TO A LIFE PERFECT THAT GLORIFIES GOD
The call of Jesus, as reflected in God’s command revealed in the Law, to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matt 5:44), is easier said than done. We know it is difficult because there are limits to what we can extend to others,…
BE FREE…TRULY FREE
Pastor Dan Duncan of Believer’s Chapel illustrates that there are three ways to live in relation to the law of God: under the law, without the law, or the Apostle Paul’s way. He explains this using three kinds of dogs. One dog lives on a leash. Whenever…
THE DEMAND OF PRIORITIZING CHRIST
Jesus Christ’s popularity was growing, evidenced by a great following. Yet, it didn’t matter to Christ; rather, he said these words to them: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and…
LOVE YOUR ENEMIES AS CHILDREN OF THE FATHER
There’s a celebrity whose ministry is sharing the gospel with convicts in prison. When her mother was murdered, she struggled for a while because she hated the man who took her mother’s life, and yet she knows it’s part of her ministry to share the…
FATHER AND CHILD SIMILARITY
A fun commercial from years ago showed how a child would play dress-up as he tried to look like his father going to work. He wore a tie, a loose coat, baggy slacks, and carried a suitcase. His dad came down and smiled because he found his son cute. You…
THE COMPLEXITY OF CHRIST’S COMMAND TO LOVE
In the last article, I mentioned that there were two things that Jews failed to understand about God’s command to love. First was their assumption that love should only be within their community. However. God actually wanted the strangers in the land to…
WHO IS YOUR NEIGHBOR?
The Jews lived by the commands of the Mosaic law. One of the teachings was “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” However, the Jews misapplied this beautiful verse as a discriminatory excuse. It would be helpful to clarify who their neighbor…
LOVING ENEMIES AS GOD LOVES
During the first world war, the allied power and central powers were exchanging gunshots, both hoping obviously to win. On December 24, a truce was made between these two powers, calling for a ceasefire. They put down their guns and went and talk with…
A Christ-Follower’s Obedience
Jesus wants to separate the true followers from those professing believers. He said, “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in Him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,” (Jn 8:31) I met a group of young professionals in a certain…
YOUR STATUS AND IDENTITY
Lk 14:26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” More than the loving relationship, Jews have a deeper, underlying reason to…