Tag Archives: Practicalities

Who Gets the Credit? PAUL had planted, or started, the church in Corinth; Apollos had watered it, he had a significant ministry there after Paul left. But both men were only servants through whom God worked. The ones who plant … Continue reading →

Is Christianity a Crutch for the Weak? IS Christianity just another crutch for people who can’t make it on their own? In one sense, yes. Jesus said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who … Continue reading →

God’s Rainbow SOCIETIES and their systems tend to encourage people to divide along racial, ethnic, and cultural lines, or else to abandon their distinctives by assimilating into the dominant power group. Paul called for a different approach. He didn’t ask … Continue reading →

Antidote for Comparisonitis ONE of the most debilitating diseases of the modern world is “comparisonitis”—the tendency to measure one’s worth by comparing oneself to other people. You won’t find this illness listed in any of the standard medical textbooks, nor … Continue reading →

Righteousness WHAT is righteousness? Most of us immediately think of a person trying to keep a list of rules, like a little boy or girl who never steps over the line. When Paul speaks of righteousness in Romans, he means … Continue reading →

Transformed by the Spirit PAUL’S words about the Law being unable to produce righteousness because of the weakness of the flesh (Romans 8:3) should not be interpreted as if he thought little of the Law. On the contrary, he took … Continue reading →

Two Kinds of Sin SIN is what made necessary God’s plan of salvation through Christ. In a technical sense any lack of conformity to God’s will or standards is a sin—it is not in accord with His plan for us. … Continue reading →

A Slave to Sin THE apostle Paul was willing to take a long, hard look at his deepest, darkest inner life. What he saw there was troubling, but true: he was a slave to sin (Romans 7:15). In fact, he … Continue reading →

The Perilous Nature of Sin SOME people scoff at the concept of sin by defining it as a prohibition against fun made by the few who hate it against the many who enjoy it. In a way, this was the … Continue reading →

Good News for Sinners IT’S common today for people to excuse their faults with the attitude, “Hey, nobody’s perfect!” True enough. People can only be expected to be human—and that means fallible. Unfortunately, though, few people take that reality seriously … Continue reading →

Facing the Facts About Sin THE Bible is straightforward about the ultimate cause behind suffering and evil. It gives a sobering account of how we human beings, who were created as pure and noble creatures, have become wicked and hurtful … Continue reading →

Salvation IN the letter to the Romans we find the apostle Paul’s clearest and most detailed explanation of the gospel message. After his customary salutation, Paul explains his unabashed passion for taking the Good News of Christ to the ends … Continue reading →

Faith and Rights HUMAN “rights” is not a new concept. Nearly every social structure has at least some rules to protect its members. As a Roman commander arrested Paul and ordered that he be beaten, Paul used his Roman citizenship … Continue reading →

Overcoming Barriers A MAJOR breakthrough in race relations is described in Acts 10. For years a virtual wall between Jews and Gentiles had hampered the apostles in sharing Jesus with the Gentile world. But when Peter met Cornelius—an officer of … Continue reading →

The Education of Moses “IT doesn’t matter whether you have an education,” some people say, “God can use you anyway.” True, God can use anyone, with or without formal education. But Moses’ learning “in all the wisdom of the Egyptians” … Continue reading →

The Danger of Lying to God THE dramatic account of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) immediately after the mention of Barnabas (Acts 4:36-37) draws a stark contrast between two kinds of people. On the one hand, Barnabas serves as a … Continue reading →

Sharing Things in Common THE first Christians were extraordinarily generous. In fact, “they had all things in common” (Acts 4:32-35), an ideal that pure communism advocated but never achieved. So were these first believers in some sense communists? Absolutely not. … Continue reading →

Lord Over Doubt HAVE you ever struggled with doubts or troubling questions about Christ, the Christian faith, or the church? Do you sometimes feel that tough questions are not welcome or acceptable among believers? Thomas (John 20:24) was a classic … Continue reading →

Not All Will Believe IF you ever feel discouraged because family, friends, or coworkers refuse to accept the gospel, you may take some comfort from the fact that even Jesus’ own brothers did not believe that He was the Christ … Continue reading →

Martha: Too Much Service? JESUS’ visit to Martha’s home (Luke 10:38-42) has given rise to a caricature of Martha as obsessively “practical,” as opposed to Mary, her “spiritual” sister. In fact, some would use this incident to reinforce a hierarchy … Continue reading →