Christ Was Cursed
No one longs to be cursed before God. We want His blessing, His favor. Yet unless we continually obey everything in the law and never falter at one point (James 2:10), we are guilty of violating all the law. And because of our sinfulness, we were cursed before God. But the scandalously good news is […]
True Repentance
After Nathan, the prophet, confronted King David on his sin, David prayed an incredible prayer of repentance and begged God to create a new heart in him (Psalm 51). We are mistaken if we believe that David’s prayer is for us only if/when we commit the “big sins.” In David’s prayer, he does not mention […]
Living Out the Gospel
In the research conducted for Transformational Discipleship, the issue of biblical engagement was a key attribute in discipleship. As believers grow in their faith, they should have a deeper longing to encounter biblical truth. When believers are willing to place their lives on a collision course with God’s Word, then transformation can occur. When faced […]
A Pharisee and a tax collector
When Jesus wanted to tell a parable about the condition of someone’s heart, he chose a story about two people praying: a Pharisee and a tax collector (Luke 18:9-14). Pharisees were the religious elite. They fasted twice a week. They tithed. They prayed regularly. They were serious about their faith. Mothers wanted their children to […]
Gospel-Driven Awe
In reference to the gospel of our salvation, the apostle Peter wrote: Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that would come to you searched and carefully investigated. They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when He testified in advance to the messianic […]
Consistent Confession
Don’t be misled into thinking that the more you confess the further away from God you must be. The opposite is true. As your relationship with God becomes more intimate, confession is more prevalent. When Jesus gave us an example of prayer, He encouraged us to seek forgiveness: Therefore, you should pray like this: Our […]
What Jesus Wants
People have always been attracted to unity. Following a tragedy or disaster, the stories of people responding in unity often grab our hearts. Sports enthusiasts love the tales of a team coming together as a true team and not merely a collection of individuals. People long to belong, to be a part of something bigger […]
Gospel Continually Forms
Though the believers in Philippi had been brought together only because of the gospel, Paul knew that the gospel must continually form community. The Christian faith is and has always been an interdependent grouping of people rescued by Christ. But because of our sinfulness, we tend to drift away from that, toward either dependence or […]
Confessing Sin: Repairing our Connection with God
While we should seek to remove sin from our lives, we will still sin. While Christ has declared us perfect, practically we still live in our old and fallen bodies. While God’s righteousness has been credited to us, we will not be without sin until heaven. But what we do when we blow it is […]
The Gates of Hell Will Not Prevail
So that my in-laws would be somewhat comfortable with their daughter living in Miami, we bought a house in a gated community. After all, Miami is not known as the safest place to live. Miami Vice and CSI Miami do not help the perception. So I was excited to tell my in-laws that I was […]