Light of The World

When you become a Christian, one of the more notable changes is that you will give up many of the things you once did. Of course, this depends on your lifestyle prior to your conversion. But for many of us, a dramatic change will take place. I have heard people share their stories of how they came to Christ and the great sacrifices they made to follow Him, saying things like, "I had a great life. . .I went to parties. . .I had so much fun. . .But I gave it all up for Jesus Christ, hallelujah! I left it all for the glory of God!" What did we really give up? When I hear statements like that, I feel like asking, "What in the world are you talking about? You gave it all up? What did you give up?" If they were to look at those things honestly and realistically, they would come to the same conclusion that Paul did. He said, "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of t...

Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." —Acts 2:38–39 From a human standpoint, there was no way the disciples were ready for the task of being Jesus' witnesses to the world. Their faith was weak. They had failed in their public witness and in their private faith. Simon Peter, their acknowledged leader, had openly denied the Lord. How could they ever go out and change the world? How? By the power they didn't have yet—but would have soon. Jesus told them, "You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth" (Acts 1:8). In other words, "...

He has made everything beautiful in its time. ( Ecclesiastes 3:11) When I look back on my life, at the things God has allowed me to do and the opportunities He has opened up, I can see the wisdom of His perfect timing. Our tendency is to rush things, but just because something has not yet happened in your life doesn't necessarily mean it won't happen tomorrow. And that doesn't mean it won't happen a month or a year from now. Perhaps one phase of your life is ending and another is beginning. Maybe everything that has happened to you up to this point in your life has been preparation for what is still ahead. Late bloomers Moses' ministry didn't get going until he was 80 years old. Wandering out there in the desert of Midian with his little flock of sheep, he probably thought his life was pretty much over. In reality, it was just about to begin. Then there was Caleb, another Israelite who left Egypt in the Exodus. Along with Joshua, Caleb came ba...

"On this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." —Matthew 16:18 I have noticed that it has become popular of late to critique the church. I read about one church that did a 2011 Easter campaign in which they put up signs all over town that read, "Church sucks." Supposedly the idea was to attract would-be churchgoers to their website. But I was actually offended by it. How dare anyone say that church sucks? Who are they to say that about the church? Do I think the church is perfect? No. Do I think the church has flaws? Yes, because people like me are in it. But I also know the Bible says that Jesus loves the church (see Ephesians 5:25). So I would never speak critically of that which Jesus loves. Some are disillusioned by the church today. They are bitter with the church and complain about the hypocrites who are in the church. But there is no such thing as a church witho...

Broadcasted in CBS... A Muslim man in Egypt killed his wife because she was reading the Bible and then buried her with their infant baby and an 8-year old daughter. The girls were buried alive! He then reported to the police that an uncle killed the kids. 15 days later, another family member died. When they went to bury him, they found the 2 little girls under the sand - ALIVE! The country is outraged over the incident, and the man will be executed at the end of July 2012. The older girl was asked how she had survived and she says:- 'A man wearing shiny white clothes, with bleeding wounds in his hands, came every day to feed us. He woke up my mom so she could nurse my sister,' she said. She was interviewed on Egyptian national TV, by a veiled Muslim woman news anchor. She said on public TV, 'This was none other than Jesus, because nobody else does things like this!' Muslims believe Isa (Jesus) would do this, but the wounds mean He really was cruci...

Even the most committed believer has those moments when fear or worry can kick in. Anxiety can overtake us. Maybe we're concerned about our future, feel discouraged about some of our failures and shortcomings, or find ourselves anxious about the lives of our family members. Far too often, though, we are afraid of the wrong things in life, and not afraid of the right things . . . or the right One. Many people don't fear God, giving Him the awe and the reverence that is His due. Yet the Bible tells us that the fear of the Lord is the very beginning of wisdom. What is the "fear of the Lord?" The Bible says that "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever" (Psalm 111:10). To fear God doesn't mean that we cowering in terror before Him. Rather, the fear of God has been properly defined as a wholesome dread of displeasing Him. If I have sinned, my fear sh...

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2 The Bible tells us in Romans 12 not to be conformed to this world. But what does that mean? The J. B. Phillips translation puts it this way: "Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold." The idea is that we are not to pretend that we belong to the world . We live in a world system that is spiritually bankrupt and hostile to God. John the apostle warns, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world" (1 John 2:15–16). Sometimes as Christians, we pretend to be something we are not. But that is what the Bible says w...

