Posts from 2023
Our Spiritual Hearing Aid
Joshua, a precocious 2-year-old, watched his mother baking cookies. “Please, may I have one?” he asked hopefully. “Not before supper,” his mother replied. Joshua ran tearfully to his room, then reappeared with this message: “Jesus just told me it’s okay to have a cookie now.” “Jesus didn’t tell me!” his mother retorted, to which Joshua replied, “You must not have been listening!” Joshua’s motivation was wrong, but he was absolutely right about two things: In 1 Samuel 3:9, another young…
Christianity Demands More
The story is told of a man who was arrested for getting involved in a drunken brawl at a bar. When it came time for this man’s court appearance, the judge asked, “Sir, what do you have to say for yourself?” The man looked directly at the judge and said, “Your honor, I’m not guilty. My reputation in this community is spotless.” The judge then asked, “Sir, do you have anyone who can vouch for your character?” The man looked…
Do you have true faith, hope and love?
The apostle Paul frequently emphasized “faith, hope and love” in his letters (Colossians 1:4-5; 2 Thessalonians. 1:3-4; Tit. 2:2; etc.). Paul was thankful for the brethren’s “steadfastness of hope.” Their hope was not merely a matter of the heart. Paul was thankful that they had hope in their heart. Grammatically, their hope produced steadfastness (a Greek word that indicates persistent endurance). Of course, that is what true hope does. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is…