I was re-acquainted this morning with an excerpt from C.S. Lewis’ classic work, Mere Christianity. I think it is so profound, I want to share with you the entire section on the subject of Pride: According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are…
Trivial Pursuits
…there is something that has been put within us that wants to care for others. In this, we find satisfaction and a purpose beyond ourselves. Yet, there is something that doesn’t quite seem completely satisfying if we stop and think that anything we do for an individual is temporary at best. All I’m doing is giving a little comfort for a short term. That can make all of our work still feel somewhat futile. What if there is more?
Grace Really Is Amazing
I had a conversation the other day with a very dear friend of mine who has recently begun a steep, uphill battle with cancer. Though the prognosis is not great, his outlook is. I was amazed as I listened to him describe the ordeal that lies in front of him and to hear him tell me of the grace of God that was instantly manifested in his life.
Perserverance
I always love when God begins to do something special; when He begins to move among His people and take them to new levels. I love it…and I hate it. Well, I don’t really hate it, of course, but I don’t enjoy what inevitably comes. Attack! It seems that every time God begins to do…
Boroughing Through the Blahs
Tick, tock, tick, tock. We’re down to the last several hours of 2008. Another year flown by…memories of what has been accomplished flood my mind. For me, it’s been a good year, but I’m finishing more on a whimper. This holiday season has been absolutely exhausting for me. Between travel and trying to squeeze in…
Are you going to change the world?
I read this quote recently: “The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” How crazy are you?
Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do
I am guilty. I didn’t know I was guilty until I stopped long enough to consider it and then it hit me. Yeah…I’m guilty. Of course, if I’d considered it earlier, I would have understood the depth of my guilt, but as it is, I was too busy to get it. I get it now. …
The 5 Verse Challenge Concludes Friday
Just a little heads up that the 5 Verse Challenge concludes tomorrow, December 19, with the completion of 1 John. It’s my hope that those who have been following this series will continue on in their daily study time. Though I may not continue to post a commentary everyday, I will put up some biblical…
The Testimony of God – 1 John 5:6-10
It has always been said that actions speak louder than words. It’s one thing to make a claim, it’s another to back it up. In 1 John 5:6-10, the apostle tells us that Jesus did both. He not only claimed to be the Son of God and savior to the world, his actions are evidence…
The Circle of Love – 1 John 5:1-5
If you can get past John’s mental gymnastics, you’ll find a pretty simple concept in 1 John 5:1-5: The love of God and the love of others is so entwined that you cannot have one without the other. To get a little more complex in my explanation (as does John to a further degree), as…
Fear, Itself. – 1 John 4:18-21
I’ve really had to chew on this passage and, to some degree, am continuing to chew as I write to see if what I’m thinking makes sense. John says in 1 John 4:18 that, “there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” Honestly, I think that verse is often used divorced…
Can I Get A Witness? – 1 John 4:13-17
I had the opportunity to talk with a young lady after worship yesterday who is dealing with a lot of spiritual issues. In tears, she said to me that she felt lost. I asked in what sense she meant that and she told me that it seemed she was adrift at sea without any direction. …
When Love Isn’t Love – 1 John 4:7-12
You know what I get tired of? Religious people who go to church and do all the stuff they’re supposed to, but give them half a chance and they rail on somebody. I get tired of people who talk about the love of God, but never seem to show it; never seem to demonstrate grace…
A New Kind of Test – 1 John 4:1-5
Up to now, the tests in 1 John have been for us. We have been given tests to demonstrate whether or not Christ really lives in us and if we are really following after Him. Now, the tables are turned. Testing the spirits is a vital operation that we must carry out constantly. In an…
Let’s go interactive! The Gathering on Twitter.
You now have the opportunity to get up-to-the-minute updates on what is going on at The Gathering as well as interact with those who are following. Prayer requests, reminders, and announcements will be posted regularly. Just one more way we’re building community at The Gathering. Get a free twitter account and start following. http://twitter.com/thegatheringmbc
Doubt-Less – 1 John 3:19-24
Have you ever had serious doubts about your salvation? I think we all have from time-to-time. Sometimes they’re well founded because it is possible to spend an entire lifetime going to church, doing all the religious ritual stuff, “doing good,” never having entered into a saving knowledge of Jesus (beyond head knowledge to the heart…
Faithless faith – 1 John 3:16-18
John and James sound very similar here: if you’ve got the goods and you keep it to yourselves when there is a brother in need, your faith is a sham. Sounds tough, but that’s really what is being said. John says it like this: if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in…
Tough Love – 1 John 3:11-15
Man, John just pulls no punches, does he? Listen to some of this: “Whoever does not love abides in death.” “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.” Tough stuff, but I read it very appreciatively. Sometimes we are too polite in the…
Spiritual Anarchy – 1 John 3:1-10
If you’ve been following this running commentary on 1 John, I’m sorry I was unable to post on Friday or Saturday. Friday I was out of town and could not get on a computer and Saturday we had a break-in at the church and my day was tied from early til late (and I choose…
Is it a wonderful life? 1 John 3:1-3
How many times have we wondered what it will be like when those of us who have trusted in Christ will enter into heaven? Some of the popular notions include wings, essentially becoming angels (ala It’s A Wonderful Life), or spiritual beings with no real form or physical identity. Others think it will be like…
The Deception of Righteousness – 1 John 2:26-29
“I’m basically a good person.” Number 1 answer given for the question, “Why do you think you should be allowed in heaven?” The belief that doing good things is enough for salvation is probably one of Satan’s biggest attempts to keep us from Christ. Strange, isn’t it? Satan doesn’t want you to be bad…he wants…
