The character of God is the one subject that is limitless. Because God is infinite he can be contemplated, adored, worshiped and loved without limit. But, still, the Holy Spirit wants you talk to your kids about God’s character, about who he is. For example, Moses describes God with many expressions of awe and fascination. In Deuteronomy 10 he speaks of God in comparison to the false gods of the surrounding cultures. This is a huge consideration. Throughout human history there have always been pretenders to the rule of God in the hearts of people. These false gods took the form of wood or stone. Or they masqueraded as religions with competing deities. Finally, human lusts for greed, power and […]
Culture
252 posts
The pursuit of purity is not a popular quest! If someone asked you what your goal in life is and you answered “to pursue purity,” it would, for sure, be an unexpected answer. However, when James describes what wisdom that honors God looks like, the first word he selects is pure. Peter urges us to love one another from a pure heart. In the New Testament, to be pure is to be genuine, authentic and undefiled. Purity is vital to a life that honors God. So even though being pure may sound unexciting, that is exactly why it is worthy of pursuit. God’s ways are not our ways. The aggressive pursuit of purity will protect you from the attacks of […]
Today hundreds of thousands of students across the globe are protesting gun violence. The motivation behind these protests is understandable and compelling. There is a growing, realistic fear that their school could be the next target. To date, despite impassioned political rhetoric, there is no appearance of protection for our students. So in this sense the need for action and protest seems clear and obvious. It is more than unsettling to walk out the door to go to school, wondering if you may never come back home again. The deeper sadness is that our nation’s political and educational systems have driven our children to trusting solutions based on laws to heal and stop the wreckage caused by human sin. The […]
Kirk Cameron’s latest film, Connect, is about the world your teenagers inhabit. You see your children in the physical world of school, soccer practices, church, meals, homework and the daily rush of life. But, at the same time, you know that your kids are connected to somewhere else, to a world of thoughts and attractions you cannot reach. The reality hits: “my kids are connected, but not to God and not to me!” Connect meets this reality head on. Kirk and his wife Chelsea have 6 teenagers. He knows first-hand the powerful connection of the dark virtual world. So Kirk wanted to know why the virtual, online world has such power over our teenagers. Most importantly Kirk wanted to know […]
Independence is a myth. Dependence is a trap. Can both of these statements be true? Not only are they both true, but failing to acknowledge these truths will result in struggles throughout life. Let’s see why. Independence is a myth. From the beginning people were created to be in a dependent relationship with God. This is part of the DNA of the soul of every human. Adam and Eve were dependent upon God to sustain life. God planted the garden for them. God placed the garden near rivers to allow for rich, fertile soil. God commanded Adam to guard and protect this precious garden. And then, finally, God provided a wife for Adam and gave directions about how families were […]
The character of God, the wonder of God, the holiness of God is not dependent upon the recognition of man. Just because people may dismiss the Person of God and the truth of Scripture does not in any way the detract from the greatness of both! Joshua Bell, world class violinist, played for 43 minutes at the Washington DC subway. During that time over 1,000 people passed by where he was playing. 7 people paused to listen, 7! Does this mean that Bell is not a great violinist? The fact that people do not acknowledge God’s greatness or the Bible’s veracity does not change reality. Don’t trust the opinion of people who dismiss God. It is a fatal error. Don’t […]
You tell your friends that your main focus for 2018 is to make holiness more a part of your lifestyle. It would not be surprising for the response to be, even from your Christian friends, “how boring is that!” Boring? This is the way the enemy of your soul wants holiness to be understood – as drab, boring, and uneventful. Our culture has totally bought into this lie. If you are holy: you can’t enjoy life, you can’t enjoy sex, you can’t have fun, you will be intolerant and self-righteous, you won’t have any friends, your life will be boring! It is no wonder holiness is not an appealing character quality. Even if you don’t believe these things, don’t be […]
God’s first priority is not to make you and me happy. What impresses us is not what impresses God. Perhaps nothing demonstrates this more clearly than the incarnate life of his Son, Jesus. Christ’s birth was that of a peasant and his death was that of a criminal. He was born in the company of animals in a stable. He died in the company of thieves on a cross stained with his blood. The political leaders of his country tried to murder him as a baby. But it was the supposed bible-believing religious leaders who finally succeeded where Herod had failed. His friends fled from him at his trial. His family fled to Egypt when he was a toddler. This […]
Your children know everything about you. They see when you are sleeping, they know when you have been good or bad, they know when you pout and when you shout. Your kids know all of this without your ever having to say a word. When you stumble and ask God for help — they learn. When you stumble and snap or make excuses — they learn from that, too. If you value your relationship with God above all else, your children will know that as well. What does this have to do with being Santa’s helper? Just this: in Psalm 72:18 we read that “God alone does marvelous things.” However, at Christmas time, for little children someone else is portrayed […]
Joy to the World: A Biblical Worldview (A Four-Part Series) Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 Part 4: He Rules With Truth and Grace Verse four of “Joy to the World” completes the biblical worldview contained in this Christmas hymn. This last verse is a dynamic testimony to the power of the gospel. The King who was anticipated in the first verse, celebrated for his rule in the second verse, and viewed as the Savior of this sin-cursed world in third, now is depicted as the One who will bring a just judgment to this broken world. Life often appears to be unfair and unjust. Will evil people prevail? Corruption and perversion are everywhere. The […]