“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain […]
When we respond in grace and mercy when someone mistreats us, we exemplify the gospel and demonstrate grace by our actions. Not only does a gentle word turn away wrath (Prov 15:1 and a lesson I was reminded of recently), but also when we respond like Christ, they may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven (Matt 5:16).
“Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by […]
“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” Matthew 5:31-32 We now come to one of the most controversial sayings of Jesus. […]
We all sin in many ways and each of us has temptations that we are more vulnerable to. Some sins are more serious and destructive than others. God calls us to recognize the seriousness of sin and see how destructive it can be in our lives if unaddressed.
“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to […]
The moral law reflects the character and nature of God. As such, the morals found in the Old and New Testament point back to him. Unless the character and nature of God change then his moral law cannot change.
We demonstrate the gospel through our actions, and we declare the gospel through our words. Both are necessary for a believer to help a person come to know God.
We should not be surprised that, left to itself, the world is going to continue its downward slide into immorality. It is our proclaiming then living out the gospel that is the decisive influence in impacting the world around us. We must also be willing to clearly and articulately defend biblical truth whenever it is contradicted or called into question.
Our sinful default tendency is to be a Peacekeeper and not a Peacemaker. A peacekeeper will try to smooth things over and not ruffle anyone’s feathers by avoiding or ignoring the situation.
