“I am not religious, but I know I am a pretty good person, so I am okay.”   This is a sentiment we hear all too often in today’s world. People have their personal views of virtuosity or morality that are informed by pop culture, politics, or the general worldview of their friends and family. Is virtue really this arbitrary and flexible? What does it mean to live a good, virtuous life according to the Bible?   Merriam-Webster defines “virtue” as “conformity to a standard of right” or “a particular moral excellence.” Both of these secular definitions can help inform what the general consensus is on what exactly virtue is. The first definition, for example, indicates that being virtuous involves conforming to a standard, but the obvious question is “which/whose standard?” This is precisely the issue with a postmodern, relativistic view of morality. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard someone say something along the lines of “well, they are not hurting anyone so they can do whatever they want.” What a low bar for what is considered good! As long as no one comes away harmed, everyone can do whatever they want! I would venture to say most people, if they were to take a step back and think about the implications of a world where everyone did whatever they wanted to do, would see how that line of thinking could easily get out of hand. How then, does the Bible describe virtuous living?   Peter speaks extensively about Christian living in 2 Peter 1 , where He describes the way in which God has called us to share in “His own glory and excellence”—a reminder of our dictionary definition—and how we have escaped/been rescued “from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” ( vss. 3-4 ). Jesus came to this world to humble Himself to die on the cross and be raised up not only in His bodily resurrection, but back to the glory of Heaven! Peter uses this image of Christ’s glory to explain why Christians should demonstrate moral excellence in their lives:   “For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins” ( vss. 5-9 ).   Peter gives Christians a list of the types of qualities they should be exemplifying in their lives, including virtue that is built on faith. This means in part that the way we act is directly informed by who Jesus is. Peter continues to say that our morals should also lead us to want to know Christ better, demonstrate self-control, and steadfastly follow Him. All of this eventually culminates in love. In short, moral excellence is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself” ( Luke 10:27 ). Ultimately, our devotion to God will be demonstrable not because we say all the right things in a deceitful way, but because we take extreme care to be honest, loving, and humble in all circumstances. Notice how harshly Peter talks about those who claim Christ but do not live this way: they are “so nearsighted they are blind.” That is to say, if we are only focused on ourselves and our status of “righteous,” but neglect our calling to continue to demonstrate that righteousness meekly and consistently, as Jesus did, we have totally lost it! This is why Peter encourages the brethren in verse 10 to be “all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.”   Peter is abundantly clear: if we do not want to lose our souls and “fall from grace,” so-to-speak, we must be people who speak kindly, carry themselves humbly, and obey God faithfully. We must resist all temptations to lie, deceive, lust, gossip, or anything else ungodly at all costs.   The good news is, other Christians are there to help us! Just as Peter reminded the first century Christians of these things both by writing to them and “stirring them up” in person, we too, should be surrounding ourselves with godly, virtuous examples that make us strive for excellence better and better every day.   While the Bible’s standard for virtue and morality is much higher than the worlds, but our Savior showed us the way, promised to be with us, and gave us each other to lean on.

