Over the past few days, we have examined Jesus’s words to us when we have offended someone. Tough steps . . . yet essential. But what about when someone offends us? The apostle Peter asked Jesus a similar question.
Read MoreCategory Archives: Grace
Full of Grace and Truth
While thinking back on his days with Jesus, John (one of The Twelve) remembers there was something about Him that was like no one else, during which time His disciples “beheld His glory.” His uniqueness was that incredible “glory.”
Read MoreA Loving Father
God doesn’t sit in heaven with His jaws clenched, His arms folded in disapproval, and a deep frown on His brow. He is not ticked off at His children for all the times we trip over our tiny feet and fall flat on our diapers.
Read More“Won’t Someone Please Stop Me?” Part Two
Strange, isn’t it, how we tend toward extremes? What begins as self-improvement becomes self-enslavement . . . what starts as merely a mellow change of pace leads to a marathon of fanaticism. We’re nuts! Left to ourselves, we’ll opt for extremes most every time. Which explains why God’s Book so often stresses moderation, self-control, softening our sharp-cornered lives with more curves that necessitate a slower speed.
Read MoreA Message for Misfits
Before he ever came to the plate, Jephthah had three strikes against him. He was an illegitimate child. Strike one. He was the son of a barmaid and a brute. Strike two. He was raised in an atmosphere of hatred and hostility. Strike three. Nurtured in an overcrowded cage of half-brothers, he was the constant target of verbal put-downs and violent profanity.
Read MoreGod Responds
Did God respond to the plea of Psalm 137? Absolutely! After seventy years in exile, every Jew who wanted to return to rebuild the city of Jerusalem and restore the temple was allowed to do so. And the Jews learned their lesson. While they were certainly not a sinless people after their chastisement, they never again struggled with the issue of idolatry. And to this day, they prize the Old Testament Scriptures above all.
Read MoreOur Great Challenge
Returning good for evil is not a complicated concept; it’s very simple. Yet it is rare. It’s one of the most difficult tasks we ever undertake in life. Let’s be honest. Forgiving an offense is much easier when the guilty person is contrite and has sincerely apologized. But when the offender takes delight in our suffering or personally benefits from our downfall, choosing to treat him or her kindly defies everything we know about justice and fair play.
Read MoreFree-Flowing Grace
In a piece titled “Forgiveness Is a Condition for Our Own Freedom,” Neil Anderson wrote the following: Forgiveness is not forgetting. People who try to forget find that they cannot. God says He will “remember no more” our sins (Hebrews 10:17), but God, being omniscient, cannot forget. “Remember no more” means that God will never use the past against us (Psalm 103:12).
Read MoreBecause of Who God Is
Having called the whole world to join him in song, the psalmist declares the reason God deserves universal thanksgiving and praise. His rationale for worldwide celebration is based on three facts concerning the Lord’s character. Reasons for the Commands. Fact 1: He is good. Psalm 100:3 told us “He is God,” the one and only Creator and Sovereign of the universe; this final verse 5 tells us “He is good.”
Read MoreGod’s Deliverance
The final verse of Psalm 54 describes a sudden reversal. The first verses describe a dire situation, prompting David to plead for God’s help. By verse 7, his despondency has turned to triumph. His declaration, “He has delivered me from all trouble,” is past tense. Hebrew literature often uses the perfect tense to declare a future event “as good as done.”
Read More