Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will , Ephesians 1:4-5 I was having a discussion with Pastor Jamie the other day about the conversion of Charles Spurgeon. It reminded me that it is not by flowery words or convincing arguments that we come to Christ. It is by God’s grace and His sovereignty that we

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy .” 1 Peter 1:14-16 If you are a Christian, saved by grace, through faith, in Christ alone you are a child of God. Because we are His children we are expected to live a certain way, behave, and act a certain way. We are commanded to be like obedient children. As a fathe

… for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control . 2 Timothy 1:7 When Paul wrote this letter to Timothy he was in prison in Rome waiting for his execution. In a very short time after writing this letter Paul would lose his life for the sake of proclaiming the Gospel. He is writing to encourage Timothy to stand firm in the faith, not to be ashamed of Christ, and to live a life without fear. The Greek word translated “fear”, basically means cowardic

…so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Colossians 1:10 What does it mean to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord? When we see the word walk in the bible it refers our everyday conduct. A mind controlled by the knowledge of God’s word, His wisdom, and His understanding produces a life worthy of the Lord. Although it may seem to you impossible that anyone could walk worthy of

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery . Galatians 5:1   Jesus came to set us free from sin. When you became a Christian he removed the shackles of slavery that bound you to a life of bondage in sin. You are free, glory! You’re free from the penalty of sin, from the power of sin, from the law as a system of salvation. You’re free form superstition and from all that enslaves you. However, it is not a license to si

For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries .  Hebrews 10:26-27 Have you ever asked yourself the question am I saved? I have. The Bible tells us to examine our own lives to see if we are in the faith, to see if we belong to Christ, to see if we are truly saved. One of the clearest indications that you be

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Mathew 6:33 Do you worry? Are you content with your life or are you always seeking things to make you happy? Jesus said, “ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and you heavenly Father knows that you need them all .”  Kenneth S. Wuest wrote, “We commit sin when

Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ . 1 Corinthians 11:1  Who are your heroes? Who do you look up to? Who are the people that influence your life? All of us have people that we admire and would love to meet. As a boy and a young man my idols were sports figures and movie stars. Larry Csonka, Bob Griese, Mercury Morris, and Nick  Buoniconti  were my sports heroes. The characters that Clint Eastwood played were the type of men I wanted to become. Jimmy Page, Mark Farmer, and

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ . Philippians 3:8  In Philippians 3:4–7 Paul tells us he had acquired all the credentials that anyone could imagine they would need to be a righteous person. He was a Jew, and the Jews had always had a special place in God’s dealings with the human race. He had real ad