From the Pastor: Real Love
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. -1 John 4:10-12 We love because God loved us first. It’s not that we loved God, searched him out, and
Losing Our Religion
I like a lot of rock music. Do you remember R.E.M.'s classic song Losing My Religion? The group never intended it to say anything about religion or even about Christian faith—the title comes from a Southern expression meaning to "lose one's temper or civility" or "feeling frustrated and desperate." But the song set me on another track of thinking: When we blow away all the cobwebs that surround our thinking on what Christianity is, we will realize that the best
Be A Peacemaker: Take a good look around you—even at your own behavior!
When God directs us to do or be something, our obedience is the very thing that invokes happiness for us. As believers, we are called to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9) and blessed when we are. Take a good look around you—even take a look at your behavior. How do you react to your family members when you think no one else can see your actions? When has cordiality been more desperately needed than today? I don’t remember a time when there has
Too Many Mistakes
Week 4 of A Study in Joy And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. –Romans 8:28 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will. –Ephesians 1:11 Are you wondering if you can ever reach a point of joy and contentment when you look back at a life of stupid mistakes, botched
Your 100 Day Prayer: Day 35 – Always Reliable
by TJ Bates via Theology Mix I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsake or their children begging bread. -Psalm 37:25 I can relate to what King David says, for I was young and now I am old and I, too, have never seen God forsake those who trusted him. "Farther along in the psalm, David reiterates that 'the salvation [rescue] of the righteous comes from the Lord; he is their stronghold in time of trouble'
Jesus Our Refuge: Grace in Fearful Times
by Brian Rogers For many of us, the stress of the pandemic has exposed deep-seated fears, sin, and failure in our personal lives. The list can be oppressive: fear of death, fear for our children, fear of financial ruin, fear of personal disaster, etc. What can be done about these fears? What can we do with anxiety, guilt, shame? Let us explore finding grace and freedom through the Friend of Sinners. Father, we ask for your Spirit. Please speak to our hearts
Throwing Cold Water: Some Days It’s Difficult to Tell the Christian from the Non
A friend of mine said, “I know that we're supposed to go to church because when coals get separated, they grow cold alone. But when I take my little fire to church someone always throws cold water on it.” He stopped attending because every time he went he would return home more discouraged and lonely than before. Someone always threw water on his fire! Sound familiar? I hear this pretty often. Have you ever wondered whether something you might have said
Solus Christus, In Christ Alone
Solus Christus, “Christ Alone” for salvation is Christianity’s central scandal. How could anyone make such an exclusive claim and still be considered the foundation of love and justice? Well, let’s agree for argument’s sake that Jesus did make, or at least could have made, the claim that he is the only way to God. Does it still seem unfair to a world of multiplicity of religions? One way to approach this seemingly intolerant attitude is to ask what the logical alternatives would
Sola Scriptura: Is What You Believe the Gospel Truth?
What if you discovered that much of what you believe about God, Jesus, and salvation has very little to do with the Bible and a lot more to do with popular trends, modern culture, and ancient pagan philosophy? Would you be alarmed? If you’re anything like most of us believers, then, normally, we tend to believe what we’re taught by spiritually sincere and well-meaning family, friends, pastors, and Sunday school teachers. The pastor who influenced you was a great guy, he
Should a Christian Even Go to Church at All?
This might sound like an odd question, particularly from a pastor who’s trying to grow a new church, but it was one I was asked: Where does a Christian go to worship and serve God in Starnberg, or even Munich? It’s not easy to find a church that fits with what we were raised with, our style, or our schedule. This is true. If we were to choose a church of a mainline denomination, we might not understand the language or we
