The duck idiom says “if you look like a duck, swim like a duck, quack like a duck, you must be a duck.” According to abductive reasoning this may or may not be true but it does reflect how we might be seen in the world. We have melded into the fabric of society and […]
A neighbor said I don’t need church; I can commune with God in nature. Yes you can and there are times when you need that time alone with God, but Christ died for the church and we are reminded to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together. When we meet corporately we gain from others. […]
It is good to talk in conversation with God and especially so when you know you will encounter those who are the unbelieving. Psalm 94 is what we might call a prayer and conversation as the writer voices his questions and his responses to his own queries. This alone is his answer to the wicked […]
I have spent the better part of the morning crying and not just crying but grieving deeply. It matters not for the “what” but it does matter that I grieve with Paul over the loss of loved ones that refuse the gospel message. So here’s my question: What brings grief to your heart? Is it […]
Life seems so short. This week seeing the children I taught now with their own children growing up so fast was a wake – up call as to the fleeting life I now live in contrast to the permanence of God. I am just like a rose in God’s garden, I need tending but eventually […]
Dead men do not sin; Living Men Embrace Grace. [Romans 6 and 7]. As parents, we know the joy of our children’s obedience and the sadness when they step across the line into disobedience. It is not just our children but we too struggle. The psalmist reminds us that we are only truly happy when […]
Paul has laid to rest the concept of working for one’s salvation but now another question must be addressed. For whom is this justification and when did it first occur. These are critical questions that must be addressed for the Jew to understand God’s plan. In chapter 3 Paul essentially said justification is for any […]
In chapter 3 Paul reminded the Jew that no one is saved apart from the grace and mercy of God. Yet they and the world would have it otherwise and heap rewards and boastings upon those who seek to earn God’s favor through works. The prophet Isaiah said our works are as filthy rags; later […]
How often have we heard this phrase: you are judging. Yet, if truth be known we all judge. We judge which foods we want to eat based on likes and dislikes. We judge ideas by choosing truth from error. But, to judge another’s heart is for God alone for He is impartial. God knows which […]
Birthdays are special. Our families love to celebrate with us and we enjoy the attention. One of the downsides is that technology seems to have taken the place of snail mail cards and Facebook releases our information whether we want it or not and so we get lots of FB Happy Birthday’s sent our way. […]