Have you ever known someone who was endlessly negative for no reason? Or maybe they had a reason, but their pessimism or cynicism seemed to far outweigh the circumstances they find themselves in. I would imagine we all know someone we would describe as a “Debbie Downer” or “Negative Nelly.” Maybe that person is us! We can sometimes look at a situation around us or be frustrated by something in our lives and be tempted to despair. The Bible repeatedly warns against “grumbling, complaining, and disputing,” but does that mean we are never allowed to be upset ever? Certainly not. Let’s look at a few examples.   Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians from a prison cell. In this letter, he is clear-eyed about the pros and cons of his situation, and writes to them: “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise, you also should be glad and rejoice with me…”   I don’t know about you, but I cannot think of anything that would make me more sheepish than an apostle who had endured as much suffering as Paul writing me a letter from prison telling me not to whine or complain! Paul’s positivity despite his circumstances is infectious in his Philippian letter, and he does not at all complain about his imprisonment, but rather expresses gratitude for the opportunity to tell his fellow inmates and guards about Jesus ( 1:12-14 )! It is clear throughout Paul’s life that he is optimistic at every turn about the ways the gospel is advancing and the hope that he has in Christ despite whatever he is going through in his life. As he states so poignantly in Romans 8:18 , “[f]or I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” We are eagerly awaiting something eternally better than any of the negative that this world could throw at us. In the words of the author of Hebrews, quoting from Psalm 118:6 , “the Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” In other words: we belong to God and He is watching out for us; what is there to complain about?   To put it bluntly: God’s people are not whiners!   However, I want to be clear: there is nothing wrong with experiencing sorrow, loss, and heartbreak, and sharing those things with God. There was nothing wrong with Job sitting on the ash heap, devastated and silent. There was nothing wrong with the Psalmist in Psalm 88 pouring out his heart to God and nothing at all positive coming to mind at the time.  There was nothing wrong with David weeping, fasting, and desperately praying that his child would live when God told him that he would not. There was, however, a major issue with Job’s wife’s response to their great loss being “curse God and die” ( 2:9 ). There was, in fact, a problem with Jonah being angry with God for extending His great mercy to the Ninevites. There is an issue with, like Sarah, laughing in God’s face when He promises to do something remarkable and unexpected. It is sinful, in fact, to be so ungrateful for God’s former deliverance and provision that we gripe and blame and despair when we are required to have patience or do not get our way immediately, like the Israelites in the wilderness.   Despite the fact that God certainly wants us to cry out to Him in times of trouble, we should never be the type of people who complain in a way that is rooted in bitterness, ungratefulness, or disdain for our fellow man. We are to demonstrate the fruit of the spirit—“love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”—and always speak graciously, in a way that is “seasoned with salt” ( Galatians 5:22-23 , Colossians 4:6 ). As we see so powerfully demonstrated in the life of Paul, the Christian life is one rooted in thankfulness for immeasurable forgiveness, innumerable blessings, and ultimately, eternal life.   With the cross behind us and heaven before us, how could we complain?

If I were to ask you who Noah was, what would your answer be? If you’re like me—or like many others—you’d probably say, “Oh, he’s the guy who built the ark!” But what if I followed up with: Tell me something else about him. Once we point out that Noah built the ark… what else do we really have to say about him? The Bible certainly has more to say. Take a look at Hebrews 11:7 : “By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” Are you familiar with this verse—or at least the chapter? Hebrews 11 is often called the “Hall of Faith.” It’s a list of men and women who stand out key individuals when it comes to faithfulness to God. So if Noah is listed among them, why is it that the only thing we usually remember about him is the ark? Noah was one of 16 people highlighted in Hebrews 11 .  Clearly, there was a lot right about his life. Clearly, he is a great example for anyone who seeks to follow God. Noah’s Obedience Was Complete Noah wasn’t just a builder—he was obedient to every command God gave: Genesis 6:22  – “He did all that God commanded him.” Genesis 7:5   – “Noah did all that the LORD had commanded.” Genesis 6:14–16  – God gave specific instructions: three decks, one window, one door—and Noah didn’t add or subtract a thing. Noah respected God’s Word enough to follow every detail. He didn’t modify, question, or improve on God’s plan. He simply obeyed. We may not be called to build arks, but we are called to follow God’s commands with the same respect and precision. He Obeyed Through The Unknown Think about how wild the request must have sounded: “Build a massive boat to survive water falling from the sky and flooding the earth.” Yet Noah did it. The ark was 450 feet long , and building it likely took years. He gathered animals, prepared food, and stayed committed—all while probably being mocked. And he did it all alone . Genesis 6:12–13  says the world was corrupt, but God found favor with Noah and saved only his family. He Was a Preacher in a Wicked World 2 Peter 2:5  calls Noah a preacher of righteousness . We don’t have a record of what he said, but you can imagine the ridicule he faced. People likely saw him as crazy as he warned of an impending world-wide flood. But Noah stood firm—even when no one else did. He obeyed fully, unconditionally, and from the heart. After the flood, Genesis 8:20  says he built an altar in thankfulness, and Hebrews 11:7  notes he was “moved with godly fear.” Final Thoughts Noah wasn’t just an ark builder—he was a man of total obedience. He did all God commanded, without question, even when it was hard, even when it meant being alone. Today, God isn’t asking us to build a boat, but he would expect the same kind of Obedience.

