Redemption

God’s Purpose in Redemption

Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (2 Cor. 5:5 NIV)

The phrase “made us” refers not to the original creation of God but to His work of redemption. Katergazomai in the…

The Uniqueness of Christ

As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is…

The Mixture of Good and Evil

Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. (James 3:10 NKJV)

As it is with ourselves so it is with other believers — we are a mixture of good and evil.

Life Together with Christ

For God did not destine us for wrath but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that whether we are alert or asleep we will come to life together with him. (1 Thes. 5:9–10, NET)

A Dangerous Generation

There are those who curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers.
There are those who are clean in their own eyes
but are not washed of their filth.
There are those — how lofty are their eyes,
how high their eyelids lift!
There are those whose teeth are swords,
whose fangs are…

Known by Christ

I never knew you… (Matthew 7:23)

Christ did not come to give us religion — we already have plenty of those around. “Religion” is sometimes used for Christianity, especially in older writings, but the word conjures up in our minds organization, structures, authorities, and…

Our Limitations of Honesty

Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time? It is good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God…

The Foundation for Lordship

By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. (Hebrews 11:3)

The foundation of the doctrine of the Lordship of Christ is his role as Creator of the universe. He…

Downfall and Uprising: Job

And then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me.”

A Text to Come Home To

For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3:16

Christmas for many is a time of homecoming, and rightfully so, for the entire idea of the…