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In the book of Acts, early Christians were described as “the people who were turning the world upside down.” [Acts 17:6] Indeed Christ does turn the world upside down, reversing values, goals, and patterns of behavior. We only grasp the gospel when we understand the kind of... Read More →

“I can pray to God in a closet.” “I get closer to God by walking in the woods than by going to church.” “I am spiritual but not religious.” Such statements are common. But how in fact do we authentically connect with God? What brings us into a real and deep relationship with God?... Read More →

We cannot save ourselves. We need God! But how does God save us? And what sort of “salvation” do we need? God’s saving action comes finally to clear focus and fulfillment in the cross of Jesus Christ. Read More →

Perhaps the most revolutionary idea at the heart of the gospel is the idea of grace—that God is patient with us, will forgive sinners, and will finally give us love and endless blessing even though we do not deserve it. While many religions acknowledge God, affirm moral values,... Read More →

Can you be good without God? Many people argue that we can have moral values without belief in God. Others note that some people who believe in God have very twisted values. In fact, human societies have had all sorts of values; even Nazis thought their actions were justified.... Read More →

The terrorist shouts, “God is great,” while slaughtering innocent people. The terrorist cannot shout, “God is good.” To say, “God is good,” is to make a fundamental claim about life—that good will triumph over evil, because the very nature of God is to create good. But how does... Read More →

In order to find the answer to one’s sickness, it is essential to correctly diagnose the problem! The great human errors of the past century—from Communism to secular materialism to the current Islamist terrorism—are all rooted in a wrong understanding of our basic problem. God’s... Read More →

Are we more than a cosmic accident? Does life have any ultimate purpose? Is there a Master Designer and Artist behind all that we see? The Bible gives a clear answer, which is fully coherent with modern science. Read More →

How can we possibly win the victory over evil, since we are assailed by evils, both in the world at large, and within our personal lives? We need a Savior. We need a power beyond ourselves that can rescue us from our bondage to sin and death, and deliver us from the power of... Read More →

“Many deceivers have gone out into the world,” says II John 1:7. We encounter deception all the time—in business, in politics, and in religion. We are constantly subjected to lies. But lies only work on us if they can masquerade as truth, which is why deception is a major concern... Read More →

Do people confront demons today? Ask a drug addict, or someone who battles thoughts of suicide, or someone whose anxieties bring sleepless nights whether they “wrestle with demons.” We may not think of demons as personal “evil spirits,” but we still confront negative forces in... Read More →

In the massive wave of Islamist terrorism that is plaguing our world, we see an old Biblical truth painfully clear—there are dark powers, spiritual forces of evil, sweeping the globe. Paul summed up our situation well in his letter to the Ephesians: “Our struggle is not against... Read More →

What is your destiny? Can you hope for life beyond death, and if so, what is the nature of the afterlife? Since the dawn of humanity, human beings have had a “sense of the eternal”—a vision of life beyond the grave. It part of our basic God-given spiritual awareness. Yet in... Read More →

Some of Jesus’ simplest messages are the most radical and transformational. “Love your enemies.” It is only three words, but it is world-changing; and it represents an enormous movement from typical human behavior. Our human condition is dramatically depicted in the opening pages... Read More →

In the book of Acts, the disciples are described as “the people who have been turning the world upside down.” (Acts 17:6) “Turning the world upside down” is what God does in every age, and it is particularly what God does through Jesus Christ. Christ brings about a thoroughgoing... Read More →

The Bible says that we receive salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. For Christians throughout the centuries, from the apostle Paul to Martin Luther to John Wesley, this truth—that we are saved by faith—has been transformational. Yet there are many people today who “believe in... Read More →

We need salvation; and we cannot save ourselves. Too often people try to muddle along on their own. But we find ourselves as human beings in truly dire straits – alienated from God, in conflict with one another, and faced with serious troubles of all kinds and the final onslaught... Read More →

Do you want God to give you what you deserve? Most people, if thinking long, hard, and honestly about that question, would answer, “Please no!” We all fall well short of perfect goodness. With the life and blessing God has already given us, we certainly have not earned endless... Read More →

Can people be good without God? In the midst of all the moral confusion and wrong of our world, the Bible points clearly to how human beings can live genuinely good lives. Key Biblical points are: God gives to all human beings a basic awareness of right and wrong. We are created,... Read More →

Is the universe governed by uncaring forces, or is there a good God reigning over all? The truth is declared in the Bible—God is good—and that truth is transformational when we take it to heart. It means that our life is not just a meaningless flicker in an uncaring universe, but... Read More →

We can point to many sorts of troubles that afflict our human condition, but the Bible in its opening pages addresses the fundamental question: What is the problem? What is the root cause of the anxiety and insecurity, the enmity and the fighting, the basic spiritual malaise that... Read More →