A brother in Christ recently did a search on our website and noticed that there’s not a lot of content on finding a spouse, dating, or the qualities one needs before marriage. Last year, we had our first singles Bible study weekend, which was fantastic! Lord willing, we’re having another one in the summer. You can find info on that event HERE I want to begin doing some more blogging on some of these topics. Right now, I want to share some questions for singles who are considering marriage should be thinking about with the person they are dating and/or by themselves as they prepare for marriage. Marriage is a blessing from God, Genesis 2 . Marriage is to be a life-long commitment! Therefore, it’s important to consider some questions and go back to God’s word before one says, “I Do!” I haven’t gone into detail about each question. There are some Bible passages for one to sit down and study on their own. Be sure that you begin with pray as you think about marriage. Questions to consider Do you both have the right to be married? Consider Matthew 5:32; Matthew 19:1-12; Luke 16:18; Mark 10:1-12; 1 Corinthians 7 . Do you both understand the lifelong commitment marriage is, Romans 7:2-3 ? Do you both understand the one reason for divorce, Matthew 19:1-11 ? How good are you two at forgiveness, Matthew 6:14-15 ? Is it challenging or easy to do? How was forgiveness shown in your home growing up? Are you a morning person or a night owl? Do you both understand marriage is a leaving of father and mother and a cleaving to one another? Genesis 2:22-25 What are your current Bible study habits? 2 Timothy 2:15; Acts 17:11 What are your current habits with prayer and meditation? Philippians 4:4-8 Have you two currently been studying together? What spiritual goals do you both have? Where do you plan to place membership and worship? Have there been discussions regarding children? Are there any addictions that need to be shared between the two of you? (Drinking, drugs, porn, smoking, overspending, gambling, etc.). If so, what are your current plan of actions overcoming and being victorious in Christ? How many bank accounts do you plan to have? Have you discussed money budgeting? How do you two communicate? Passive? Aggressive? Blow up because you hold everything in? Have you discussed any previous sexual interactions/experiences you’re bringing into the marriage that haven’t been discussed? What part of your spiritual armor needs to be worked on, Ephesians 6:10-17 ? What’s your game plan after you say “I do” to help keep passion alive between the two of you?

When looking at the 10 commandments given by God to Moses on Mt. Sinai in Exodus 20 , 9 out of the 10 of them sound pretty good to us. You may have even heard general references to obeying all 10 of the 10 commandments as a benchmark for sound Biblical living; and yet, one of them states:   “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” ( vss. 8-11 ).   This may cause us to ask, “what do I do with the Sabbath day?” “Am I allowed to work?” “What is meant by ‘work’?” “The other 9 I keep, but what about the Sabbath?” Let’s take a moment to understand the history of the Sabbath, the New Testament fulfillment of the Sabbath, and what it means to us today.   You may think that the aforementioned passage from Mt. Sinai is the first time we see the seventh day of the week treated as holy, but as you can see in the quote from Exodus 20 , the idea of the Sabbath originally comes from creation week, recorded in Genesis 1 and 2. The Bible teaches that God created the world in 6 days, and rested on the 7th. To be clear, this is not to say God was resting as in recuperating from exhaustion, but rather He “stopped” or “ceased” from His work, as the word shabat can also be translated, and gloried in all that He had created. Then, if we fast-forward to Mt. Sinai, God commanded the nation of Israel to maintain the holiness of the Sabbath as established on the seventh day of creation week. Dishonoring this commandment was evidently one of the many reasons given for the people going into captivity, as indicated in Isaiah 58:13-14 : “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” It is clear that God took the 10 commandments seriously—He has always taken ALL of His commandments seriously—but this still leaves the question: what about today?   