Category: Christian Discipleship

Last night, at the stroke of midnight, we welcomed in a new year.  Isn’t it thought provoking that we always enter a new year in the middle of the night, in the darkness?  Last week we celebrated Christmas, the birth of the Savior of the world.  He was born into…

A very serious and worrisome trend has emerged in our society. It is a trend that has influenced many people, including Christians and a number of church leaders as well. It is a trend that moves people to compromise with one of the most important values of the Christian faith,…

Can someone’s approach to faith actually be self-centered? What causes us to question our own faith when the circumstances of life are particularly difficult? Have you ever found yourself echoing the words of the apostles, when they asked Jesus, “increase our faith”? I know I have. In Luke 17:5 we…

If you have read Edith Schaeffer’s book What Is A Family? you will probably agree that it belongs among the masterpieces, and is certainly one of the most inspiring and useful books about the concept of family that you can find. A new reading of chapter three, however, can provide…

Rituals were a prominent part of Old Testament worship. Christianity, in contrast, has only two basic rituals: baptism and the Lord’s Supper — and there are no detailed regulations for either observance. In a religion in which faith is primary, why have any rituals at all? The primary reason, I…

People sometimes ask us to explain what the Bible means when it speaks of sin. When they ask about the nature of sin and God’s purpose with us, they are asking about a truly cosmic subject. In this short article we’ll discuss the biblical teaching of sin as well as…

God is powerful, and He is good. He always uses his enormous power to further his promise of love and grace toward his people. He is gentle, loving, slow to anger and full of mercy. That’s good, but what difference does it make in our lives? How do we respond…

Christians are saved by God’s gift, not by works. Good behavior cannot earn us salvation. But Christianity does have behavioral expectations. It involves changes in the way we live. God created us for relationships, and so he has certain desires for the way we interact with other people. We are…

The New Testament uses the common term diaconia to express the concept of ministry. This term describes the service that constitutes the function of the diaconos or minister. In our context, it indicates service within the Christian church. Ministry, then, is service: service to God first, and to God’s people…

Are you on a quest to find the Ideal Church? Perhaps you know the one I mean. It is the church where no errors of doctrine or practice ever occur. In the Ideal Church, grace, obedience and legalism are always clearly understood and distinguished. The pastor never gives a boring,…

A creed is a brief statement of faith used to enumerate important truths, to clarify doctrinal points, and to distinguish truth from error. Creeds are usually worded to be easily memorized. The word creed comes from the Latin word credo, meaning, “I believe.” The Bible contains a number of creed-like…

Some things in life are just like watching a movie — you cannot fully understand the end unless you first see the beginning. In a sense, understanding what God has in store for us is similar.  We need to take a look at the beginning to understand the full impact…