Displaying episodes 1 - 30 of 362 in total
Rescuing All Three Parts of the Human Mind (September 17)
God's plan is an amazing plan. In Christ, we can make better DECISIONS because our FEELINGS are more appropriate, and we can do that because our THOUGHTS are more trut...
In Christ, What Are We Saved From? (September 16)
Sin has broken apart everything that was meant to be together, but through Christ all is being brought back into harmony. Our disintegration -- our broken-to-pieces-ho...
Appraising Jesus (September 15)
If Jesus truly was the Son of God, we would not expect that truth to be obvious to us if our "eyes" can only see things that this world considers to be important. May ...
What If 'Reason' Were Just a 'Natural' Process? (September 14)
In the biblical account, we are dual creatures who straddle the physical and spiritual worlds. We have a brain, but we also have a mind -- a reasoning faculty that rea...
Forgiveness and Transformation (September 13)
While there is a need for patience, we also need to be diligent. Our transformation will not take place automatically, by divine decree. We have to embrace the process...
Salvation by Baptism Only? (September 12)
If faith without works is insufficient (James 2:14-26), so is baptism without conversion. If we do not make the decision to walk in "newness of life" (Romans 6:4), it ...
Trust, the Only Path to Truth, Is Dangerous (September 11)
All the good things in life require committing ourselves to them. Hesitancy, doubt, and tentativeness will cut the very heart out of our discipleship to Christ. Distru...
If We’re Not Disturbed, We’re Not Listening (September 10)
However "nice" my outward life may be, when I measure my heart (my thoughts, attitudes, and intentions) against Jesus' teaching, I am ashamed. His teaching disturbs me...
'In the Right Church' and Still Lost? (September 9)
If the congregation we've been a part of is not faithful to Christ, we need to worship elsewhere. But even if we're surrounded by others who are faithful to Christ, th...
We Don’t Get to Design the Path to God (September 8)
We want the "way of God" (Acts 18:26). The path that leads to God -- the one He has laid out -- will often seem narrow and illogical to us (Matthew 7:13,14). But that ...
The Power of Pentecost (September 7)
The great emphasis in Acts 2 is on the content of the preaching. We would seriously fail in our appreciation of this text if we were so amazed by the signs and wonders...
Human Progress Is Perilous (September 6)
The truth is, we can't help ourselves where we need help the most. Yes, we can "science" our way out of some of life's lesser problems, but the potential of human self...
God’s Way Is Conducive to Humility (September 5)
God's way often goes against our opinions, and eventually the honest person will have to admit, "Well, I didn't think such a plan would work, but I was wrong. Although...
Conformity to Christ: Both a Fact and a Process (September 4)
Our sinful past will try to pull us back -- and sometimes the pull can be very strong. We wouldn't have been what we used to be if there weren't some very pleasant asp...
Sensitivity to Sin (September 3)
The more we learn to love our Father, the more our hearts are going to hurt when we realize we've failed Him. The person who rarely sees any sin in his own life -- or ...
Nominal Christians (September 2)
"Nominal" Christians are Christians in "name only." They are the modern embodiment of the mentality God spoke of in Isaiah's day: "[They] draw near with their mouth an...
Enter by the Narrow Gate (September 1)
God will help us and discipline us (Hebrews 12:5-11). But having been disciplined by God, we will have to discipline ourselves. We will have to exert ourselves to go u...
Choices That Exclude Each Other (August 31)
When we start following our own will in the "secular" parts of life, we tell ourselves that we won't let these "other things" get out of hand. But we are deceiving our...
What the Lordship of Christ Means (August 30)
Wonder of all wonders, God is willing to forgive us of our treason against His rightful rule over us. But His grace requires that we begin doing what we have not been ...
Seeking the Kingdom of God First (August 29)
Very people few are willing to "seek first the kingdom of God," even among professed believers. Especially in the modern culture of so-called "Christian nations," very...
Confessing Our Sins (August 28)
Confession of sin comes from "a broken and contrite heart" (Psalm 51:17), and it hurts. But the joy of forgiveness is on the other side of this sorrow, and the process...
What Trust Moves Us to Do (August 27)
Are we willing to accept God in general matters like love and faith, but when it comes to His instructions in the Scriptures about how these principles are to be carri...
When We Reach God’s Goal (August 26)
As creatures living in a world broken by sin, we have never experienced what it is to be a human being -- not fully and perfectly. But God does not plan to leave His m...
Refreshment in the Lord (August 25)
It is only in Christ that we can be refreshing in the ways that people most seriously need refreshment. We should see being a Christian not only in terms of what we ca...
Willful Refusal to Obey (August 24)
It's a huge step in our return to God when we acknowledge that our sins against Him have been deliberate. If all we can say is, "What I did was inadvisable, but I coul...
Christ’s Weapons Are Not Fleshly (August 23)
Christ's kingdom can't be measured by any of the criteria the world uses to judge how powerful something is. And because it is spiritual, Christ's kingdom is not vulne...
Every Knee Will Bow, Every Tongue Confess (August 22)
If we have not accepted the lordship of Christ before the day of judgment, it will be too late for an acknowledgement at that time to save us. In reality, Christ IS th...
Humbling Himself, He Became Obedient (August 21)
It was not merely by being humble that Jesus procured our salvation -- it was "by becoming obedient" (Philippians 2:8). We have learned nothing of Jesus Christ and His...
Humbly Receiving the Word (August 20)
Out of all we have learned from the Scriptures, only a fraction of that has truly been "received." Today, let's determine that we will not let pride keep God's word fr...
None of Us Has Anybody We Can Look Down On (August 19)
There is nothing about any of us that is not known to God (Hebrews 4:12,13). What if God made known to the public everything He knows about us, even the "thoughts and ...
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