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LIKE-MINDED TOWARD ONE ANOTHER
Throughout the New Testament, the phrase “one another” appears over ninety times and is associated with over thirty-five different verbs, which identify activities in which Christians are to be engaged as part of the body of believers. Implicit in these “one another” passages is the expectation of community. Over the past few weeks, we have been investigating some of these “one another” instructions in an effort to identify our responsibilities to one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. As…
The Framing Department – Part Three
We have spent the past two weeks taking a look at some of the “frames” that surround our thoughts, words, and actions. We are basically talking about the motivations and expectations that serve as our primary approach towards life. So far, we have discussed “The Frame of Self-Righteousness” and “The Frame of Guilt,” and we have seen that neither of these frames is effective, much less biblical. This week, we will take a look at another common “frame” that many…
GREET ONE ANOTHER
Throughout the New Testament, the phrase “one another” appears over ninety times and is associated with over thirty-five different verbs, which identify activities in which Christians are to be engaged as part of the body of believers. Implicit in these “one another” passages is the expectation of community. Over the past few weeks, we have been investigating some of these “one another” instructions in an effort to identify our responsibilities to one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. As…
ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER
Throughout the New Testament, the phrase “one another” appears over ninety times and is associated with over thirty-five different verbs, which identify activities in which Christians are to be engaged as part of the body of believers. Implicit in these “one another” passages is the expectation of community. Over the past few weeks we have been investigating some of these “one another” instructions in an effort to identify our responsibilities to one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. As…
The Framing Department – Part Two
Last week, we began a study on how we “frame” our lives. In other words, what are the motivations and expectations that surround our thoughts, words, and actions? We began our study by looking at the frame of “Self Righteousness” last week, and we saw that this is a “flimsy frame” to build our lives around, based on what the Scriptures teach. This week, let’s take a look at another “best seller” in the category of “frames” for our lives: THE…
BEAR ONE ANOTHER’S BURDENS
Throughout the New Testament, the phrase “one another” appears over ninety times and is associated with over thirty-five different verbs, which identify activities in which Christians are to be engaged as part of the body of believers. Implicit in these “one another” passages is the expectation of community. Last week, we began a series of articles intended to investigate some of these “one another” commands in an effort to identify our responsibilities to one another as brothers and sisters in…
The Framing Department – Part One
One of our favorite stores, as a family, is Hobby Lobby. We go into Hobby Lobby to look at lots of different things: I enjoy the comic book wall art (because I’m a mature adult who still likes superheroes), the girls like looking at the toys, and Brooke likes pretty much everything else. Also, you can shop for Christmas trees in mid-May, which is always a much-needed burst of festivity during the summer months. Going into Hobby Lobby, however, it…
Love One Another
One cold evening back in the 1800s, a preacher went to visit a member of his congregation who had stopped attending worship services. The man welcomed the preacher into his home and the two of them settled into chairs next to the fireplace. Wanting to convey the importance of congregational involvement, the preacher took a pair of tongs and carefully removed a burning ember from the fire, placing it on the edge of hearth by itself. Without saying a word,…
LOVE ONE ANOTHER
One cold evening back in the 1800s, a preacher went to visit a member of his congregation who had stopped attending worship services. The man welcomed the preacher into his home and the two of them settled into chairs next to the fireplace. Wanting to convey the importance of congregational involvement, the preacher took a pair of tongs and carefully removed a burning ember from the fire, placing it on the edge of hearth by itself. Without saying a word,…
CAN BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE SPIRIT BE COMMITTED TODAY?
In last week’s article, we sought to explain what constitutes “blasphemy against the Spirit” (Matthew 12:31-32; Mark 3:28-30), and concluded that it was a deliberate and continuous rejection and/or belittling of the Holy Spirit, specifically by attributing His works to Satan, despite exposure to and evidence of the truth. This week we will consider whether or not the “eternal sin,” as “blasphemy against the Spirit” is called in Mark 3:29, can still be committed today. Respected preachers, commentators, and scholars…
Know Your Place
“Sometimes people don’t want to hear the truth because they don’t want their illusions destroyed.” – Friedrich Nietzsche We are part of a culture – religious and otherwise – that seeks pleasure and avoids pain, at all costs. Because of this tendency to embrace anything that is pleasant and to reject anything that might be painful, many of us prefer to embrace illusions instead of reality. We choose to live our lives in a lie. As the old saying goes,…
WHAT IS BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT?
On one occasion, Jesus cast out a demon then was accused by the Pharisees of being able to do so because He was empowered by Satan (Matthew 12:24). Jesus responded to their accusation by attributing His miraculous abilities to the “Spirit of God” (Matthew 12:28). What is interesting about this particular story is that it led to one of the most sobering statements that Jesus ever made. In Matthew 12:31, Jesus said, “every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people,…