Christian Living

I remember well the first Bible word study I ever did. It was an easy word. I already knew what it meant…or at least I thought I did. On that day one word opened up one of the greatest principles in Scripture to me. The word is found in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

The Bible tells us we are fearfully and wonderfully made. I believe this verse speaks of the amazing complexity and intricacy with which God created us. As a former student of anatomy and physiology, I have always seen the creation and creature as evidence of a Creator, and our wonderful Creator has bestowed upon us, not just life, but through our physical bodies, an amazing capacity and ability to enjoy life and the creation He has made.

God’s grace has to be the greatest gift of the Christian life. It is by grace that we are saved (Ephesians 2:8), by grace that we grow (2 Peter 3:18), by grace that we have access to the presence of God (Romans 5:2), and by grace that we are motivated in service to God.

As Christians living in 2018, it sure seems that things are being turned upside down. What I mean by that is the things that used to be looked upon as right and normal are now looked upon as being wrong, out of step, and not at all normal.

In a post last week, I listed the Baptist distinctives, using the acrostic BAPTISTS, and suggested that if you believe these, you should not be ashamed of the name Baptist or of your heritage.

The generation gap seems to be widening daily. It’s obvious that a cultural gap is rapidly dividing our country. The Baby Boomers and the Millennials are in a struggle for power in business, religious, and political cultures. The debates can be intense. I think, overall, the entire debate regarding Millennials has become downright silly.

I love that I can have the joy of the Spirit; conversely, I can also grieve the Holy Spirit. My salvation has not just been an academic pursuit of the facts about God and theology. It has been a passion-filled, love-filled, and grace-filled walk with Him.

Last week, I had the blessing of teaching a new group of adults in the CORE class at Lancaster Baptist Church. I teach this class several times each year for those who are new to our church. Often it is filled with newly-saved, first-generation Christians who have lots of great questions!

Not too long ago, a pastor friend of mine visited us at Heritage Baptist Church, and our conversation went to the subject of gratitude. My pastor friend made a statement to me, which at the time I felt was rather harsh, but upon reflection have recognized its validity.

Sometime ago I was with a group of pastors whom I love and appreciate their friendship and ministry. While we were exchanging blessings and burdens that each of us have experienced and shouldered, my mind wandered from the conversation to a quote that I had recently read in Samuel Chadwick’s classic book, The Way To Pentecost: “The blunders and disasters of the Church are largely, if not entirely, accounted for by the neglect of the Spirit’s ministry and mission.”

Although I love all the seasons of the year, my favorite is Fall. There are three principles I would like to share that will be a help not only as we prepare our children to succeed in this new school year, but also as we think about fulfilling God’s will in the next season of our lives whatever that is for each of us.

I cherish the relationships God has given me with our church family. As an undershepherd, I am grateful for the privilege of visiting members in the hospital, attending our young people’s ball games, having families in our home for fellowship, going soulwinning with men from our church—connecting with our church family in any and every way I am able.

Recently, on a drive through North Carolina, a very rude driver cut me off on the highway for the very important need of gaining one spot in slow traffic. May I be honest? Everything within my flesh wanted to lay on the horn for as long as it took to feel avenged of this horrible, life-altering act by this thoughtless driver.

The military boasts of its ability to build leaders “from the ground up.” But God is interested in building leaders from Heaven down.

For me, it was a dream come true; for my wife, it was an act of love toward her husband. On our first day of fishing, she seemed to revel in the fact that she caught the biggest fish: a twenty-seven-inch Northern Pike! We enjoyed a beautiful cabin on the shores of a beautiful lake and heard the enchanting call of the loons.

There are ongoing efforts today to remove every semblance of God from our society. Ironically, those who are pushing these efforts from a platform of “tolerance” are increasingly intolerant of Judeo-Christian values and beliefs.

This important passage in the book of Ephesians reminds us of what we are, and admonishes us to live accordingly. It says that we are “light in the Lord” (remember Matthew 5:14–16), and tells us to live like it! Just as there is a great difference between light and darkness, Ephesians 5 teaches there should be a vast difference between the way Christians live and the way unsaved people live.

Let’s face it. Some questions can be difficult to answer. When Christians share their faith, skeptics and unbelievers are quick to reject. One common objection deals with the presence of pain and suffering in the world.

Today we remember. We remember sacrifice. Bravery. Courage. We remember heroes—laid in graves around the world—who paid the ultimate price for our freedom.

For three Saturdays of every year, I am an avid horse racing fan. I am talking about the on-your-knees-pounding-the-floor-yelling-for-your-horse kind of fan. I don’t watch a single horse race the rest of the year, but I absolutely love the Triple Crown!