Many people will tell you that you are here on this earth by accident, and that there is nothing “special” about human beings. The Bible declares a truth that is transformational – that you are created by God in the image of God. The Bible affirms that human beings are one with... Read More →

With the new Star Wars movie setting records, it is a good opportunity to note the connections between Star Wars and the Bible. We can readily see the following parallels between the Star Wars epic and the Biblical story: There is a cosmic battle going on between the forces of... Read More →

How are you doing in your walk with God? During the exile (6th century B.C.), the Israelites realized that they had done quite badly. They had strayed from God, broken God’s commandments, and as a consequence had fallen prey to the Babylonian Empire, which had destroyed the... Read More →

One of the prophetic images that we often lift up during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 52. It is the image of watchmen standing on a city wall, who see a messenger coming, bringing good news. The image reminds us of how people were expectantly watching for the Messiah, and... Read More →

There is a lot of negative sentiment in our society about the “institutional church.” Why be a part of an institution – the church, with all its flaws and its demands for money and time – when you can just believe and be nice to people on your own? In our Bicentennial Celebration... Read More →

There is much in our world that can cause us fear. Whether we look at the troubling happenings around us, or whether we look at the troubles and threats in our own personal lives, we have almost endless reasons for anxiety. The Bible gives us the answer to fear. One of the most... Read More →

How can you be thankful when the world is full of bad news, or if your life is full of bad news? From the Biblical prophets—who lived in the midst of bad news and yet were thankful to God—we can learn the following principles: Take note of the good that you have! We so often... Read More →

Some situations look hopeless. The Middle East. The Browns. Maybe some situation in your personal life. Things looked completely hopeless for the people of Israel during the Exile, when they had lost just about everything. They were in such trouble and despair that in one of the... Read More →

Does your wallet have holes? It may seem that way! The Bible uses exactly that sort of picture to describe our personal finances. Our wages “go into a bag full of holes,” says the prophet Haggai. (Haggai 1:6) With our finances tight, there is not much available to give for God.... Read More →

Last weekend we had twin holidays with opposite symbols—Halloween, with symbols of fear and death, and All Saints Day, with symbols of faith and promise. Halloween is the legacy of a Druid festival in which ancient people sought to ward off deathly spirits. The elements of... Read More →

The blessings of God are free, but they are not cheap. Human beings tend to get confused on both sides of that equation. On the one hand, we so often get caught up in grasping after things in this world which we think will bring us happiness, but which leave us unfulfilled. As... Read More →

Is it possible to find peace—in our personal lives, and in our world? Peace may often seem elusive. Yet the prophets lift up remarkable visions of peace, created by the working of God. The visions of the prophets come to their fulfillment through Jesus Christ. Jesus brings us to... Read More →

Finally this week we are getting rain! Though not welcome for our outside activities, it brings much needed refreshment to drooping plants on thirsty ground. In the Bible, water is a major symbol of the life-giving power of God—how God can refresh, cleanse, and restore us. So the... Read More →

Human beings suffer from division—from God and from one another. Christ comes to us as the One who can restore us to a right relationship with God and who can reconcile us with one another. Christ fulfills the prophetic vision of “the repairer of the breach,” as He brings healing... Read More →

If we get off track in life, is it possible to change—to get onto the right path into a good future? The prophet Ezekiel—who wrote during a time when the people of Israel were in great trouble because of how they had strayed from God—answered that question with a resoun... Read More →

If there is any parable of Jesus that encapsulates the gospel, it is the parable of the prodigal son (see the story in Luke 15). The parable likewise encapsulates a key set of themes that run throughout the Old Testament prophets, namely: Human beings tend to wander away from... Read More →

Is life frustrating? Do you find yourself beset with obstacles and setbacks? Then you can identify with the prophet Ezekiel. At the very moment when Ezekiel was called by God to be a prophet—to speak God’s word to the people of Israel—he was also told by God that no one was going... Read More →

Does it seem that the problems of the world are endless and overwhelming? It certainly seemed so to the first readers of the book of Daniel. They lived during very dark times, when the faithful were persecuted. In Daniel chapter 7, the prophet Daniel describes a vision in which... Read More →

What does it profit, my friends, if people say they have faith but do not have works? If someone is destitute of food, and one of you says, “Go in peace, be blessed” but you do not give them the things that are needed for the body, what good is it? Thus faith by itself, if it... Read More →

How do you feel when you hear the day’s news—when you hear about brutal killings, or people running roughshod over the environment, or people being cheated and exploited? You likely feel anger, a sense of moral outrage! Given the fact that human beings are continually doing... Read More →

Do you feel at times that God is distant? Do have trouble at times understanding God? The prophet Ezekiel (600 B.C.) dealt with both issues. Disaster had fallen upon him and his people, and it seemed that God was far away. Then he had a vision, recounted in Ezekiel chapter 1. The... Read More →