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Recent Posts
- When God Gives Us a Test
- God’s Grace is Sufficient
- How to Deal with Jealousy
- When God Uses Evil Actions for His Good
- Alexander the Coppersmith
- Submission to Authority – Part III
- Submission to Authority – Part II
- Submission to Authority – Part I
- The Faithfulness of the Lord
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- Twelve Ways to Deal with a Bad Boss
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- Faith or Regeneration – Which Comes First?
- What is the Church?
- A Brief Analysis of the Millennial Kingdom
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- Psalm 23
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- Reasons why we obey God
- A Commitment of the Heart
- When God Said “Do Not Pray”
- The Basics of Prayer
- The Meaning of Sin
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- Why Believers Show No Grace
- The Noetic Effects of Sin
- Original Sin
- The Worthless Person
- Bible Promises that Strengthen our Faith
- God’s Righteousness in the Future
- The Righteous Lifestyle of the Believer
- A Dispensational View of God’s Righteousness
- God’s Righteousness at the Cross
- Biblical Righteousness: A Word Study
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- God’s Favor Toward His People
- When a Believer Perpetually Sins
- What it Means to Follow Jesus
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Category Archives: Hot Topics
When God Gives Us a Test
God tests His people. It’s a fact that is repeated throughout Scripture (Exo 16:4; 20:20; Deu 13:3; Jud 3:1-2; Isa 48:10). He tests us with difficult situations in order to humble us, so that we will not look to ourselves for strength, but to Him. In the end, the test reveals that it is God who provides for us. Continue reading
Posted in Christian Theology, Hot Topics, Inspirational Writings, Living by Faith, Suffering & Persecution
Tagged Each day has enough trouble of its own, Faith for today, Faith for tomorrow, Jehovah Jireh, Learning to trust in God, Seek first His kingdom, Seek the Lord, The Lord will provide, The purpose of testing, the value of suffering, The value of testing, When Abraham offered Isaac, When God gives us a test, Why did God test Abraham?, Why does God test His people?, Why does the Lord test us?, Yahweh Yireh
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How to Deal with Jealousy
Jealousy can be either healthy or unhealthy, depending on the motivation of the heart. God is jealous. He is jealous to protect His glory (Isa 42:8), His name (Eze 39:25; cf. Isa 42:8), and His people (Zec 8:2). When we love what God loves, then we’ll possess a godly jealousy, like Elijah (1 Ki 19:10) and Paul (2 Cor 11:2). But when we care little about God, then sinful jealousy will dominate our hearts, and we’ll seek to destroy rather than protect and edify others, such as when Joseph’s brothers tried to kill him (Gen 37:11-28), or when the Sadducees attacked and imprisoned the apostles (Acts 5:17-18). We overcome sinful jealousy by: 1) placing God’s Word at the center of our lives and letting it direct our thoughts, words and actions (Psa 1:2; 2 Cor 10:5), 2) realizing the Lord owns everything (Psa 24:1; 89:11), and that He is free to leave or take whatever we have, including possessions, family, or health (Job 1:6-21), and, 3) that sinful jealousy cannot exist in a heart saturated with God’s love, for “Love…is not jealous” (1 Cor 13:4). Continue reading
Posted in Bad Behavior, Christian Theology, Hamartiology, Hot Topics, Inspirational Writings, Living by Faith, Love, Marriage, Righteous Living
Tagged A definition of jealousy, Does God get jealous?, God's jealousy, godly jealousy, How to deal with jealousy, How to deal with sinful jealousy, Is envy and jealousy different?, Is jealousy a sin?, Is jealousy ever right?, Should Christians be jealous?, What does the Bible say about Godly jealousy?, what does the Bible say about jealousy?, what is sinful jealousy?, Why are we jealous?, Why is God jealous?
