-
God’s will for people and His church
This started as a study of Colossians 2 but became more an exposition of key concepts branching off of the first nine verses of that chapter. Colossians, like Ephesians gives a picture of what God wants of His people, and what we may hope for from Him. In this study which follows one on Colossians 1, we go to other Scriptures to comment on how they are part of the whole message of the gospel. Other random comments pertaining to all people add to this. God is reaching out to all who will hear Him. He wants to draw them to know Him, take on His nature, and shine as…
-
The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God
1 Corinthians 2:14 – But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. God is love, He loves us, and He sent Jesus Christ to save us from ourselves and the sinful system of the world. We as natural-born people are made in His image, but the Word of God says sin has subtly corrupted humans who apart from Christ are spiritually cut off from Him. Until a person truly comes to Jesus and receives His life, His indwelling Holy Spirit, they are functioning from the basis of who…
-
God does not contradict Himself!
God never contradicts Himself yet today so many Christians “bear witness” to varying pictures of “the truth.” Such variances may be minor and may also include life-and-death differences such as what it means to be saved, who goes to heaven, what God wants of His people, and what we may believe from God. Depending on how you count them, there are upward of 30,000 denominations in the world, and, 1) that violates the biblical command for unity (1 Cor. 1:10) and against sectarianism (1 Cor. 3:3), and 2) it is categorically impossible for everyone to be right! Humans are so fallible, but this article is not meant to harp on…
-
Do You Act From the Old Creation or New Creation?
If you internalize what the Word of God says of the old and new creation, it stands to open your eyes to much that has confounded people about the troubles we see in life and the world of Christianity. It’s little secret that those who name Christ are vastly divided into sects and camps with widely varying pictures of what the faith ought to look like, who God is, what He wants of us, and what we may hope for from Him. From the beginning of the church in the first century, the Bible records the early Christians knew Christ Jesus was “Immanuel” or God with us. Matt 1:23 –…
-
You must die to self in order to live in Christ!
There is one over-riding motive that stands to pollute a Christian’s walk and keep him or her from entering into the fullness of God’s rest and empowerment, and that is serving self above Jesus Christ. All who are born of Adam’s race naturally attend to their own interests, but born anew, a Christian is supposed to be broken from that as his or her core motivation, and seek first God’s glory, and obedience to the Lord. How people may dance around this fact, and reinterpret the doings of their lives betrays what yet motivates them, but a tree is known by its fruits. That is, our results prove who we…
