Resist and He Will Flee
When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, he made this outlandish seeming offer: “Again, the devil took him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, ‘All these things I will give you if you will fall down and worship…
Dealing with Disappointment in Ourselves
Some time ago, I was at a meeting where I preached a sermon on disappointment. After the service, I was talking with a highly successful and well-known pastor. As we chatted, he said something that stopped me in my tracks. He said, “Man, I’m so disappointed with myself.” At first, I was speechless, then I…
Mending Broken Bones
Paul wrote, “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:1-2, ESV). Okay, this is where someone has committed an external, outward…
While the Foundations Are Shaking
While all the foundations of the world are shaking, Satan roars like a lion, and there is confusion, violence and uncertainty. Those who trust in the Lord, though, will see God’s salvation with hearts and minds at peace. They can enjoy rest and sweet sleep, unafraid of conditions around them. I give you some glorious…
A Mirror of the Lord
“But he [Stephen], being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God’” (Acts 7:55-56 NKJV) ! Stephen represented the essence…
The Unrelenting Love of God
Let’s talk about the word “unrelenting.” It means undiminished in intensity or effort, unyielding, uncompromising, incapable of being changed or persuaded by arguments. Unrelenting, constant, sustained, never-ending — what a marvelous description of God’s love! Nothing can hinder or diminish his loving pursuit of both sinners and saints. The Psalmist put it perfectly: “You have…
The Power of Humility
John the Baptist’s definition of his ministry was blunt and simple: “I am ‘the voice of one crying in the wilderness’” (John 1:23 NKJV). Who was John the Baptist? The scriptures says that this most blessed of all prophets was the greatest “among them that are born of women” and a revered preacher of righteousness.…
The Four Things God Gives Us
In Philippians, the first chapter ends with a charge to believers. “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side…
Does God Really Answer Prayer?
Young families in a suburb of North Carolina started a church; and after two years, it was just exploding. They had to move into a bigger building, but after a bit, an adult bookstore bought the building across from them. So now this church was sharing a parking lot with an adult bookstore. They tried…
When God Proves Men
We have become so preoccupied in proving God that we have not prepared our hearts for the great tests of life whereby God proves man. Could it be that the great trial you are now facing, the burden you now carry, is actually God at work proving you? We see an amazing thing in 2…