There are several passages that indicate that we are “no longer” under the Old Law ( Galatians 3:24-25 ). In fact, the books of Hebrews and Galatians for example, are dedicated entirely to showing the superiority of Jesus to the Old Law, and how His death burial, and resurrection have made certain Levitical laws like observation of the Sabbath, animal sacrifices, and circumcision, “obsolete” ( Hebrews 8:13 ). The apostle Paul also makes clear in the book of Romans that “Christ is the culmination of the law,” meaning that in Him, as He said Himself, the Law of Moses is “fulfilled,” not “abolished” (i.e. Romans 10:4 , Matthew 5:17-20 ). While many rules fundamental to Mosaic law—the other 9 commandments, for example—are mentioned in and part of the New Law, Jesus fulfilled the Law of Moses and established a new one with His blood. Also, by being raised on the first day of the week, He shifted the focus from the completion of creation on Saturday to the completion of Jesus’ mission on Sunday. That is why we see the saints throughout the New Testament gathering together on Sundays, which we still observe today. So does the Sabbath have any relevance at all now? If we do not have to rest on Saturdays now, is there anything we should be doing in modern times that is similar to the observance of the Sabbath seen in the Old Testament? Consider the following:   Spend one-on-one time with God . Part of the focus of the Sabbath was to rest from work, but another part was to focus on God. Now, any time of any day of the week can be dedicated to Bible reading, prayer, and meditation on God’s Word. This certainly does not need to be limited to Saturday, or even Sunday. In fact, as I have heard some say, “you should hear from God and He should hear from you every single day.” That is a great rule to live by!   Gather with the saints on Sunday . There seems to be a cultural push these days away from assembling in a church service setting or with a local body of believers and towards individualized religion and a personal relationship with God. “Church is just too full of hypocrites” or “judgmental people” some may say. I talked to a man recently who said he went fishing on Sunday mornings and sitting on a quiet lake was the closest to God he ever felt. How sad! Hebrews 10:25 tells us to “not neglect the meeting of yourselves together” and the New Testament continually outlines the benefits of spending time with the saints. Sunday is called the Lord’s Day for a reason. Make the effort to get to services! It is beyond worth it.   “Strive to enter that rest.” Hebrews 4:1-13 talks extensively about a Sabbath rest that is available to us and waiting for us when we die, assuming we have lived faithfully. The author of Hebrews talks extensively about the multitude of ways the Old Testament was fulfilled in Jesus, and exactly how Jesus supersedes all of the Old Law. In part, the Holy Spirit tells us: “Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it…For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, ‘As I swore in my wrath, “They shall not enter my rest,”’ although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works…”Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience…So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience” ( vss. 1, 3-4, 6, 9-11 ).   Just as the people of Israel failed to obey the Sabbath laws and completely conquer/inherit the Promised Land in the Old Testament, it is possible for us too to “fail to enter” the promised rest God has in store for us in Heaven. We can all understand the desire for peace, rest, and joy when this life is over. In order to achieve that, “let use fear” God and obey His commands, using the failures of the Israelites as a negative example and the glorious promises of God as our motivation. While we do not observe the Sabbath on Saturdays anymore, we are observed to worship the Lord on Sundays and eagerly expect to be with Him forever one day…one Eternal, restful, perfect day.

