Our Best Hope for Peace

As calamities, atrocities and disasters of all kinds continually emerge throughout different parts of the world, the need for peace becomes progressively amplified. The inescapable truth is that the same peace which humanity has sought repeatedly throughout the last two millennia is still not found in anything under the sun. In fact, as mere mortal beings we are utterly incapable of ever attaining this life-transforming peace because we ourselves are spiritually-depraved. Like Romans 3:10 tells us,Fallen short.jpg

There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.

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Self-Righteousness is Dangerous

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As sinful beings who have been pointing fingers at one another since the Fall, it should be no surprise with how swiftly we find ourselves repeating the same mistake to this very day. Accepting personal responsibility and accountability for our actions has always been challenging for us to do in our strength. It is far easier for us to simply blame others after all anyway, isn’t it?  In the same vein, one thing that continues to fascinate me is how quick we are to identify and judge the sin which we see others commit. Continue reading

For All the Seekers

One thing that is unequivocally true about humans is that we are all searching–searching for what we feel will provide us with contentment and satisfaction. This quest becomes progressively frustrating when we become repeatedly disillusioned with the fact that time and time again this void remains. What I, myself, (and Solomon specifically in Ecclesiastes) as well as many others have learnt first-hand through seeking in the wrong places is that there is absolutely nothing under the sun that is capable of filling this void. Simply put, only God is god-enough to fill this void which all of our souls yearn to have satisfied. Continue reading

Suffering, Perseverance, Character, and Hope(Part 4 of 4)

Throughout today’s post I will conclude this four-part series by focusing on the Hope that we all share as believers in Christ.hope in Christ (1)

Although hope is essentially the final resultant fruit yielded from our suffering as Christians(Romans 5:3-4), I feel that its influence has the ability to penetrate into every facet of our lives. In fact, it is the very hope in the return of Christ which serves as the basis for believers to purify themselves in this life (Titus 2:11-14, 1 John 3:3). Continue reading

Suffering, Perseverance (Part 2 of 4), Character, and Hope

Press on; God's Got This!

Press on; God’s Got This!

Throughout today’s blog entry I will continue the series, which I began last week, however this time I will underscore the importance of perseverance in the Christian life.

Perseverance is a widely disseminated term particularly within the confines of Western Culture. Therefore, I feel that a working definition is required for purposes of clarity within this post. Continue reading

Suffering (Part 1 of 4), Perseverance, Character, and Hope

Romans 5 3-4.jpgToday I feel that the Holy Spirit is guiding me to start a new series about perhaps one of the most ubiquitous topics that we face on a day-to-day basis. Specifically, this topic focuses on both suffering and perseverance and their critical importance in our lives, particularly as Christians living in an increasingly broken world. Throughout this first entry (1 of 4 in series) I will attempt to provide linkages between suffering and perseverance, relying on God’s Word, in order to emphasize their respective levels of significance in the Christian life.

To begin, I will identify what the Scriptures tell us regarding the value that suffering has in the Christian life.

The relevant Scriptural Text here comes from Romans 5:3-5 where it tells us the following:

3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

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Dealing with Anxiety through Contentment in Jesus

Anxiety is an area of my life that I have continually struggled with. Although I have certainly come a long way from my high-school days where my anxiety was at its peak, anxiety loves to try to re-gain prominence in my life at the seemingly most inconvenient of times. What I find particularly intriguing about the Scriptures is its repeated reference to trusting in the Lord rather than being afraid. Jesus Himself spent a good portion of His earthly ministry towards communicating the futility in anxiety which is definitely rooted in fear. Strikingly, fear does not only lead to anxiety but it will also typically result in a paralyzing-fear of pursuing godly risks essential to our faithful obedience to God(See COMPLACENCY HINDERS OUR JOYFUL OBEDIENCE TO GOD).

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Nobody Deserves God’s Graciously-Given Free Gift of Salvation

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Our compassionate, loving, and patient Father truly desires for everyone to repent (2 Peter 3:9). As Christians I fear that we often forget about how bountifully blessed we are as His adopted children. John Piper once said that as His creation we have literally zero rights/claims over God. He continued by reminding us that we are not only sinners, but we are also His creation making us doubly undeserving for the glorious salvation found in the Precious Gift of His Son, Jesus

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