Dive Deeper

On a recent mission trip, I was asked to lead a morning devotional for a youth group outing.  Being young and impressionable, at that stage of life when one must figure out who one is, I knew that I wanted to speak to these kids about identity.  I reviewed scriptures I knew on the subject,…

Who does not want to live better?  No matter who you ask, everyone can point to some improvements they desire in life.  When we think about life quality, it is not about the house or the car or the job.  We know that the body is more than clothing, and life is more than food…

If we study the scriptures carefully, we will see that our Lord is one who takes measure.  It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that faith, obedience, and love are things we possess and exercise in full or simply lack completely.  It is easy to think that these are all or nothing. …

This great faith of ours at times can be a mystery.  This mysterious nature can lead us to think of the walk of our Christian faith in a spiritual context that lacks practical considerations.  It is no surprise, then, that the words of our Savior and the remainder of the scriptures are rife with practical…

God’s kingdom is founded on his characteristics.  These include justice, mercy, love and wisdom.  Biblical instruction in our walking in the Spirit and producing the gifts that He bestows upon us speaks of this character of God.  [Gal. 5:13-26]  When we see these things, what we are looking at is a reflection of him, and…

One of the clearest and most compelling statements made by Jesus was that He did not come to abolish the law and the prophets but to fulfill them. [Mt. 5:17-20]  This statement should have perked the listeners’ ears and made them look for how He could fulfill prophecy.  We know now that Jesus fulfilled hundreds…

There are many things which distinguish our one true God from the plethora of false gods out there.  Whether his love, his mercy, his truth or anything else about him, the biggest distinction from other gods is his permanence.  He is the God who endures, and everything about him endures as well.  His precepts never…

There is something special about being the firstborn Son of God.  Jesus Christ holds a coveted place not in all creation but above all creation.  It is important to make that distinction if we are to get to the root of his supremacy.  This is the One who was able to accomplish all that we could not, and He…

A key figure in the story of Daniel is King Nebuchadnezzar, a man who wanted to be revered and worshipped for his might and glory.  He was a ruler who truly believed himself to be godlike.  We learn a lot about this man through the story of Daniel, and it is a lesson for us…

When we think about the word testimony, many of us might think about a court of law.  We know enough about the legal process‒even if we have no professional tie to it‒to know that a large part of evidence given during trial is the testimony of witnesses.  We have the classic scene of an individual…