Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. Acts 20:28-29 ESV In this particular passage of Scripture, Paul was…
When the thrill of the experience has waxed cold and the fog lifts and the glow of the ambient light has dimmed in the presence of offending fluorescence, there is a questioning of the longevity of this sacred romance called Christianity. As a Christian, I realize that encounter and experience once took precedence in my life. It was the thrill of God seeming to chase me and give me a word, to have the “man or woman of God” call…
How many of you ponder on church history? I found myself meditating on the ninety five theses from Martin Luther. These statements were nailed to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany more than five hundred years ago, and this act sparked what we now know as the Protestant Reformation. It was scandalous, and it cost Martin Luther much for challenging the current atmosphere and teachings of the Catholic church in his time. Imagine bringing the Light of truth into the…
What is the foundation of intimacy with God? As someone who treasures a personal relationship with God, it can be easy to fall into the trap of basing relationship upon emotions, feelings and experiences while diminishing the unadulterated Word of God and the atonement for our sins only found through Jesus Christ. The more you and I get to know the Lord through His Word, the written Word of God, the more we understand that our personal relationship with the…
What would you do if the Holy Spirit directed you to an uncomfortable Scripture for encouragement? All of us desire to hear encouragement and words of comfort, and I want to comfort you with this: God will always direct you to His holy written Word for the encouragement you need to draw closer to Him and to walk in Spirit and in truth. It may not be the Word that you or I want to hear, but His Word is…
Out of thirty nine years in this fleshly tent on planet earth, eighteen of those years have been spent pursuing the Lord and knowing Him more. Jesus Christ found me at twenty one years old because I was lost and He was not. Over the years, I have suffered my fair share of personal blows and heartache both before and after being born again. Yes, it can be part of the prophetic, but we are told that we will face…
Can you tell the difference between goats and sheep? Did you know that in some parts of the world they appear identical? It is not as clear cut as one would think by mere appearance at times. There is something troubling me as I observe our current situation in the church. I am not speaking of the world because many have given over to a debased mind and do not understand the truth. However, I see things within the church…