Why does God leave us on earth after we are saved? Aside from the obvious: to witness to unbelievers the salvation of the Lord. The doctrine of rewards for works after justification, in fact, does not stand alone. It is tightly bound to a well defined and grounded theodicy (the vindication of divine goodness and […]
Revelation 22:12 Introduction: If someone were to ask you what the primary motivation should be to seek spiritual growth, to increase in the walk of holiness, and to pour oneself into doing good works, one might get a range of different answers: To glorify God. Gratitude for eternal salvation. To gain or maintain assurance of […]
Revelation 22:7-21 In this world there are a wide variety of peoples, cultures, professions, habits, likes, hobbies, cuisines, and worldviews. From simple shepherds in the Himalayas to sophisticated billionaires who send satellites into orbit, from a street artist to an island fisherman casting his net, from Gypsy to honor guard, from devout believer to indifferent […]
John 4:7-14, Revelation 22:1-6 Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that if she truly understood who He was, to receive Him as such, that He would graciously gift her, “living waters”, with no effort on her part. The free gift was unlike the water she had to labor hard for every day. Jesus […]
1 Thessallonians 4:13-18 1 Thessalonians 1: 9-10 calls the rapture, ‘a rescue’: “For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, 10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from […]
Hebrews 11:8-16, Revelation 21 When we think of a person coming in faith to God for salvation in His Son, Jesus, we can’t help but connect that to the Holy Spirit’s regeneration. The Spirit’s work is not to come tidy up and patch up a tired old Adamic life, but a complete renewal and impartation […]
Revelation 20:1-10, Revelation 21:1-4 The millennial kingdom on this earth, as glorious as it and the reign of Christ with his glorified saints will be, will still be tainted by the sins of mortals. For a complete and total reconciliation between heaven and earth to occur, for absolute perfection to come all capacity for sin […]
Ephesians 1:3-12, Col 1:9-14 It is typical to think of the doctrine of last things, including the messianic kingdom (the kingdom of God/heaven) primarily in terms of timing and events. While these are certainly exciting, key features of the Biblical revelation, they are secondary to the central living Person, work and offices of the Messiah, […]
Isaiah 11:1-13, Revelation 5:6-10 Last Sunday we got a snapshot of the stunning wonder and majesty of what our bodies will be like in glory because of Christ. Today we take just an enticing peek into what life will be like for us and others in His coming kingdom on Earth. Ten centuries of Messianic […]
What will we be like? 1 Corinthians 15:35-52 We watched a *video the other day of a Ukrainian church choir in Lviv, composed of believers from all across their country. They were singing, “Because He Lives”. And though the tune was familiar, the lyrics after the first verse were not. They were far richer, bolder […]