What do you think? Is there such a thing as one-size fits-all faith? Yes and no. Yes because Jesus died for all of our sins and his blood covers everyone’s sins. Everyone has to die once, then face the consequences. Christ’s death was also a one-time event, but it was a sacrifice that took care of sins forever. And so, when he next appears, the outcome for those eager to greet him is, precisely, salvation. (Hebrews 9:27-28, MSG,*) There’s nothing…
Haven’t you heard? Christ is risen! And that changes everything. If Jesus had not risen, we would be still dead in our sin. If Jesus had not risen, we would still be without a chance for reconciliation with God. If Jesus had not risen, we would be without living hope. But because Jesus is risen, we have a living hope. Because Jesus is risen we can be made right with God by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Because Jesus…
What do you think is the goal of spiritual growth? Is it mastering spiritual practices? Or something much simpler? Your answer to this question tells the health of your spiritual life. Sometimes we do get carried away with our own plans. Hopefully this post can remind you of what matters most and direct you back to the very center of Christian faith. No matter how well we fast, how spiritually mature we are…it’s still God alone who saves. God alone…
It’s time for some encouragement, don’t you think? This will be a very short and sweet post today (due to the 3-hour power outage) but here’s the profound truth that keeps me going no matter what: “God is always with me and for me”. We can build our lives on God and his promises. So write this down, beloved of God: God is always with you and for you. This truth is valid for every single person on this planet….
There is no way around it: Love is the most important thing in our lives. Without love we are lost, broken and lonely. But God’s love and grace can change that. Like Kurt Bubna writes in his book Epic Grace, Chronicles of a Recovering Idiot: “Let me tell you from firsthand experience what I know about the love and grace of God. It’s ludicrous. It’s scandalous. It’s crazy. It’s ridiculous. It’s healing and restoring. And it always break my heart….
How are your Christmas preparations coming along? Are you stressed out about what to wear or how to get everything done on time? Maybe it is time to take time out. Maybe it is time to see what really matters. Maybe it is time to make sure we’re not oblivious to God. But make sure that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze…
Do you ever wonder what Jesus is doing now after he has returned to his father? Is Jesus still in the picture? Yes, he is. He is still part of God’s plan. Jesus is still blessing us in mighty ways: [Again, the former successive line of priests] was made up of many, because they were each prevented by death from continuing [perpetually in office]; But He holds His priesthood unchangeably, because He lives on forever. Therefore He is able also to save…
The writing prompt today from Five Minutes Friday was ‘together’. My immediate association was Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s wonderful but challenging book Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community. Bonhoeffer teaches us how to be church together, how to live out faith the original way. Faith is not just an individual affair, no matter how much we would like to be independent. Faith is not just a communal affair, no matter how much we would like to keep it social….
It’s no secret I love quotes. There are quotes that capture my heart right away and then there are quotes that puzzle me and I need to let them sit for awhile and ask God to reveal the true meaning of them. This quote of Martin Luther is one of the latter kind. Not that I did not like it from the very beginning. But it left me wondering anyhow: God created the world out of nothing; so as long…
Are you out of sync with yourself? Maybe you are out of touch with God. That’s how it usually is, at least, for me. The root reason why we are not doing well is that we have somehow lost our touch with God. When we leave God out of the picture, our lives become rootless and aimless. We are out of sorts, disoriented and confused. We have been created to live with God. Hence when we loose our touch with…
