The Bible Says Many Are Peddling God’s Word

More than three thousand times, the Bible declares itself to be the word of God. Meaning that it isn’t just a book about God, but it is a book written by God. It is God Himself speaking to us, communicating His truth and His ways.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV)

The word of God is the very foundation of Christianity. From the Scriptures come our revelation of God, our revelation of man, and our understanding of how God calls us to live in right relationship with Him. All that we have faith in and live by comes to us through the Bible. So, a genuine hunger for God’s word and a sincere submission to whatever it has to say is essential if anyone desires to serve God’s purposes and teach others also.

Continue reading “The Bible Says Many Are Peddling God’s Word” →

The Biblical Meaning Of Church

The Greek word that is usually translated as church is ekklesia. And if you look up the meaning of ekklesia in a Bible study help, you will usually find something like this: an assembly of Christians gathered for worship in a religious meeting. And a lot of Christians think of church in this narrow way. It’s very common to hear people talk about going to church, or that they missed church, or that church went long. They see church primarily as an event, something that Christians are supposed to attend. But is this how church is actually presented in the Bible?

Continue reading “The Biblical Meaning Of Church” →

Jesus Warned About The Dangers Of Traditions

In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! Thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. (Mark 7:7-9,13 ESV)

This passage is one of the more severe rebukes Jesus ever delivered. Notice his rebuke isn’t because they don’t worship; instead, he says they worship in vain. And it’s significant that this rebuke was triggered by the seemingly innocent tradition of washing hands. But Jesus said when we hold to the tradition of men, we leave the commandment of God. The word leave comes from the same root word as divorce. Which means, we are separating ourselves from God’s truth in order to embrace our traditions. And by separating ourselves from God’s truth, we are forfeiting His true purposes for us.

Continue reading “Jesus Warned About The Dangers Of Traditions” →

Does The Bible Tell Us To “Go To Church”?

Faithful church attendance is extremely important to many professing Christians. So much so that regularly attending a Sunday church service is commonly viewed as the number one trait of a good Christian. But does the Bible actually tell us to “go to church”? And do the services we’re encouraged to attend actually look like what the Bible reveals about God’s people meeting together?

Continue reading “Does The Bible Tell Us To “Go To Church”?” →

What Was The Gospel Jesus Preached?

It’s possible to spend a lot of time talking about Jesus, yet fail miserably at actually representing him. And it doesn’t even require saying things that Jesus didn’t say. It can simply be a matter of what you choose to major on, and what you choose to ignore. If you maximize things that Jesus barely touched on, and then minimize the very things he majored on, then you are distorting his message. The apostle Paul warned there will be people who proclaim another Jesus and a different gospel (2 Cor 11:4).

If we want to accurately represent Jesus, then our message must consistently line up with his message, and there is nothing more fundamental that the church must present correctly than the gospel. So, it’s extremely important that we clearly understand what Jesus majored on when he preached, and that we are dedicated to proclaiming the same thing.

Continue reading “What Was The Gospel Jesus Preached?” →

Is Church Membership Biblical?

Homonyms are words that are spelled the same and sound the same but have different meanings. The word “member” is a homonym. It means a body part, such as an arm or leg. But it also means someone who belongs to a club or an organization. In the Bible, the word member is used frequently to refer to a part of the body, sometimes the physical body, and sometimes referring to believers as part of the body of Christ. But the Bible never uses the word member to mean someone who belongs to a particular church. Not only is church membership absent from the Bible, it also violates clear Biblical warnings.

Continue reading “Is Church Membership Biblical?” →

Do Christians Have To Sin?

It’s important to understand that we’re not addressing the question, “Have you quit sinning?”. Keeping track of how long it’s been since you last sinned leads to self-focus and a preoccupation with your personal performance. It’s an unhealthy focus and it doesn’t accomplish God’s purposes in our life.

The question we need to answer, is “Have I been set free from the power of sin?”. This will lead us to focus on God Himself, to examine what His word declares about who we are in Christ and what God has accomplished for us through His great salvation.

Continue reading “Do Christians Have To Sin?” →

Is Sin A Big Deal To God?

Sin is a major topic in the Bible. The words sin, evil, and wicked appear more than 2,300 times in their various forms, and this doesn’t even include the numerous times specific sins are mentioned. This level of communication from God indicates just how important this issue is to Him, and how much He desires His people to have a proper understanding of sin. Yet, despite this abundance of communication, many believers have a misguided, unbiblical perception of sin.

Reading an article that focuses on sin may not be that appealing, but I pray you will commit to reading all of this because it addresses some foundational truths that are vital to our walk with the Lord. And at its core this article isn’t really about sin, it’s about becoming all that God desires us to be.

♦♦♦
Continue reading “Is Sin A Big Deal To God?” →