salvation

July 12, 2018The Cure for RestlessnessGwen Smith Today’s Truth Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. (Romans 12:21 NIV) Friend to Friend It’s recorded in the book of Genesis that at the dawn of creation God made the heavens and the earth, separated light from darkness, and that everything was good. Then He held the sky away from the water, established day and night, and it was good. Next, He spoke the land, seas, sun, moon and stars into existence, and again all good. He went on to fill the earth with fish, birds, and animals, and fashion man in His own image … and it was good, good, good and good. Then He rested – which we ALL know is awesome. Amen? Amen. Peace covered the earth like a warm blanket. God had a perfect relationship with all that He created. Adam and Eve got to kno...

1. The Spirit Created and Sustained Life We observe the initial work of the Holy Spirit in Genesis. The Spirit hovered over the waters that God made out of nothing (Genesis 1:1-2), bringing life and setting things in order. Unlike people in contemporary culture who promote evolution and natural selection, Old Testament saints understood creation was a sovereign act of God. The Spirit of God was involved in creating and sustaining all natural life (Psalm 104:30). In the book of Job, his friend Elihu illustrates this understanding of the faithful Jews: “The Spirit of God has made me and the breath of the Almighty gives me life” (33:4). 2. The Spirit Spoke God’s Words Throughout the Old Testament, the Spirit of God is connected to God’s words. The Lord said He would put His words in His peopl...

Thursday, July 11, 2019 A Better World Ahead For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! (2 Corinthians 4:17 NLT) Deep inside us, there is a sense of something more in life that drives us on. No matter what experiences you’ve had, no matter how wonderful they were, they were just a glimpse of what is still ahead. You are really homesick for a place you have never been before, and that place is Heaven. You were wired this way. The Bible says that God has put eternity in our hearts (see Ecclesiastes 3:11). This simply means there is a sense inside of us that there is more to life. That is what keeps us moving forward. It is sort of like the homing instinct we see in the animal kingdom, like the...

The problem of suffering is challenging, and people often wonder how a kind, loving God can allow suffering. Responses to suffering are deeply personal and evoke strong emotions, but the Bible offers examples that reveal not only the mystery of human suffering, but God’s eternal perspective. Let’s look at 10 things the Bible says about suffering and how we should respond so that we our faith can be built. 1. Suffering has many faces. Christians can experience “many troubles”—mental, physical, emotional or spiritual suffering (Psalm 34:19). All Christians have or will suffer (John 16:33; Acts 14:22). The Apostle Paul experienced various faces of suffering (2 Corinthians 4:8-10). Suffering can come because of foolish choices. We see this in Proverbs: fools suffer harm (13:20), lazy peo...

At a meeting with some fellow ministers to discuss pro-life issues, I watched a clip of a film, taken in utero, of a six-week old unborn baby. I was in awe as I watched the little fellow moving his hands and feet, even rubbing his face. Contrary to the “blob” imagery so many Americans assume about our neighbors in the womb, it is very easy to see these days that these unborn boys and girls are not only human in abstract biological terms, but they also look human. What does it mean that we are created ‘in the image of God?’ Christians often disagree about what the Scripture means when it tells us we are created “in the image of God” (Gen 1:27). Is the image rational? Moral? Dominion/kingship? Or, as I believe, does it entail all of the above? But what about your body? ...

July 10, 2019Emotional IntegrityMary Southerland Today’s Truth Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control (Proverbs 25:28, NIV). Friend to Friend It is not enough to acknowledge the presence of negative emotions, or even understand why they exist. We must take action. If we don’t, negative emotions will take control. Many of us are imprisoned by feelings of inferiority, and the results are always disastrous. Constructive criticism is perceived as an emotional attack. Jealousy burgeons as others receive the accolades we desperately crave. Decisions are made, and a course of life is determined so that fragile egos are fed, excluding God’s plan and purpose. Comparison reigns as a false idol, attempting to validate worth and success. Inferiority crosses over t...