In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. —1 Thessalonians 5:18 Do you have an attitude of gratitude? We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." God's will for us is to give thanks. Notice this verse doesn't say to give thanks only when things are going well. We are to give thanks no matter how things are going. It is having an attitude that recognizes that God is in control of all circumstances that surround our lives. This means that we are submitting our will to the will of God, we are trusting that He is in control, and we are giving Him our praise in advance—even before we see an outcome to the problem we are facing. I am not saying we should give thanks for our problems. But I am saying we should give thanks despite our problems, because God is in control, and He ultimately will sort it out. ...

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. —1 Timothy 2:3–4 The first prerequisite for discerning the will of God is that you must be a believer in Jesus Christ. I say that because 1 Timothy 2:3–4 says, "For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." Scripture also tells us that God is "not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). So to know the will of God, we must first know God. I think that sometimes people view the Bible as sort of a magical book that is full of successful principles they can unleash. But the Bible is written for God's people. It is not a bunch of potions that a person can enact in his or her life. These are principles that are given to the man or the ...

The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant. —Psalm 25:14 People have different views of the will of God. Some imagine the will of God as something that God effectively hides from us, sort of like a divine Easter Bunny who has a golden egg put away somewhere, and as you get closer, just maybe he will give you little hints. For others, their concept of the will of God is that it is something horrible or undesirable, sort of like a diet. All the things you like to eat are out of the diet, and you can't have any of the good stuff. That is how some people see God. They think it is boring at best and miserable at worst. Both of these views are incorrect, however. There is joy in being in the will of God. The apostle Paul wrote to Roman believers, "Then, by the will of God, I will be able to come to you with a joyful heart, and we will be an encouragement to each other" (Romans ...

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live" (John 11:25). The older we become, the more the question gnaws away at us: Is there life after death? Sometimes, we ask that question earlier in life, when someone close to us dies without warning, and we come face-to-face with the uncomfortable fact of death. Some Christians will say, "I'm going to go to heaven, so when I die, don't weep for me." But death is hard for everyone, and there's nothing wrong with feeling sorrow over the loss of someone you care about. It's a natural part of the grieving process. As the Bible says, there is "a time to weep, and a time to laugh" (Ecclesiastes 3:4). Death brings great sadness Death even brought tears to the eyes of Jesus when His friend Lazarus died (see John 11:35). Of course, we know there is life beyond the grave for Christians. We know that life is not limited to thi...

But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. —2 Peter 3:8 When we look around and see that things are getting green again, we know that spring is coming. We also know that summer will follow. We see the signs that tell us what is ahead. And in the same way, we can see signs of the times, telling us the return of the Lord is close. God knows the future better than we know the past. And when God says these things will happen, it is not as though He is going out on a limb. Would you think it was amazing if I told you about something that just happened? That is no big deal. I have recollection of the past. But if I were to predict something that would happen in two days to an exact time, or two months, or 10 years, or 100 years, or 300 years, that would be significant. We may not be around to see it fulfilled, but someone else would if I had written...

And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. —Romans 13:11 Every now and then someone comes along and says they know the day of Christ's return. But don't ever believe that. The Bible says, "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32). However, we can know the times and the seasons, the Bible says. But no one can know the exact day or time when Jesus Christ will come back for His people. But here is the question we might be thinking about: Will He come soon? And will He come in our lifetime? No one can say with absolute certainty. But there are signs that would say it is getting close. They are on the front pages of our newspapers, on our news websites, and on our favorite television and radio news programs. We will read headlines along the lines of...

"I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance." —Luke 15:7 I don't know of a greater joy on this earth, next to being a Christian, than leading someone to Christ. It is unbelievably great. Jesus said there is joy in heaven over one sinner who comes to repentance (see Luke 15:7). Think about that: one sinner. Heaven breaks out over one person. It means there is a lot of applause in heaven every time a person believes. This is God's heart, and it should be our heart as well. If I am a true disciple, then I am to go and make disciples of others—effectively to reproduce myself. That brings us to what Jesus said: Go into all the world and preach the gospel (see Matthew 28:19–20). So how are you doing in this regard? Are you going into all of your world and preaching the gospel? Are you making disciples? New believ...

"Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us" (1 John 5:14 NKJV). In a broad sense, we should pray about everything. But there are certain things that we don't need to pray about. For example, if someone were to say, "Greg, I'm praying about robbing a bank. Would you pray with me?" I will pray for that person, but I won't pray that God will bless their efforts. Why? Because the Bible says, "You shall not steal." We don't need to pray about that. Yet, there are certain things God tells us we can pray for. He tells us we can pray for wisdom. "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him" (James 1:5 NKJV ). We can pray for His provision. Philippians 4:19 says, "And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus ( NKJV...