Have you ever had someone break a promise they made to you? Have you ever broken a promise you made to someone else?   When I was little, I had a friend who almost every day would say he was going to play with me at recess. Often, though, we would get to the playground and he would leave to do something else with someone else and he would look back and say, “I didn’t promise!” That’s a pretty pitiful picture of a pretty bad friend, isn’t it?   I often think of that friend when I read Jesus’ words in the sermon on the mount, where He says “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil” ( Matthew 5:33-37 ). Jesus could say something like that because He was the ultimate Truth Teller and Promise Keeper. Even during His trial, when lying or backpedaling would likely have saved His life, He dug into the truth about who He was and where He came from. When pressured to deny who He was or admit to being something He was not, “ He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth ” ( Isaiah 53:7 ).   This notion of God keeping His promises is something that we consistently see throughout scripture, and that is precisely the point: consistency. Ever since the beginning of time, God has kept His promises, most notably, the 3 major promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: that their lineage would become an innumerably large nation, they would enter a land flowing with milk and honey, and that through his seed there would come a Savior, through whom “all the nations of the earth” would be “blessed” ( Genesis 12:1-3 ). The Bible shows us exactly how God ends up fulfilling those promises in incredible ways.   Nation – In Genesis 15, God gives Abraham the impossible task of numbering the stars, not so that Abraham would actually be able to report back (as if God does not already know how many stars there are!), but to illustrate just how large his family would end up being. God later uses “the sand of the sea” as a similar analogy, again driving home how many offspring He would have. We know from the book of Exodus that 70 of Abraham’s relatives entered the land of Egypt and 600,000 left, with some estimates putting that closer to 2 million people including women and children. That is already quite the large family! Out of curiosity, I Googled how many Jewish people have lived since Abraham’s time. The result? “It is difficult to determine!” Abraham has had so many offspring, and so much has happened since that time it is literally impossible to know. God keeps His promises!   Land – God also promises the land of Canaan to Abraham in Genesis 15, and even lays out what would come to be hundreds of years of history of how the land would be acquired. We know from the book of Joshua, though, that unfortunately, the Nation of Israel failed to conquer the land. God brought them out of Egypt and into Canaan, but they did not demonstrate the faithful obedience of their grandfather Abraham as they tried and failed to take the land. To be clear: God kept His promise, but the people refused to listen to God faithfully. Do we find ourselves in the same position: relying on God to do everything for us, but not listening to how He wants us to act? The book of Joshua paints a devastating picture of just how cataclysmic a failure to obey God can be. When He outlines punishments for disobedience in Deuteronomy 28 for example, He keeps those promises as well!   Savior – Ephesians 2:4-9 poignantly explains just how Jesus fulfilled God’s promise to Abraham that “all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him” (Genesis 18:18). Paul writes: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” What immeasurable blessings we have in Christ, just as God promised Abraham would be the case!   Now, in the time we live in, Jesus has promised us that He is coming soon (See John 14:1-3 ). We may be tempted to lose focus on this promise because it was made so long ago from a human perspective, but was we have well established, God always keeps His promises.   May we always remember and take courage from the fact that we serve the Great Promise-Keeper, who is infinitely more reliable than any man could ever be. As Hebrews 10:25 ? Simply reminds us: “He who promised is faithful…” or as John puts it in Revelation 22:20 :   “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming soon.’   Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”

A sister in Christ in Southeast Texas first mentioned to me T.A.G. I believe she read it in a book. It means, Time Alone with God. Time as some have said is our greatest commodity. We get the same amount of time. We know how much we will have each day. But what are we doing with it? The Apostle Paul says, “…Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:15-17 How we handle our time will be a critical factor with the battle of the flesh versus the spirit. We know what we’re supposed to do and who we’re supposed to be as Christians, Galatians 5:16-21 . Yet if we’re going to be successful, we will need time to develop our relationship with God. This is where the battle begins to be lost. It’s not that we don’t have enough time, but rather how we use it. Christians need time with one another, Hebrews 10:23-25 . We are told not to forsake the assembly. Yet time alone with God to study His word and to talk to Him is just as necessary. Sometimes Christians complain how they feel God is distant from them. Have you ever felt this way? The problem is never with God, but rather with us. The problem may be with our time management, and how much of our time we give to Him. Let’s consider a few thoughts about the importance of time alone with God. Everyday we need to T.A.G. The WHY : God wants a relationship with us and expects us to make time for Him. The scriptures provide us with examples of how we are to use our time. This would include working hard, teaching our children the truth, helping others physically and spiritually, resting, and enjoying the fruit of our labors, Ephesians 4:28, Ephesians 6:1-4; Galatians 6:10; Mark 6:31; Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 . We can’t leave out worshipping God! As we set aside time alone with God, we will be pleasing to Him. Just as a child wants to be pleasing to their parents, we should seek to do what’s pleasing