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When God Uses Evil Actions for His Good
Through Scripture, God gives His people the capacity to see all of life from His vantage point. Having God’s perspective allows us to rise about the daily grind of life and the petty actions of others and realize there is a sovereign God who rules over His creation and directs the activities of mankind—even evil activities—for His own good and the good of His people. For this reason, we can understand Paul’s words and know “that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28). Continue reading
Posted in Bad Behavior, Christian Theology, Hot Topics, Living by Faith
Tagged All Things Work Together for Good, Divine viewpoint, Genesis 50:20, God can use evil actions to bring about good, God meant it for good, God was with Joseph, God's providence, God's sovereignty, How did God use the evil actions of Joseph's brothers for good, human viewpoint, Joseph sold into slavery, Living by faith in adversity, living with the divine perspective, Providence, Romans 8:28, Seeing life from God's perspective, The story of Joseph
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Alexander the Coppersmith
There are times when it’s necessary to specifically name a person as hostile in order to warn others to avoid unnecessary harm. This was true of the apostle Paul, who warned his friend, Timothy, about a man named Alexander. Continue reading
Posted in Bad Behavior, Christian Theology, Hot Topics, Living by Faith, Righteous Living, Suffering & Persecution
Tagged Alexander the Coppersmith, avoiding people who cause trouble, Avoiding trouble, God will repay, God will repay those who hurt us, Guard yourself from others who want to hurt you, Is it ok to name people and their faults?, Never seek retaliation, Never take your own revenge, Protect yourself from people who want to hurt you, When to avoid trouble, When to guard yourself from others
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Submission to Authority – Part III
Christians will, at times, suffer unjustly at the hands of those whom God has placed in authority over us, like the suffering Hagar experienced at the hand of Sarai. And, the harsh or immoral character of leaders should never dictate our response; rather, we should be governed by God’s Word, as we look to Christ as our example of unjust suffering. Continue reading
Posted in Christian Theology, Hot Topics, Leadership, Living by Faith, Righteous Living, Suffering & Persecution
Tagged 1 Peter 2:18, Abram and Sarai and Hagar, Genesis 16, Jesus as our example of submitting to authority, Living by faith under a harsh boss, Should I submit to my boss when he's a jerk?, Should we submit to abusive authority?, Should we submit to harsh leaders?, Submission to authority, Submitting to the boss, The conception of Ishmael, When should we say "no" to authority?, Why did God make Hagar submit to Sarai?
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Submission to Authority – Part II
Rebellion against God’s authority started with Satan, an angelic creature who, at an unspecified time, led an angelic revolt against God and created a kingdom of darkness. Afterward, God created Adam and Eve to serve under His authority, as mediatorial administrators who cared for the earth. However, God permitted Satan to tempt Adam and Eve to rebel against His authority, and when they agreed to follow Satan, his kingdom of darkness was expanded and he became the temporary ruler of this world. According to God’s wise plan and sovereign will, He sent His Son into the world and the Son added humanity to Himself, lived an absolutely righteous life in obedience to His Father and went to the cross and died for sinful humanity. At the cross, Jesus reclaimed this world and pronounced judgment and sentencing for Satan, who will eventually be cast into the Lake of Fire forever. Until that time, Satan continues as a subversive living in God’s world, and he has many followers who are used by him to subvert God’s will on earth. These enemies of God seek to infiltrate governmental systems and command people—both saved and lost—to disobey God. Though Christians are commanded to obey human leaders, we can never obey a command that is contrary to God’s will. Continue reading
Posted in Angels & Demons, Bad Behavior, Christian Theology, Hot Topics, Leadership, Living by Faith, Righteous Living, Suffering & Persecution
Tagged Adam and Eve rebelled against God, Adam and Eve submitted to Satan, Civil disobedience, God intended Adam and Eve to rule over the earth, God is always sovereign, God permits Satan to act, God permits Satan to tempt His people, God's sovereignty, Good end evil coexist, Is Satan the god of this age?, Is Satan the god of this world?, Is Satan the ruler of this world?, Is there a time when Christians disobey authority?, Jesus reclaimed the world, Satan convinced Adam and Eve to rebel against God's authority, Satan has planted subversives in the world, Satan is the god of this age, Satan is the god of this world, Satan led an angelic revolt in heaven, Satan rebelled against God's authority, Satan's world system, Submission to authority, the fall of Satan, The parable of the wheat and the tares, When did Satan fall?, When should the Christian refuse to obey authority?, Why does good and evil coexist?
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Submission to Authority – Part I
God is the supreme Ruler of His creation, and He has established human governmental authorities to promote law and order. This means He has delegated authority to persons and groups who serve as administrative overseers to others. As Christians, we are commanded to submit to those in authority over us, whether it is the president, state governors, local city officials, police officers, employers, parents, teachers, etc. Failure to submit to human authority is regarded as failure to submit to God, Who has placed those persons over us. Continue reading
Posted in Christian Theology, Hot Topics, Leadership, Living by Faith, Righteous Living, Suffering & Persecution
Tagged 1 Peter 2:13-14, Biblical examples of submission to authority, Christian citizenship, God delegates authority, God is the supreme ruler over creation, hupotasso, Pray of those in authority, Romans 13:1, Should believers submit to human authority?, Submission to authority, Submit to authority, what does it mean to submit to authority?, What does the Bible say about submission to authority?, when can the believer say no to authority?
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