WILL YOU BE FAITHFUL UNTIL DEATH? The Lord Jesus dictated letters to be sent to the seven churches in Asia Minor via the apostle John. In His letter to the church of Smyrna, Jesus warned them of an upcoming time of suffering and tribulation. He called them to “be faithful until death,” reminding them that
CHRIST RESTORES THE LOST YEARS WHEN WE REPENT The prophet Joel prophesied of a day when the Lord would judge the sins of Israel with an army of locusts that would devour all their crops, vines, and fruit trees. Even the buds would be eaten, so that the harvest would be affected for years. Yet,
A BEAUTIFUL TRINITARIAN INSTRUCTION Jude gave this beautiful trinitarian instruction to believers, in contrast, to his warning against those who were creating divisions in the church. Notice his instruction begins with “But you, beloved.” He was talking to those who have the Spirit. Not those troublemakers who did not have the Spirit, evidenced by their
CHRIST, OUR REVIVAL AND RESURRECTION Amidst Hosea’s prophecies of God’s judgment on Israel, he calls them to repentance with the promise of resurrection. This promise was fulfilled in Christ. The apostle Paul must have been referring to this Scripture when he wrote that Christ “rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor.
IMMANUEL – GOD WITH US One of the 15 psalms of ascent, written to prepare the hearts of worshipers as they climbed up to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Entourages of pilgrims like the one that traveled from Nazareth with young, 12-year-old Jesus, would have sung these songs as they came to celebrate Passover.
THE CURRENCY OF THE KINGDOM IS ASKING “In Him,” namely, “in Christ,” we have confidence before the Father. For this reason Hebrews teaches us to “come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16). And the apostle Paul writes that in
WHAT WAY ARE YOU FOLLOWING? This is the last verse of the last chapter of Daniel’s prophetic book. It is the final word given to Daniel by the “man clothed in linen,” who appears to be the preincarnate Christ. He had revealed many things to come in the last days, even the time of tribulation.
HOW DO YOU RESPOND TO CORRECTION? Are you correctable? Are you humble enough to take correction and criticism without “hardening your neck?” In other words, being “stiff-necked” and unwilling to change. This biblical proverb warns us that those who will not listen to rebuke and make changes, will soon be in so much trouble that
WHO ARE YOU GROWING UP TO BE LIKE? Do you ever ask questions of God like, “Why is this happening to me?” The apostle John answers saying not everything has been “revealed” yet, but one thing we can be sure of is that “we are children of God” and we shall “be like” Jesus. That’s
CHRIST IS BOTH THE MEDIATOR AND MEANS OF SALVATION The word “propitiation” points back to Israel’s sacrificial system, whereby a lamb without spot or blemish was offered as an atonement for sins. Yet those lambs, offered every year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, were only like checks written on a future deposit. Jesus