You can damage the gift of conscience, just as you can damage other gifts from God. Oddly enough, you can damage it in two opposite ways: by making it insensitive and by making it oversensitive. We make conscience insensitive by developing a habit of ignoring its voice of warning so that the voice gets weaker... Continue Reading

When we think of Hebrew idolatry, we tend to think of worshipping another god. However, another form of idolatry is making a version of the Lord and then substituting that image for the true Lord. We do this when we form an image of the Lord in our minds, a god who winks at our... Continue Reading

“Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Seek the Lord and His strength. Seek His face continually”. (1 Chronicles 16:10-11)” The word “face” was commonly used to describe God’s presence. David experienced this daily, and now, as ruler, he wanted the whole nation to join him. And he believed the Ark’s... Continue Reading

Understanding that purity is a response to God’s love rather than a checklist of rules frees us from the burden of legalism. Grace empowers us to pursue holiness out of love and gratitude. Take a deep breath. Do you feel the freedom Jesus has purchased for you? You can, by His Spirit, do this. You... Continue Reading

In our desire to be as God and to be in control – modern society calls it autonomy and freedom – we want to be able to determine which of our children we should let live and, with the push towards assisted suicide, when we or our parents can die. And it won’t end there.... Continue Reading

An elder cultivates his conscience by a knowledge of God’s people, of the souls entrusted under his care. Pastor Paul went “from house to house,” “serving the Lord with all humility and with tears.” (Acts 20:19-20) Paul knew the sheep, Paul loved the sheep, and Paul led the sheep – whoever they were, wherever they... Continue Reading

Grumbling’s evil twin is discontentment. Refusing to recognize the providence of God—that He is sovereignly in control of my life such that the circumstances I face are not random fate—will lead to discontentment. Discontentment inevitably leads to grumbling and vice versa. They go hand in hand, and they are also contagious.   I’ve recently tried... Continue Reading

The more we rest and grasp the work of the cross and the empty tomb seen in the sacrifice of Christ the more our souls are fed by this knowledge and as we bring our hearts to bear in praise the depth available will be with us in the week ahead. Concerts are fun and... Continue Reading

Faithful Christians cannot help but look strange to unbelievers of all sorts—progressive and conservative, urban and rural, young and old. But that doesn’t mean we fundamentally are strange, not from the standpoint of eternity. No, from the perspective of “forever and ever,” the strangest thing of all is this present world of sin, this God-ignoring age. ... Continue Reading

Nehemiah’s prayer is not only a dimension of his political leadership; it is integral to his personal piety and practice. We look at leaders in Christ’s church and we see the urgency and necessity of prayer for them. Whatever sphere is in view, whether church, home, government, world, prayer is featured as the conduit for believers... Continue Reading