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WHY IS IT THAT SO MANY BELIEVERS CONTINUALLY WRESTLE WITH A GUILTY CONSCIENCE FOR FAILING TO READ THE BIBLE? We are not the first culture to suffer from declining biblical literacy, but we may be the most ironic given the ubiquity of the Bible today. But the reason so many struggle to get through entire books, much less the entire Bible, might surprise you.
PERHAPS THE LARGEST GLOBAL DEMOGRAPHIC BELONGING TO CHRIST'S KINGDOM PRESENTLY ON EARTH ARE THE WORLD'S TWO BILLION CHILDREN. Stop for just a moment and ponder that breathtaking reality. Speaking of "Christianity" in the broadest of terms, children make up approximately half of God's global kingdom on earth today. Parents and adult believers shoulder a blessed responsibility to bring up young hearts to know the Lord.
WE SAY "THE CHURCH IS THE PEOPLE," BUT OUR WORDS AND ACTIONS MAY GIVE A DIFFERENT IMPRESSION. We say "go to church." We even call the building "the church." We use a sketch of our building in our church logo. We display our building first on our Web site and weekly bulletin. We measure faithfulness by how often someone attends gatherings at the church building. I'm not sure we really believe what we say we believe.
SANCTIFICATION INFUSES THROUGH PRODUCTIVE FAITH, TAKES ROOT IN COMMUNITY, AND THRIVES IN UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. Conversely, sin lurks in idleness, takes root in isolation, and thrives in secrecy. In a time when more people are home from school and work than ever, and the threat of pandemic, death, and economic fallout looms large, Christians must brace themselves for the spiritual battle silently ensuing.
SOME CHURCHES HAVE BEEN SO UTTERLY DECEIVED BY THE DEVIL’S CUNNING THAT THEY HAVE INADVERTENTLY INCUBATED GENERATIONS SUFFERING FROM SPIRITUAL MALADIES. The very place where we should encounter the healing of Jesus has become, for some, the root of our deepest wounds.
WE MUST BE SUSPICIOUS OF THOSE MOMENTS WHEN WE ARE CERTAIN OF THE “VOICE” OF GOD THAT IT IS NOT OUR OWN PRIDE DISGUISED AS DIVINE INSPIRATION. We humans can be so crafty, we may even deceive ourselves (James 1:22; 1 John 1:8). In past dispensations, God revealed his will through patriarchs and prophets, but now has spoken through Jesus (Hebrews 1:1-3). We may wish we had such inspired men around today to reveal the will of God in our specific context. It does not help that modern theologians muddy the waters presumptuously speaking about what God is up to and teasing us with the notion that there is some kind of predetermined plan for every trivial moment of our lives. We are left puzzling over how we will somehow discover God’s will, and wondering constantly if we are somehow messing it all up.
Men have long sought spirituality in elaborate architecture, “priestly” attire, and religious tradition. We have erected sophisticated denominations over the centuries, each with their own signets of sacredness--some with great pomp and circumstance. Even in less formal circles, we often become enamored with buildings, attire, attendance, titles, and numbers. But do these outward displays truly manifest spirituality? Do they indicate the very presence of God?
ARE YOU THE KIND OF PERSON NO ONE CONFIDES IN MORE THAN ONCE? All of us have inadvertently made for miserable comforters at some point, in spite of our good intentions. Let’s face it, we are sometimes ill-prepared to hear and respond to some of the things someone may share with us.
Okay, so it’s no surprise that this millennial is not particularly enamored with the 1950s era church culture, but what may surprise some is that neither does contemporary culture fill the void in my heart as the pendulum swings. Quite the opposite.
IN THE UTTER BLACKNESS OF BITTER SORROW, THE FOUNDATIONS OF EVEN THE STRONGEST OF CHRISTIANS ARE SHAKEN. Unbroken Christians often struggle to relate to the psalms of lament and to the grieving... Many of us know all too well that there is a time when it seems all we can do is to weep, and amidst the weeping to wonder, “Why?”
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