“Choose your friends wisely” is an adage with profound spiritual implications. Many choose their friends based on shared interests in things in this world, be it sports teams, fashion, food, or entertainment choices. In my experience and observation, very few choose their relationships based on how spiritually nourishing they think they will be. This begs the question of why we would want friends who lead us into a deeper appreciation of things of the flesh rather than those who would help us grow closer to God. If our goal is to live wholly devoted to Christ, we’re going to need to surroun ..read more

The greatest burden of my life is the conviction that so many, perhaps even most people who proclaim to be Christians are not. It’s not the first time I’ve written about this, and it won’t be the last. That’s what happens when a burden is constantly crushing down on you. When I look around at the modern church, and even more broadly at the industries that have sprung up around it, my soul aches for those who think they are on one path but in reality are on another. To quote J. C. Ryle, “According to the men of the world, few are going to hell; According to the Bible, few are going to heaven ..read more

Why do you love Jesus? Don’t say, “Because of all He has done for me.” That’s lazy and robs us of dwelling on how awesome He is, as well as robs Him of the glory He is due. Remember, each of us has sinned and fallen short of God’s standard of perfection (Romans 3:23). If we die in our sins, our eternal destiny is Hell (Romans 6:23; Matthew 25:41). Unable to save ourselves, we are helpless and lost. We need a savior and Jesus is that Savior. Because of our sin, we deserve to suffer the wrath of God, but Jesus chose to suffer in our place. He chose to die on the cross, enduring our shame, and ..read more

Jesus lived a life so distinct from the culture that it got Him killed. By His life, we see we must cast aside the things of this world, no matter the cost. The world might imprison us. They might kill us. So what? They killed Jesus, but that wasn’t the end of the story. Jesus wasn’t just another man. He was and is the very Son of God (John 3:16). For those who deny everything for the sake of Jesus, for those who eschew cultural demands and norms for the sake of Christ, death is not the end of us either. Jesus lived the sinless life we could never live, He was crucified to pay a debt we nev ..read more

I will never understand how most Christians I meet are not desperate for God. If we are determined to devote our lives to Jesus, our daily obsession must be learning more about Him. My constant frustration is not having more time to spend in His presence, praying and studying His Word. If Jesus isn’t the most important thing in your life, what is? Who or what else is worth more than Jesus? For many, their proclamation of Jesus as Lord is a joke. Outside of showing up for church on Sundays, you’d never know they knew Jesus at all. Too often, that person is us. Are you desperate for God or a ..read more

Looking around at our culture, it’s easy to ask, “What’s wrong with this world?” As we observe all the evil and immorality surrounding us, perhaps a better question is, “What’s wrong with the church?” How did we get from “One Nation under God” to a fractured nation where everyone does what seems right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25; Proverbs 21:2; Romans 8:5)? While we are eager to lay the blame at the feet of Satan, those of us who have fallen for his deceptions bear equal blame. We are the ones who let the devil into the church. We are the ones who thought a little compromise would work ..read more

Are we living in the last days? Judging by the number of videos and articles I see online, you’d have to conclude we must be. Certainly, the days are evil, darker, and more violent than most of us have ever seen in our lifetime. From a Biblical prophecy standpoint, there is nothing else foretold that is yet to be fulfilled. Indeed, much of what is happening in the geopolitical landscape seems to be aligning itself with prophecy. But generations before ours have thought the same thing. Even the apostles thought Jesus would return during their lifetime (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17). Whether or no ..read more

If we aren’t spending every moment of this life preparing for the next one, what is the point of our existence? Jesus is our Lord, and that means we give everything to Him. Every activity, every thought, every interaction, they are all for Him. Anything you do that isn’t for the glory of Christ is a rejection of His Lordship. If we confess Jesus as Lord with our lips but deny it with the way we live, then our confession isn’t genuine. You might be thinking, “It’s impossible to live that way”, and you’d be right. Each one of us would be damned to Hell if not for the grace and mercy of Jesus ..read more

How did you spend your last day off? Or, given the endless responsibilities in our busy world, perhaps a better question might be, “What would a perfect day look like to you?” Playing video games? Watching movies? Sleeping? Eating everything in the refrigerator? How many of us look forward to filling any free time with studying God’s Word? Is it any wonder we are always caught off guard when we have an opportunity to share the Gospel? Paul urged the followers of Jesus to be ready to defend the Gospel at any time (2 Timothy 4:1-2). We’ll never be ready as long as we keep our brains engaged w ..read more

After recently writing about repentance (see “Repentance”), I didn’t think I’d be revisiting the topic so soon. Then I came across the following quote from Puritan Josias (Josiah) Shute concerning genuine repentance: “True repentance is when a man grieves for his sin to the extent that he abandons it.” It is one thing to think we are sorry for disobeying the commands of God. It is another to resolve from doing it again. But it is something else altogether for our sin to so grieve us that we abandon any thought of pursuing it in the future. We don’t just quit repeating the sin for a moment ..read more