Buried in a letter to the Church of Ephesus (Revelation 2), John has a number of remarks against this church located in a city that had a famous temple to Diana (the Roman version of the Greek god Artemis). Ephesus, compared to a number of other churches that received letters in Revelation, had quite a few good marks from God. Aside from growing a bit stagnant in their fervor for God, they had resisted wicked practices, endured persecution, and weeded out false apostles from destroying their church. The letter also makes one more positive remark. They hate the practices of a group called the Nicolaitans, which God also appears to hate (Revelation 2:6). Although it’s not out of the ordinary for God to hate practices of pagan groups, such as the child sacrifice of the Canaanites (Leviticus 2...

In their annual Gates Foundation Letter, Bill and Melinda Gates listed three stubborn myths about global development that drive them crazy: 1) that poor countries are doomed to stay poor; 2) that foreign aid is a big waste; and 3) that saving lives leads to overpopulation. It’s easy to understand how infuriating such myths are to the Gateses, who have pledged to spend their entire $72 billion fortune on their foundation’s save-the-world work. In an interview about their work, they continued to circle back to the big gap between their proof that interventions work and the persistence of false ideas and wrong thinking. This prompted an exploration by Susan Glasser, featured on Politico, of exaggerations and plain untruths about how the United States operates in the world. She went to diploma...

Devotional 29The Victor I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to murder anyone. I’ve never worshiped an idol. Adultery hasn’t been a stumbling block for me. Why would I want to steal from someone? Such big sins don’t bother me. Most of us who seek to follow the leadership of Jesus Christ discover that the big lures tend to disappear. It’s the little traps that we stumble into. One of my little struggles is that I tend to ignore the warning signs of past experiences, cautions in the Bible, or the restraining hand of God. I’m amazed (in retrospect) how easily I convince myself to say a certain thing or act a certain way as a means of standing up for myself or being honest, or being faithful to point out another’s shortcomings. Once in a while, I’...

Inerrancy. A word that can arouse passion and even division. A concept that is often used as a test of the faith. A line in the sand that divides the church. On one side are those who hold to the truthfulness of the Scripture. On the other side are those who see at least some amount of error in the Bible. The issue is often cast as clear-cut. Either you hold to inerrancy. Or you don’t. Either the Bible is truthful; all of it. Or it contains some level of error. Yet, is it as simple as that? I have struggled with the concept of inerrancy over the years. And have finally come to recognize that my issue is not with the truthfulness of Scripture. I wholeheartedly agree that it is truthful in all that it teaches and affirms (John 17:17). An Erroneous Implication of Inerrancy My issue with inerr...

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue …” Proverbs 18:21a (CSB) Bam. Bang. Crash. I could hear the earsplitting commotion from my kitchen where I stood drying the last of the breakfast dishes. It was “demo day” at our house as we were replacing our old fireplace. It was interesting and entertaining to watch the whole demo and building process unfold. Thankfully, the mason allowed me to capture videos of it for any curious, fixer-upper loving friends. As the project was winding down, I noticed something. The contractor used many tools in his craft. Some of the same ones that he used to smash the existing fireplace to smithereens were the ones he used to carefully tap the new stacked stone pieces into place. His mallet brought destruction. But then, a few days later, it created beaut...

“Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour shall increase.” (Proverbs 13:11) What exactly is gambling?  By its very nature, gambling is risking a person’s current position or wealth against the odds in the hope of gaining a greater position or wealth.  A sin is anything that harms or hinders our relationship with Christ.  Las Vegas, Atlantic City and American Indian reservations throughout the country make billions of dollars in revenue each year because of legalized gambling.  However, the question remains: “Is participating in gambling a sin for Christians?” Governments can legalize products, drugs, or behaviors in the attempt to generate local revenue, but many of these measures are contrary to Christian beliefs. Poker, slot ma...