Saints in Caesar’s Household
In Paul's final greetings to the church in Philippi, we are challenged to consider some things about the nature of the Gospel and the power of prayer: Greet every Saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially...
What does it mean to live “in Christ Jesus?”
I recall noticing how different life was after I came to know Christ as my savior when I was a senior in high school. Whereas before I had merely attended church, now my life had become integrated under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I can readily confess to you...
Laying Aside My Freedom
There is a time for the voluntary laying aside of our rights and freedoms for the sake of others. Paul Relinquished His Rights The apostle Paul modeled this for the church in Corinth when he refused to accept money from them. He did this because they were accustomed...
Christians and Competition: What You Need to Know
Our culture is especially competitive. At first glance, Paul's message to the Corinthians seems to reinforce the competitive lifestyle that we have adopted here in the western world: Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the...
How to Better Understand the Lord’s Prayer (part 2)
Give us this day our daily bread. Years ago, one of my seminary professors quite rightly pointed out that the Lord's Prayer does not say, "Give us this day our daily cake." The kind of bread that we buy in stores probably would not sustain life for very long, but the...
How to Better Understand the Lord’s Prayer
Sin begins with the inability to give God worship. It is a denial of who we are; when we refuse to call God the Creator and to give Him the worship He is due, we deny that we are creatures. We begin to become less than human. The Lord's Prayer begins with worship. ...
How to Live in the New Heaven and Earth
Paul's already told us which behaviors to put away in order to demonstrate that we live in the new order. But putting away a behavior is not sufficient; virtue consists of so much more than merely the absence of vice. Which behaviors ought we to put on in place of...
5 Ways You Can Keep Your Baptismal Promises
It is wise and sober on the part of any Christian to know that we are not above sin. The devil "prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8) In Colossians 3:5 Paul lists five types of behavior which are no longer to be characteristic...
Don’t Be Distracted by False Teachers
The churches in Colossae struggled with false teachers who were leading them astray to sub-Christian forms of worship. These false teachers encouraged the Colossians to seek visionary experiences and to worship angels. Paul reminded his readers in Colossians 1 that...