to God. He takes pleasure in those who are faithful to Him, Haggai 1:8 . People go to great lengths to make sure that others are happy with them. Should we not also be concerned about pleasing God? The HOW : There are several habits Christians should develop. We need to learn to read God’s word consistently . While we should read to gain information, God’s word is about transformation. Our hearts should continue to be changed by it. We need to read to remember . God’s word is designed to be hidden in our hearts, Psalm 119:11 . Like the Kings of old were to make copies of the Law for themselves (Deuteronomy 17:18), it’s good for Christians to have some kind of process to help retain what they read. Maybe it’s making your own copy of God’s word that you write out. Maybe it’s flash cards to help you memorize and remember. Whatever you decide to do, it will take a lot of time alone with God. It will force us to make time in our schedule to listen to God through His word. We need to develop a prayer routine. We are told to pray without ceasing. Disciples of Jesus can pray to Jesus anytime. We do have examples in scripture like Daniel, who set time aside to pray three times a day, Daniel 6:10 .  Jesus woke up early to go and pray, Mark 1:34-35 . He would often slip away to pray, Luke 5:16 . Should we not do the same? To help with our prayers, study prayers in the Bible. Start in the book of Psalms! Conclusion: We have all the time we need to spend alone time with God. The question is, will we do it? The good news is that we can begin right now! As one person said, “Busy is a decision.” Let us never be to busy to spend time alone with God!

My mom often talks about how tough it was to take my sister and I out in public together when we were young because we always stirred each other up. Even now, when we are together, we tend to be louder and more obnoxious as a duo than we are separately. In a way that is relatively harmless, and at worst slightly annoying to those around us, we “stir each other up.”   Separately, we might think of people that “stir things up” as instigators. My in-laws called my wife “the instigator” growing up because she knew how to press her older brother’s buttons and so often and on purpose. She knew how to frustrate him and make him mad! I would imagine many of us have in one way or another, even as adults, either “stirred” or “been stirred” (or, more likely, both). Especially with people we know well, we know what motivates them, either by encouraging them to be better or stubbornly opposing them in some way to provoke some form of determination from them. While these types of “tactics” can unfortunately be abused and turn into outright manipulation, the Bible not only warns against negative provocation, but demands positive motivation as well.   In Proverbs , we find the language of “stirring things up” multiple times. ·  10:12 – Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses. ·  15:1 – A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. ·  15:8 – A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention. ·  28:25 – A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the LORD will be enriched. ·  29:22 – A man of wrath stirs up strife, and one given to anger causes much transgression.   Notice how often being “stirred up” is used as a negative! Specifically, we see the idea of stirring up strife emphasized. God ultimately wants peace on earth, and Jesus, also known as “The Prince of Peace,” said that His followers would be peacemakers ( Isaiah 9:6 , Matthew 5:9 ). While there are certainly times that we should and must disagree with people, oppose sin, and there may be unavoidable drama in our lives, we as much as we are able, should live peaceably with all ( Romans 12:18 ). Solomon mentions multiple time the wisdom in neutralizing conflict rather than inflaming it. It is safe to say all of us likely know someone who seemingly makes every situation worse with their temper—almost like superheroes with super strength in the comics who break everything they touch. If we are the type of people who easily get stirred up, we need to be extremely cautious that we do not fall into sin because our temper got the better of us.   On a positive note, the author of Hebrews demands that Christians be stirring one another up “to love and good deeds.” This too is a type of animation and motivation we can understand on a practical level. Hopefully, when we see something that needs to be fixed or taken care of, we are “stirred up” to be the one to find a solution or some other way to serve. The author of Hebrews goes on to remind his audience of the importance of spending time with the local body, i.e. “meeting together,” not only in the organized worship assembly but by implication perhaps, spending time together outside the assembly as well (as described in Acts 2:42-47 , for example). When we assemble together to worship God as brothers and sisters in Christ, there is motivation and encouragement found there that is not found anywhere else. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we all realized how disheartening isolation could be, and yet at times God’s people may still avoid contact with like-minded brethren. This dynamic speaks directly to the point of the author of Hebrews’ words here: as God said before creating Eve, “it is not good for man to be alone” ( Genesis 2:18 ).   Finally, in Hebrews 10:24 , the author of Hebrews implies that part of our fundamental motivation for “stirring each other up to love and good deeds,” is the fact that there is a “Day drawing near” where each of us will be called to give an account of what we have done in this life. Matthew 24:36 , 42 , and 44 read:  “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only…Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming…Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”   Jesus makes abundantly clear that He is coming back and when He does, He expects His children to be ready. In the meantime, as we wait, we must avoid stirring up strife and hatred, and stir each other up positively, encouraging each other to hold on to the hope of Heaven and live in a way that is pleasing to the Father, as we see the Day drawing near.   May we forever continue to stay stirred up, and never settle.

