Challenging Scriptural Statements The Lord Jesus Christ made it clear that a relationship with God and eternal salvation depends on how we respond to Christ and His revolutionary words. Again and again, our Lord expressed what only can be described as challenging statements that touched the hearts of those who originally heard His messageand they touch our hearts today as […]
What Are You Seeking First? (Matthew 6:33) “Seek first His [God’s] kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” The Lord Jesus uttered these radical words in His Sermon on the Mount. In the previous verses, He states that we are not to have great concern about earthly things, such as what we eat, what […]
Denial and Cross-Bearing (Mark 8:34-35) “And He [Jesus] summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, ‘If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save […]
The Peril of Riches! Mark 10:23-25 “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! . . . It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” These words were shocking to Christ’s own disciples and they […]
Human Authority vs Divine Authority Acts 5:29 “Peter and the apostles answered and said, We must obey God rather than men.” At the first reading of this statement, it does appear to be radical indeed. When are we to obey God rather than man? Why are we to obey God rather than man? Must God be obeyed rather than all […]
The True Grace of God Titus 2:11-12 “The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age.” One of the more popular themes in religious circles of our day is that of grace. Since the time of the Reformation, it […]
Living Honorably in a Sexual Age! Hebrews 13:4 “Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” This is a short passage but one filled with shocking significance, especially in our day. Marriage is honorable. It is acceptable since God is the one who provided […]
The Two Greatest Commands! Mark 12:29-31 “Jesus answered, The foremost is, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There […]
A Dominating, Overwhelming Love! 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 “The love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” The apostle Paul recognized the value and blessings of […]
Are All Things Loss for You? Philippians 3:7-8 “Whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count […]
Overcoming Evil with Good Romans 12:21 “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” After he gives a series of admonitions to the saints in Rome (Rom. 12:9-14), Paul goes on to direct them how to respond to those who persecute them. They are to “bless” their persecutors (v. 14) and not pay them back with evil […]
The Narrow Way and the Broad Way Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Christs words on […]
The Lord Hates Spiritual Apathy! Revelation 3:15-16 “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.” These words of the ascended and glorified Lord Jesus Christ to Gods people in Laodicea are […]
The Priority of Spiritual Relationships Matthew 12:48-50 “Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, Who is My mother and who are My brothers? And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, Behold My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister […]
Giving Account for Our Words Matthew 12:34b-37 “The mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it […]
Colossians 3:1-2 “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our […]
(Matthew 10:37) “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.” Jesus was utterly aware of the fact that He was the Son of God and the Savior of the world. He knew that our eternal salvation depends on Him […]
Dealing Decisively with Sin! Matthew 5:29-30 “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out, and throw it from you; for it is better for you that one of the parts of your body perish, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off, and throw it […]
