Welcome back to the fourth part of our series on exploring God’s character. At the end of part three we looked at the importance of building ourselves up in Christ, and between then and now, has anyone had numerous opportunities and challenges doing that? (I know that I did!)
The pressures of the world and the cares of life tend to scream at us rather loudly, impugning the character and the goodness of God in many ways, and far too often we believe those reports, rather than the reports of scripture. It’s easy to do, right? Because we may read the Bible, but we experience the world around us. And this is the main struggle; the tension between what we read in the scriptures, against what we see in daily life.
It’s far too easy to take our experiences, and use them as a litmus test for truth, rather than using the truth of scripture as a reinforcement against the pressures of life. It’s a very difficult habit to break for many of us, and it’s impossible if we don’t know God’s character— in-fact, we may even fall into the trap of letting our experiences define God’s character, if we aren’t careful!
So in this final part of our series, we will use the scriptures to see God’s character, and indeed His very heart which He has revealed, so that we may know Him better— not rules, but the true transformative character of God.
Welcome again to the sixth and likely final part of our series on How To Not Be Taken Captive. This is now our longest running series on the channel! But I believe that it’s also one of the most important, because I know it has broken a lot of long-lasting religious chains some of us have had. And praise God that He is using these studies to set people free.
Today we will tackle two more common religious ideas that serve to breed fear and keep people in bondage, as we conclude How To Not Be Taken captive, and allow the truth of Jesus to set us free.
Welcome back to part of our series looking at the blessings and promises of God.
In the introductory segment last week, we began by looking at the foundation of why you can be sure of your blessings in Christ. We also ended that video with an encouragement to start building your own personalized list of blessings.
Today we will continue from where we paused last week, and examine some blessings from the perspective of what it means to “know” them on a personal level.
Welcome back to part three of our series on how to fight and win your spiritual battles, in Christ. Being “in Christ” is more than just a high-minded, ethereal idea, it is a reality of your present position and standing because of His finished work, and your reception of His payment for you.
Last week we began looking at the armor of God with an overview of why the armor was given and where it comes from. Now today, we will continue by examining the pieces of God’s armor to understand their individual benefits, and how each pieces combines to be a fully effective whole unit.
Works versus grace has been a long-held debate among people inside the walls of church buildings. Such a discussion is supremely important, because it strikes at the heart of our union and relationship with God. Are we saved by works which we perform, or is salvation purely an act of God’s grace? Or is salvation some kind of synergy between our God’s grace mixed with our works?
Your response to this question will change absolutely everything about your relationship with God, how you interact with Him, and what you can expect from Him.
Today we will be exploring the most important aspect of our relationship with God, salvation, to answer the question of whether salvation is earned by our works, or is received as a gift from God.
Welcome to the fourth part of our series on changing your lenses, your perspective of your circumstances, your identity in Christ, and of God Himself. And it is this last item – your perspective of God Himself – that we are going to focus on today. And this is probably going to be one of the most difficult discussions that we have ever had… not because it is difficult to study, but because for many of us (myself included) it requires us to take an honest and hard look at what we truly believe about God; and repenting (changing our mind) regrading our beliefs accordingly.
So join me today, as we have a tough, but necessary discussion regarding changing our lenses of God.
Throughout my years in the ministry, I’ve had a lot of conversations with people regarding healing. Healing and finances are actually the two most popular topics – and we have numerous resources on both because of it.
What I have experienced in my time, is that people place healing on a strange pedestal, as if it were somehow more difficult to receive than other blessings, or even more difficult than receiving salvation itself!
This is another classic example of our human mind, reasoning and theology complicating what God has made simple. Healing is not as complicated as we make it out to be; and it’s actually easier than we think!
Join me today, as we explore, how to easily receive healing, as a gift from God, in Christ Jesus.
One of the most common questions that I receive in relation to the Gospel of Grace, is “so you’re saying that I have nothing to do; no part to play?” – and I understand that reaction. The Gospel of Grace in Christ is completely opposite to the typical message of religion, which says that we must constantly work hard, struggle and strive to earn redemption, please God, serve Him, and even work to love Him! Whereas the Gospel of Grace testifies that Jesus has done the work, made the final sacrifice, and we simply receive what He has done as a free gift.
Having said that, I do want to address this question and clear up any confusion, because you do have a part to play… though it might not be what you expect. So join me today as we examine what your part in the Gospel of Grace in Christ, actually is.
Of the many lies that the enemy has spread about God, few are as varied, as widespread and as damaging as what I have come to call, the lie of “Almost.” In-fact this particular lie is so prevalent, and takes so many forms, I can say that it comes up in some fashion in almost every conversation that I encounter about the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Let me give you some examples of this Almost lie, and what it looks like:
You almost have your miracle, just keep persevering.
You almost conquered your sin, just try harder.
God is almost pleased, just keep at it.
Now all three of these may sound right, they may even seem encouraging… I mean, what’s wrong with telling someone to keep on trying, right? Well to use a colloquialism: The devil is in the details – which in this case is literally true. The lie, is in the “almost” part of it, implying that the things which Christ paid for on the cross have still been left undelivered, or that additional steps are required to attain them. And this lie has kept many people in bondage, some even for their entire lives.
So today, what I want to share with you, is what the scriptures say regarding what you have in Christ Jesus – not sometime later, not after jumping through religious hoops, but right now, this very moment.