If we are free in Christ….why do we need to bother with holy living? If we are not under law….why should we be holy? It is true that we are set free by grace through faith in God. And that we can’t do anything to earn our salvation. But holy living is not about trying to save ourselves. Holiness is our way to love God back. Holy living is about acting out our love for God. It cost God plenty…
You all know how much I love the Word of God. I just love being surprised over and over again. I adore how something just jumps out to me. No other book compares to the Bible. It is the living and active word of God here and now. No matter how many times you have read the Bible it always stirs new things. This morning I was caught up with this particular passage in Matthew 5: “Here’s another way to…
Is your faith an accessory or an addition to your life? Or is it the foundation of your life? Too often we push God and his will in the corner. Faith is nice and God makes us feel good but we leave it there. We go on with out lives without God and radical faith. “These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words…
How is your salvation-garden doing? I never thought of it this way before but reading the first chapter of James in the Message got me thinking. What if our lives really were meant to be salvation-gardens cultivated by God? Are we hindering God’s work? Post this at all the intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear. God’s righteousness doesn’t grow from human anger. So throw all spoiled…
Sometimes we are so stuck in the mud that we can’t even believe any more that life could be any different. Beware! That’s one of the favorite messages of our enemy. The devil wants us to believe that change is not possible, that God would not take us as we are, that everything is lost. But everything is not lost! God welcomes us just as we are! And change is possible! Not on our own. But in Christ Jesus! So…
God is calling us to a radical life-change. Are you ready? Because “God is kind, but he’s not soft. In kindness he takes us firmly by the hand and leads us into a radical life-change.” (Romans 2:4, MSG) We are called to be followers of Jesus Christ. Not just fans that keep on doing whatever they wish. Where are you in your walk? Are you a fan of Jesus or are you ready to really follow whatever the cost? This…
Do you live in fraudulent freedom? Or are you truly free? Some people insists they can do whatever they want and call that freedom. Yet they are miserable. Fraudulent freedom produces just that: pure misery. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it’s your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All…
Apart from God we are nothing. Even if we’d like to think otherwise. Apart from God we don’t even know who we really are. Apart from God we are completely and utterly lost. Blaise Pascal has said: “Not only do we not know God except through Jesus Christ; We do not even know ourselves except through Jesus Christ.” You were lost sheep with no idea who you were or where you were going. Now you’re named and kept for good…
How are you implementing faith into your life? How are you practicing resurrection? How is Jesus part of your everyday life? How do you exercise daily in God? What does it mean to follow Jesus? Important questions and I would love to hear your responses. Before starting this discussion I am sharing few Bible quotes and Eugene H. Peterson quotes from The Jesus Way to fuel our conversation and hopefully encouraging you on your pilgrimage. Stay clear of silly stories…
Peter stated it very clear: “Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only this one [Jesus].” (Acts 4:12, MSG) When we have come to know the saving knowledge of Jesus and when we believe it by grace we have been set free. But what do we do with this knowledge, this joy, this freedom? How big is our heart? We are called to accept Jesus…
