Cain and Abel both offered sacrifices to God (Genesis 4:1-4). God was pleased with Abel’s offering (ver. 4), but He rejected Cain’s (ver. 5). Why? The Hebrews writer tells us why when he said, “by faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain” (Hebrews 11:4). Since faith comes by hearing the Word […]
Do I seek to please men? That is the question Paul asked in Galatians 1:10. He asked it with the preaching of the gospel in mind. This is a great question for all who preach the gospel to ask themselves. It is critical that our aim is always to please the Lord and not man. […]
James wrote, 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little […]
There are many great things said about Abraham in the Bible, but perhaps the greatest compliment of all is that he is called a friend of God (James 2:23). The place where he is called God’s friend is Isaiah 41:8. “But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham […]
As Christians, we should have a positive influence on the world. No one ever taught this truth more clearly than our Lord did in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:14-16 (ESV) 14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a […]
Are you a disciple of Christ? If you are a member of the Lord’s church, you are a child of God, but that is not the question. The question is are you a disciple of Christ? What is a disciple? There are at least two characteristics shared by all disciples of Christ. First, disciples are […]
When Jesus said that He was the true Vine in John 15:1, it would have immediately gotten the attention of His apostles. Why? Because in the Old Testament, Israel was the vine of God. Jeremiah 2:21 (ESV) 21 Yet I planted you a choice vine, wholly of pure seed. How then have you turned degenerate […]
As Christians, we are engaged in spiritual warfare. As such, we are described in the New Testament as soldiers. 2 Timothy 2:1-3 (ESV) 1 You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful […]
There are many different terms used in the New Testament to describe Christians. They all reveal something a little different about the nature and character of those who are followers of Christ. This week let us take a look at some of these terms and make sure that they describe us as individuals. If they […]
The straightforward answer to the question above is no. I doubt anyone would say that cigarette smoking is a good thing. Yet many members of the church smoke. Have we forgotten the Bible principle of abstaining from every appearance of evil (1 Thessalonians 5:22)? Since little argument can be made against the fact that there […]