How well are we doing during the pandemic?
One purpose of a test is to find out if we pass or fail. Of course, there are other grades from A to F, not just pass or fail. For the pa
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Author: Charles L. Stanley
How Peter identified false prophets/teachers
The Apostle Peter claims that the primary markers of false prophets or false teachers are greed and sensuality. He didn’t focus on doctrinal purity when determining who is false, but their heart and conduct. Peter did briefly mention doctrinal purity in this passage when he referred to “false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them.” Denying the Master can refer to several doctrinal heresies like those mentioned by John.
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Pray and hang in there
God, according to his timetable, gives justice to his people speedily. The unjust judge gave justice simply because he didn’t want to be inconvenienced anymore by the crazy old widow who kept complaining to him and crying out for justice. He didn’t give justice for noble reasons. This unjust judge did not fear God as the ultimate judge of the earth and the judge to whom this earthly judge would give account. He had no respect for humans since he did not fear God. Why should he respect people made in the image of God? (As a side note, why are we surprised when our fellow humans who do not fear God behave as if there is no God to whom they will give account? It is logical for depraved humans to act in a depraved manner.) The unjust judge dispensed justice for selfish reasons, to get peace and quiet from the widow.
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Why did God give gifts?
Part of the reason for the incarnation was for Jesus to reveal the Father. He told Philip, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” Luke opens his gospel with a statement of purpose. Theophilus could have certainty about the things he had been taught. In his second volume, the book of Acts, Luke refers to the thing Jesus began to do and teach and illustrates that through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, Jesus will continue to minister to the world and his people through the church, his body.
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The triune God gifts his people
Our God is a God of variety. When he distributes his gifts, those gifts don’t limit us to some confining box and restrict us from being who we are. In fact, when we understand our gifts from God and give ourselves to those gifts, we are “who we are” more than at any other time. We are living according to God’s unique intended purpose for our individual lives.
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Praying as Jesus commanded – part 2
We should absolutely expect our prayers to be answered if we are praying for things which Jesus has explicitly commanded us to pray. Obeying his commands to pray for specific items eliminates the question of whether or not I am praying in the will of God. Last week I wrote the first of two articles on praying as Jesus commanded. I wrote about the prayer for those who abuse or persecute us and the prayer for laborers for the harvest.
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