What qualified Joseph of Arimathea for the wonderful opportunity and privilege of burying the Creator of the universe, the Lord Jesus Christ?  Joseph was a man of character, Christian courage and deep and profound commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ.  To get opportunities to do something significant for God, you need to be a Christian of character, courage and commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ.  If you are, wherever there is something for you to do, God can be sure that you are there and...

If we follow in the steps of Jesus Christ, if we suffer innocently to the glory of God, if that results in an impact on the lives of men and a witness to the sufferings of the Savior, then be very sure that experience of Christian suffering is genuine, authentic and the real stuff.   Other passages mentioned: John 10:18; 1 Peter 4:15-16; Luke 23:13-25; 2 Timothy 2:10; 1 Peter 2:21.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is an amazing story. It is heartwarming, inspiring and absolutely true. Will the living Lord find you in the waiting room? All the pain in God’s waiting room has been borne by the Great Physician, the Lord Jesus Christ. Every Christian has entered God’s waiting room and is waiting for the return of Christ to take them back to be with Himself. The only way to get into God’s waiting room is faith in the One, who loved you, died for you, and rose...

Professor Hodges explains his methodology for understanding problem passages in the New Testament, by demonstrating his method on Romans 10:9-10.  Other passages: The Epistle of Romans.

Is there any support in the Bible for the concept that we will receive some sort of divine mystical guidance from God before we make a significant spiritual decision?  Is a vague feeling of inner peace, the same as divine guidance?  Do the Scriptures encourage us to take a combination of circumstances which may be ambiguous in themselves and translate it into guidance for our lives? Where should we find guidance for our lives today?  Do we recognize that the Word of God within the guidelines...

One of the deepest felt needs of the human heart is the need to be remembered.  However, all of us have the capacity to forget people. Was the thief on the cross asking Jesus to save him or take him into the kingdom?  Nobody in the New Testament has ever asked Jesus to save them from eternal punishment.  We are not saved by asking Jesus to save us. We are saved by believing that Jesus keeps His promise to save us when we trust Him to do that.  We do not need to pray or ask to be saved. We...

There are a lot of Christians who at one time were competing for the Lord Jesus Christ, but who have now turned their back on that competition.  Our minds tend to focus on our own difficulties, frustrations and problems and everything else around us tends to fade into the background.  If there was ever a man who had a right to focus on his own troubles, difficulties, frustrations and problems to the exclusion of everything else, that man was our Lord Jesus Christ.  Instead, Jesus tells the...

The experience of Simon of Cyrenia presents us with one of the most remarkable examples and striking illustrations of the real significance and meaning of Christian living.   Simon becomes a part of the Calvary experience of Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord.  The Christian life is a process of cross bearing. It is taking up the burden and carrying that burden in fidelity to Jesus Christ. There is a sense that every dedicated disciple is compelled and forced to follow Jesus Christ.  You won’t...

One of the hardest things we have to do in life sometimes is to stand alone and to stand up by ourselves when the opposition is coming at us at every side.  Every Christian will sooner or later confront a crowd that doesn’t want to do the right thing.  If you are a believer in Christ, sooner or later the will of the crowd will clash with the will of God, and you will have to make the decision.  The decision you make should be guided by a very basic principle: Where the crowd leads don’t...

In Herod we find one of the most superficial people in the Bible. Herod is an example of a person who is more concerned with looking good in front of other people than in doing what is right. There are probably many people in church whose experience with God is shallow and superficial.  Sometimes when Christians do not get what they want from God, they end up turning their backs to God or walking away from Him, simply because God didn’t do it their way. Until our commitment to Jesus Christ...

Have we been avoiding a necessary examination?  There are times in our lives when we are unprepared for an examination. That is what happened to the Roman governor, Pontus Pilate.  Pilate faced one of the most basic issues of human life, that is the authority of Jesus Christ.  Do you accept the authority of Jesus Christ? After you are saved, the major issue in your life is the authority of Jesus Christ. Sometimes Christians acknowledge the authority of Jesus Christ, but that is not the same...

