When we come to life's end and look back over a lifetime, what will have really mattered? What is most worthy of our attention now? What is the core of our faith? What is the essence of Christianity in terms of every-day life? Can we possibly get some handle on human existence at its best? What does the earthly life look like that brings ultimate joy to God and lasting satisfaction to us? Is it a religious life centered on church activities and meetings, holy rituals and sacred ceremonies? Indeed, many Christians under-value the discipline of set meetings for worship, fellowship and study. … [Read more...]
THE ESSENCE – 1
On your last day of life on earth, what will have really mattered? In the face of a myriad daily demands for time and energy, what is most worthy of our attention? "My faith," you say. "Spiritual matters. Things that last for eternity." But what is the core of our faith? What is the essence of Christianity? Not in a theoretical sense but in terms of every-day life. What does God want most from us? Can we possibly get a handle on human existence at its best -- an earthly life that brings joy to God and satisfaction to us? What about a life devoted to others, a charitable life of good deeds? … [Read more...]
SELF-EXAMINATION
The purpose of the church, the Christian life, believers meeting together, grace-gifts, recognized leadership, and all the spiritual disciplines, is to make us more and more like Jesus. With that in mind, we are to examine and purify ourselves (2 Cor. 13:5; 7:1). While an Oxford student in 1729-1730, John Wesley wrote a list of questions for his own self-examination, and later refined the questions for use in his small groups. This regular exercise in self-examination was one of Wesley's "methods" that gave rise to the nickname "methodist." Today, nearly three centuries later, Wesley's 21 … [Read more...]
PILGRIM HEART
Christianity is far more than a set of beliefs or a compelling intellectual vision; it is also a comprehensive way of life." This premise both motivates and informs author Darryl Tippens, who in his delightful new book Pilgrim Heart presents "an invitation to consider afresh what it means to live like Jesus." Even the Gospel of John, he notes, which so clearly emphasizes believing, practically begins and ends with Jesus' personal call: "Follow me." This call is reflected in the subtitle to Pilgrim Heart -- "The Way of Jesus in Everyday Life." Biblical faith is embodied in a journey, Tippens … [Read more...]
SECULAR SACRAMENTS
If we are very fortunate, every now and then our senses encounter a moment of beauty so transcendently marvelous that the experience becomes for us a portal or gate to the eternal. Wordsworth saw in such moments an "intimation of immortality," a memory of the soul's eternal existence before our birth, when "trailing clouds of glory, we comef we are very fortunate, every now and then our senses encounter a moment of beauty so transcendently marvelous that the experience becomes for us a portal or gate to the eternal. Wordsworth saw in such moments an "intimation of immortality," a memory of the … [Read more...]
SHOW COUPLE TRUTH AND MERCY
A gracEmail subscriber writes: 'My daughter will soon be receiving her doctorate. I have been looking forward to this, feel proud of her and would like to attend and celebrate with her. However, she and her boyfriend recently started living together. That breaks my heart and I have repeatedly advised her to reconsider. I fear that attending her graduation will condone the situation and that her mother and I will be ashamed and humiliated by being there with her boyfriend. I would really appreciate your advice. * * * Boyfriends come and go but your daughter has only one set of parents. … [Read more...]
NO PARENTAL SHAME
A gracEmail subscriber writes: 'My daughter will soon be receiving her doctorate. I have been looking forward to this, feel proud of her and would like to attend and celebrate with her. However, she and her boyfriend recently started living together. That breaks my heart and I have repeatedly advised her to reconsider. I fear that attending her graduation will condone the situation and that her mother and I will be ashamed and humiliated by being there with her boyfriend. I would really appreciate your advice. * * * Boyfriends come and go but your daughter has only one set of parents. … [Read more...]
SINS AND SINNERS
All sin is sinful and all of us are sinners. Those truths are easily forgotten today, as many "righteous" people seem to limit "sin" to sexual wickedness, of which they are quite sure that God considers homosexual misbehavior to be the very worst sort. Seeking some biblical perspective, I looked up nine major "sin lists" found in the New Testament (Matt. 15:18-19; Rom. 1:28-31; 1 Cor. 6:9-10; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 4:25-31; Col. 3:5-9; 1 Tim. 1:8-10; 2 Tim. 3:1-5 and Titus 3:3). Taken together, these nine passages identify at least 37 specific sins, which encompass wrong attitudes (14), improper … [Read more...]
OLD TESTAMENT DIVORCE
A preacher asks concerning Deuteronomy 24:1, the text to which Jesus refers in his own teaching about divorce, "Does 'uncleanness' in this passage mean that the woman has been immoral?" * * * That has always been open to question, among ancient Jewish rabbis as well as among Christians today. Where English translations say "uncleanness" or "indecency" (NASB) in Deut. 24:1, the Greek Old Testament used by the earliest church and known as the Septuagint has "disgraceful (aschemon) thing (pragma)." A few verses earlier, the same two words refer to excrement which Israelites are to bury and not … [Read more...]
MARRIED FIDELITY IS NOT ADULTERY
"I have heard it said," writes a gracEmail subscriber from the Southeast USA, "that anyone who divorces a spouse for an 'unscriptural' reason and marries someone else must leave their present mate and remarry the original spouse, or else remain unmarried. It is argued that Matthew 19:9 describes an ongoing action which continues simultaneously with any subsequent marriage following an 'unscriptural' divorce. What are your thoughts?" * * * I think this more closely resembles the teaching of the Pharisees and the Scribes than that of the Lord Jesus Christ (compare Matthew 23:4 with Matthew … [Read more...]
