Over time, I’ve learned to really enjoy the Gospel of Mark. I think it’s because it was written to Gentiles, which gives us contemporary Gentiles a perspective that seems more “natural,” for lack of a better word. The Gospel of Matthew was written to the Jews, implying a different bent. In fact, one of the challenges with Matthew’s […]
Unlike the blissful ease during unchallenged living, times of pressure have a habit of forcing you to ponder your faith. Even as a well-intentioned believer in Christ, you may not fully understand the extent of it. When faith is tested, fear erupts from within you, always. What is the nature of this fear? That is
Whom Do You Turn To for Love Read More »
Please don your philosophical cap for a moment while I dissect the concept of obedience with you. First, let me begin with a fair enough definition: Obedience, in human behavior, is a form of “social influence in which a person yields to explicit instructions or orders from an authority figure”. Obedience is generally distinguished from
The Apostle Paul spent a lot of time in jail. Why didn’t he conspire to break out? Why didn’t others in the faith trounce the jailers and set him free? While you ponder that, let me remind you that Paul wrote the following books in the New Testament while imprisoned: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. Whoa! Paul wrote
What Is This Freedom You Speak Of? Read More »
The question on the table is this, “What, exactly, is authority orientation?” The term “authority orientation” is a theological one used to describe a person’s willingness to orient to God-ordained authority. Can this type of orientation be perverted, where a person claims it’s one way but the truth, in God’s eyes, is another? Of course, hence the
What, Exactly, Is Authority-Orientation? Read More »
I was reading my Bible this morning and was struck by something I already knew to be true. Has that ever happened to you? I mean, have you ever relearned or rediscovered a fact that jolted you? It happened to me while I was reading the Gospel of Matthew, chapter twenty-six, beginning with, “You know that
When God’s Will Doesn’t “Fit” Our Expectations Read More »
I recently read John Steinbeck’s East of Eden. One of the characters, a farmer, was described as being quite content because he was, by contemporary social standards, uneducated. Because of this, he wasn’t distracted, drawn, or enticed by the lure of ‘better things’ outside of his ‘small’ circle of existence (I write with human perspective here).
The Grass Is Always Greener? Read More »
Raise your hand if you’ve attained sinless perfection. Ok, that’s a dumb request. I mean, who’s arrogant enough to believe this about themselves, right? How about just close to perfection, or really good? Am I getting warmer? How about just good? Or how about everyone’s favorite – are you at least ‘better’ than someone else
An Understanding Heart Read More »
For over a decade, the Spirit’s been teaching my congregation the value of “seeing it all as truth,” as I like to say, which is a summary phrase derived from Paul’s words in the Book of Ephesians. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. —
How to Digest Social Injustice Read More »
I’m convinced that hard work is a part of God’s plan for us (I once wrote a blog titled, “40 Hours a Week – Says Who???”). If you read your Bible regularly, I’m sure you agree. Yet, there are some folks I’ve met, even Christians, whose perspective on work makes me scratch my head. Now,
“Oh, They LIKE to Work!” Read More »