One of the most lovely statements in the Bible is that “the Lord is my shepherd”, but we quickly forget that the shepherd has a rod and a staff, which he disciplines and chastens his sheep.  If we forget the longsuffering of God and we go on our own way and pretend that He is not there, sooner or later, we pay.  If you are a disobedient parent, you cannot protect yourself or your children from the consequences of disobedience in your own lives.

When you confront injustice, unfairness and cruelty, the very wisest thing you can do is to commit your case to God, who is the righteous Judge. When you confront the cruelty and injustice of men in obedience to God, it may leave scars. But, those scars can be a badge of honor. They can be a mark of your faithfulness to God, and in due time He will vindicate you. When you have been done wrong, be sure that you do right and leave the outcome to God, just as our Lord Jesus Christ Himself did.

It is possible for a Christian to be separated from the fellowship of the Lord Jesus Christ by the troubles and earthquakes in our lives. In the crisis of life, we are tempted to give up on Jesus, but instead that is the time to walk closer with Him. Never say, “I would never do that.” Always say, “God help me, never to do that.” Even after the earthquakes and aftershocks in our lives, Jesus is saying to you, “Serve Me.”

In this passage we see three signs that the powers of darkness are at work.  One of the frequent signs, that the powers of darkness are at work, is treachery and betrayal.   Another sign, that Satan is involved in his characteristic activity, is when in disregard to the counsel of God, we act recklessly, rashly and foolishly. Insulting and demeaning behavior towards others is also a mark of the work of darkness. 

Even though rejection is never a pleasant experience, for a Christian (a person who has believed in the Lord Jesus Christ for the free gift of eternal life) rejection can be a badge of honor.  We have opportunities in this day and time to share in the rejection of Jesus Christ and to identify ourselves with Him and with the rejection that men give to Him. We are called to bear the reproach of Jesus Christ.  We can wear the reproach of Jesus Christ as a badge of honor because it leads us to...

Satan cannot upset the lives of believers unless he has God’s permission. Before God allows us to fail, we can be sure that our Lord Jesus Christ has already prayed for us.  God’s purpose in allowing us to fail is that we might return to Him and be useful to Him like we could not have been useful before. Christian, the next time you are in the devil’s den, remember you can’t do it on your own, the victory can be yours through your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Other passages: Job 1-2; John...

Despite the fact, that we are all so full of failures, if we stick it out in the Christian life, if we hold fast the profession of faith and if we don’t forsake the assembling of ourselves together, when Jesus has His reunion with His disciples, we will also have fellowship with Him and we will share in His reign and the morning star will be ours.

A problem that has haunted the Christian church from almost the very beginning, is the problem of confusing religious reality with religious fantasy.  When you leave the solid ground of the promises in God’s word, it is easy to move into fantasy land and to believe all sorts of things that our own minds and other minds create, which have nothing to do with the promises in God’s word. The Bible is the only guide we got. 

One of the things that people try to avoid the most is responsibility. It is crucial that we accept our God given responsibilities.  Salvation is absolutely free, but the minute you get saved, you are a vineyard keeper and have a responsibility to God.  Accept the responsibilities that God has given to you, in order to avoid the moment in your life when you have been overtaken by disaster.  When you accept the responsibilities that God has given to you, good things can begin to happen. (April...

If your eyes are really open to the significance of the cross of Christ, it will inspire you to follow Him through your life and to glorify His name. This is what life is all about, following Jesus Christ and giving glory to God. If we do it right, then other people will see what God has done for us and they too will glorify God.

A life of dedication to Jesus Christ, pays off big here and now, but it pays off even bigger in the age to come. If you lose your children to a life of sin, that is a horrible and tragic loss, but if you lose them to God, then you really find them, for you find them as a wonderful joy both in the present time and in the age to come.

Lordship salvation fails to understand the story of the rich young ruler on two levels: (1) What is really happening in this story (the historical level)? (2) What is the role of this story in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke which were written to Christians (the literary level)? 

Can God still hear you saying, “I’m here.”?  Prayer is more important than our food and our sleep. Never give up on prayer.  When it comes to prayer, it is always too soon to quit.

The kingdom of God is in the midst of the world, composed of every single individual who has believed in Jesus for the free gift of everlasting life.  But, that is only the beginning. Once we know that we are members of the invisible kingdom that is right here and now, we can look forward to the kingdom that will indeed come with observation.