
In the opening chapter, Jesus is described as both "the Word" (of God) and "the Lamb of God." We see Jesus active in both creation and salvation. In the cleansing of the Temple, we see Christ's holiness. We see Christ as the supreme demonstration of God's love: "God so loved the world that He gave …
We see the Lord's ministry of love. He brings the Samaritan woman out of her bondage. He removes her guilt. He brings her into the joy of salvation. The Lord brings hope where there seems to be no hope. This hope shines through in His signs of the Kingdom of love. This hope is eternal. …
Jesus is the bread of life (chapter 6). He is the kiving water (chapter 7). As we feed on the Lord Jesus Christ, His Word brings life: "The words I have spoken to you are spirit, and they are life." Through His Word, we are brought into the life of the indwelling Spirit. Jesus is …
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because …
In His ministry of words and works, Jesus encountered opposition, In chapter 9, there's the opposition which came from "the Pharisees." In chapter 10, Jesus speaks of "the thief who comes to kill and steal and destroy." This is the work of the devil. He was working through the reigious leaders. His purpose is to …
How can I possibly make sense of life? Many people are asking this kind of question. They're trying their best to make sense of life in this world, but they're getting nowhere quickly. Everywhere they look, there seem to be more and more things that leave them feeling confused. How can I possibly make sense …
Continue reading Many questions and one very important question
Now, everything is moving, more clearly, towards the death and resurrection of Christ. At the raising of Lazarus, Jesus says, "I am the resurrection and the life." By describing Himself in this way, Jesus gives a clear indication there will be a greater miracle than the raising of Lazarus: His own resurrection. At the end …
Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law (Psalm 119:18). We wish to see Jesus (John 12:21). The Son of God loved me and gave himself for me (Galatians 2:20). When we read our Bibles, we should pray for the opening of our eyes. This is important. By praying for the opening …
Continue reading God’s Word still speaks to us (65): Open my eyes, Lord…
Jesus is clearly conscious of what lies ahead of Him: "Jesus knew that the hour had come for Him to pass from this world to the Father (chapter 13). In chapter 14, He spoke to His disciples of "the place where I am going." The purpose of Jesus' death was this: "to lay down His …
In chapter 18, we read of Jesus being betrayed by Judas and denied by Peter. While both men failed the Lord, there is a very real difference between them. This is highlighted in Jesus' prayer (chapter 17): "I have watched over them and not one is lost except the one who chose to be lost." …
As we read of Jesus' death, it is significant to note the recuirrebce of the theme of fulfilled prophecy: "In this way the words of Scripture were fulfilled" (the dividing of Jesus' garments_; "to fulfil the Scriptures perfectly, He said, 'I am thirsty'"; !all this happened to fulfil the words of Scripture" (He was pierced, …
Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me (Psalm 43:3). In this prayer, we read about God's "light" and his "truth." Thinking of God's light and truth, our thoughts turn to Jesus. We remember that he said, "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12). We remember that he also …
John 11:1-44 - Everything is moving on towards Christ’s death and resurrection. On His way to the Cross, Jesus performs a mighty miracle – the raising of Lazarus (43-44) – which points unmistakably to an even greater miracle – His own resurrection (Acts 2:24). Accompanying this miracle – the raising of Lazarus – , we …
John 11:1-44 Everything is moving on towards Christ’s death and resurrection. On His way to the Cross, Jesus performs a mighty miracle - the raising of Lazarus (43-44) - which points unmistakably to an even greater miracle - His own resurrection (Acts 2:24). Accompanying this miracle - the raising of Lazarus - , we have …
Wisdom Seeker
Following Jesus while Seeking Joy and Contentment in the Christian Life
In The Beginning Man Tried Ascending To Heaven via The Tower Of Babel. Now He Tries To Elevate His Existence To A Heavenly State of Consciousness Thru The Use Of Hallucinogenic Drugs. And, Since The 20th Century, He Continually Voyages Into Outer Space Using Spacecrafts. Prayer Thru Christ Is The Only Way To Reach Heaven.
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There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "...truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity--it is simply true and that is the end of it" - Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” - Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
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