God does not shelter us from the difficulties of life, because we need them for our spiritual growth. In Romans 8:28 God assures us that the difficulties of life are working for us and not against us. God permits trials to come that we might use them for our good...
Paul’s favorite name for believers was brethren. He used it at least sixty times in his letters. Paul saw the local church as a family. Each member was born again by the Spirit of God and possessed God’s divine nature. All were part of God’s family. It is tragic when...
A fruitful life is a happy life. It was in a context of teaching about fruitfulness that Jesus said to His disciples, “These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full” (John 15:11). For what kind of spiritual...
Submission to God and others is an act of faith. There is danger in submitting to others; they might take advantage of us. But we can trust God. His mighty hand that directs our lives can also direct the lives of others. God never exalts anyone until that person is...
When Jesus called Himself “the Living Bread,” He was not claiming to be exactly like manna. He was claiming to be even greater! The manna only sustained life for the Jews, but Jesus gives life to the whole world. The Jews ate the daily manna and eventually died; but when...
Wine was the normal drink of the people in New Testament days, but we must not use Jesus’ miracle of turning water into wine as an argument for the use of alcoholic beverages today. A man given to drink once said to me, “After all, Jesus turned water into wine!”...
We need to decide what kind of righteousness we are seeking, whether we are depending on good works and character, or trusting Christ alone for salvation. God does not save people on the basis of birth or behavior. He saves them “by grace, through faith” (Ephesians 2:8-9). It is not...
The material blessings of life come from God. The person who looks at himself and forgets God when blessings are abundant is only revealing his pride. David responded to God’s blessings by saying, “Who are I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that Thou hast brought me this...
It is an honor and a privilege to suffer with Christ and be treated by the world the way it treated Him. “The fellowship of His sufferings” is a gift from God. Not every believer grows to the point where God can trust him with this kind of experience, so...
Just a short drive from my former home is the campus of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. Years ago, the school had a life-saving squad that assisted passengers on the Lake Michigan boats. On September 8, 1860, a passenger boat, the Lady Elgin, floundered near Evanston, and a ministerial student,...