Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human…
One of the things that makes the Bible so real to us is the relatability of the stories it gives us. On some level, each of us will no doubt have very similar issues as those that we read about in these stories. What got me started down this path was considering the story of…
Being purchased stresses things the Lord wants us to remember. We belong to God. Connected to this is how precious we are to Him. We are dear to Him. Because of sin, a price had to be paid — the price of redemption. The price was commensurate with the value of who we are and…
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. As a teacher I hear these words starting at about 7:52 every morning. In fact, if you attended a public school in America any…
Jeffrey Dahmer drugged and killed 17 men and boys. Before his imprisonment, he came to a point where he was murdering once a week. Driven by a desire to control individuals for his own gratification, Dahmer committed horrifying crimes. I won’t relate their details, as Paul’s words may well apply: “For it is shameful even to speak of…
EDITOR’S NOTE: Brother Tom Dennis was an evangelist among the churches of Christ for many decades. In addition to his many good works, Tom served as the editor and publisher of The Gospel Message for a few years. Paul said of his fellow worker Epaphroditus, “Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness, and…
When Jesus was in Jerusalem with his disciples just a few days before he was betrayed and condemned to death, he had a conversation with them about the troubling times that lay ahead. He warned of unrest among the Jews that would lead to the catastrophic destruction of the temple in Jerusalem along with much…
No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a solder (2 Timothy 2:4). The world wants your attention. There are an endless number of causes that try to get our attention: political issues, social issues, environmental issues. Much of the news…
Thus, Jesus spoke to a woman caught in the act of adultery. Her accusers wanted to corner Jesus with this woman who had been so accused. This is recorded in John 8:1-11. Through His ministry, Jesus put the leadership of Israel on notice concerning the righteous mercy of God and their own unrighteousness. Consider these…
Malcolm Gladwell wrote in an article entitled “The Ketchup Conundrum,” “What was true about a yellow condiment that went on hot dogs was not true about a tomato condiment that went on hamburgers…I guess ketchup is ketchup” (What the Dog Saw, p. 50). The article details why ketchup lacks several varieties like mustard. Instead, one…