Love
The First Commandment
“The Lord your God will cleanse your heart…. so that you will love Him with all your heart and soul.” Deuteronomy 30:6 God greatly desires our love. It is the nature of all love to want to be acceptable and to be accepted. God longs to have the love of our whole heart. How can we love God with all our heart and soul? In the same way that we receive salvation – through faith alone. Paul says, “I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). When we take time to wait upon God and remember how God sought to win our love through the gift of His Son, we shall realize that God has a strong longing for our love. Our hearts are blind. It is easy to forget that God longs for the love of Hi...
Guilty as Charged
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” John 3:16 He had been out of prison only a few weeks when I met him. It was the result of a cold call that I made to ask him to speak at a men’s retreat I was leading. He said yes and it was the beginning of a long friendship. He was known as “The Hatchet Man” in the White House. He went from the Oval Office to standing in front of a judge and answering “guilty as charged.” While confined in a jail cell he was touched by John 3 and once again said “guilty as charged.” He became a new creation…. a new man as he gave his heart and life to Christ. He wrote a best seller in Born Again and the rest is evangelical history. He called me one day to say that he had a heart for those in prison and wanted me to help. A group of us later...
The Task of the Church (Part II): Growing Adults (Ephesians 4:15-16)
In Ephesians 4:14-16, we have some clear instructions on what the church is supposed to do. There are two parts to these instructions of God about the task of the church, and so we will consider them in two different studies. I previously considered Ephesians 4:14, and this study looks at Ephesians 4:15-16. Both of these studies, along with all the others in this series, are drawn from my book, God’s Blueprints for Church Growth. The Task of the Church (Part II): Growing Adults (Ephesians 4:15-16) “… but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of ...
Seven Elements of Christian Unity (Ephesians 4:4-6)
In Ephesians 1-3, Paul explained that God has given us great spiritual riches so that we can lead the world into peace. In the first part of Ephesians 4, Paul tells us Christians that the first way we can show the world how to live in peace is by living in peace with one other. This begins, as we learned in the last study, by looking to our own heart first and developing certain attitudes of the heart. In this study, we learn that as we seek to live in peace with other Christians, we should focus on seven key truths that all Christians have in common. When we focus on what we have in common rather than on on what divides us, we will begin to create peace in our midst. Seven Elements of Christian Unity (Ephesians 4:4-6) As stated above, in Ephesians 4:1-3, Paul taught us to look to our own ...
The Church Must Lead the World into Peace (Ephesians 4:1-3)
Everyone wants unity, but nobody really knows how to achieve it. Most people today seem to think that unity requires conformity. We think that unity is achieved when everybody thinks the same way, talks the same way, dresses the same way, and has the same opinions. Where differences occur, division results, and unity dies. And some people seek to achieve unity by silencing and cancelling those who have different opinions. You see, when we are in a conflict with someone, we think it is the responsibility of the other person to change their ways, so we can get along with them. We point at their faults and what they said, or what they did, and say that if there is going to be peace, they have to change. Paul challenges all of this in Ephesians 4:1-3. In these verses, Paul shows how we can hav...
How Homeless Aliens Change the World (Ephesians 2:18-22)
Ephesians 2:18-22 is the final section in Ephesians 2 which shows us how God brings peace and unity to this world through the church. If we want peace and unity in this world, then it begins by living in peace and unity with other members of the family of God. Ephesians 2:18-22 shows us how this happens. Before we study this text, we consider a question from a reader about why he no longer senses God’s work in his life. Question from a Reader I’m 63 and I grew up in church. I used to do small things in the church. I would give out tracts and talk to people. I believe Jesus is the son of the living God and became human. I used to read my Bible all the time. But recently, I don’t get any spiritual understanding when I read the Bible. The Holy Spirit does not witness to me. I cry out to God t...
The Biggest “But” in the Bible (Ephesians 2:4)
Trivia time! What’s the biggest but in the Bible? We will discover the answer to that question today in our study of Ephesians 2:4. I will also answer a quick question from a reader about the topic of Calvinism. Before that, however, I have a bit of news! I now accept Dogecoin and other cryptocurrencies on my website, and if you follow some suggested steps, you can earn about $60 in free cryptocurrency, which you can then use to join my discipleship group, cash it out, or keep it invested. How to Join My Discipleship for FREE and also get paid $50! If you’ve been thinking of joining my discipleship group for a while, I have a way for you to get one month free and also get paid $50 extra in the process. If you’re already part of my discipleship group, you can do this also. I now accept cryp...
What is the Adoption as Sons in Ephesians 1:5-6?
Do you know what it means to be adopted? Of course you do. We all know people who have adopted children. Maybe you have adopted a child, or maybe you yourself are adopted. But did you know what the modern form of adoption has almost no similarities with adoption in biblical times? If we don’t know how adoption worked in Bible times, we will misread and misunderstand Scripture. This study on Ephesians 1:5-6 explains how adoption worked 2000 years ago, so that we can better understand Ephesians 1:5-6. But before we look at Ephesians 1:5-6, we will look at a current event and answer a question from a reader. Current Event: The Fault Lines in Critical Race Theory Critical Race Theory (CRT) and the Social Justice (SJ) movement are causing intense damage to the world, and to Christianity. Those ...
Love Works
Learn to relate to others through My Love rather than yours. Your human love is ever so limited, full of flaws and manipulation.My loving Presence, which always enfolds you,is available to bless others as well as you.Jesus Calling, May 12 Let’s face it: 2020 was a difficult year, and we are ready for a better 2021. COVID-19 wreaked havoc on our lives. We went from a booming economy to great uncertainty almost overnight. We have seen illness, death, job loss, social unrest, increased anxiety, a bitter presidential election, and a loss of normalcy in our lives. We are grieving over many things, including the sense of security many thought we possessed. But the truth is, the only things we can control are our own actions and attitudes. As we turn the page on 2020, I think we should seek to li...
Our Anchor of Hope
Hope is like a golden cord connecting you to heaven. The moreyou cling to this cord, the more I bear the weight of your burdens;thus, you are lightened. Heaviness is not of My kingdom. Cling tohope, and My rays of Light will reach you through the darkness.Jesus Calling, January 8 On Sunday, June 23rd, 2019, I received the call that no mother ever wants to get. The phone rang and it was my youngest son, Garrett. “Mom, it’s Zach! Mom, he’s gone! Zach’s dead!” I immediately fell to the floor and cried out to God. “Why my Zach?” In the very next breath, I screamed at Satan. “You think this will break me? You will not break me!” I knew that only God could bring us through this. My Zach was the most loving young man. He had countless friends, an amazing love for others, and an on-fire devo...
Why You Need a Cross-Cultural Coach
Look at other people through lenses of Love; see them from My perspective. This is how you walk in the Light, and it pleases Me.Jesus Calling, June 9 Having a life coach is in vogue nowadays. I get it; coaching helps people fulfill their purpose and potential. But you seldom find someone searching for a cross-cultural coach. Like a dentist, a diversity coach may not seem critical until you’re facing pain. Yet, that couldn’t be further from the truth. It was pain that caused Peter to receive diversity coaching from Paul, but you don’t have to wait to receive your own training. Galatians 2:11–14 presents three cross-cultural coaching tips Peter received that you can also glean from. Welcome the Confrontation. Everything was going well as Peter visited the Antioch Church. He seemed to be enjo...