Does Jesus Expect Us to Believe Without Evidence? A Closer Look at Doubting Thomas In the Gospel of John, Jesus famously tells Thomas, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed”  ( John 20:29 ). Some take this to mean that faith requires believing without any evidence—but is that really what Jesus was saying? The Context of Thomas’s Doubt Thomas, one of the twelve apostles, was not present when Jesus first appeared to the other disciples after His resurrection. When they told him what had happened, he refused to believe, insisting, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe”  ( John 20:25 ). Eight days later, Jesus appeared again, this time with Thomas present. Jesus invited Thomas to see and touch His wounds. Thomas immediately responded, “My Lord and my God!”  ( John 20:28 ). It is at this moment that Jesus gives His famous statement about those who believe without seeing. Does This Mean Faith Requires No Evidence? No, and the very next verses in John’s Gospel clarify this. John immediately follows this account by saying: "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name”  ( John 20:30-31 ). John is not promoting blind faith—he is documenting evidence. The entire purpose of his Gospel is to provide testimony so that people may believe. Why Was Thomas Rebuked? Jesus was not saying that Thomas should have believed without evidence. Rather, Thomas already had evidence—he just refused to accept it. The other apostles had seen Jesus and shared their eyewitness testimony with Thomas, but he rejected their word. Jesus’ rebuke was not against seeking evidence, but against rejecting trustworthy testimony. Jesus’ statement in John 20:29 highlights that future believers—those who will not see Jesus in person—will be blessed for believing based on the testimony of the apostles. This is exactly what the Gospel of John provides: a written record of eyewitness accounts, meant to serve as evidence for future generations. Faith Rooted in Testimony The story of Thomas is not about promoting blind faith but about trusting reliable testimony. The apostles saw Jesus and shared their testimony so that others might believe. We, too, are called to believe based on their witness—recorded in Scripture—just as Thomas was called to believe based on the testimony of his fellow disciples. Far from dismissing evidence, Jesus affirms the importance of testimony as a foundation for faith. The blessing in John 20:29 is not for those who believe without reason, but for those who trust in the faithful witness of those who saw Him.

“I guess that is just my cross to bear…” some people say.   Usually though, unfortunately, when people use this phrase they are being flippant, talking about some burden in their life that may not really be that bad in the grand scheme of things. However, Jesus very seriously tells us that, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” ( Matthew 16:24 )   When Jesus first said this to His disciples, they certainly knew what roman crucifixion was, but based on what we know from the rest of the gospels, they did not yet understand that Jesus would literally have to carry a cross and be crucified. How devastating it must have been for them when they realized what He had meant. How intimidating for us to know the whole story. But what does it look like to carry our cross? What is MY cross? Do we have the same cross? There are multiple different ways to look at Jesus’ teaching here.   One specific instance that shows Jesus using this language that helps us understand what Jesus means is with the rich young ruler in Mark 10:21 : “Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, ‘One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.’” Despite the fact that this young man had obeyed the law of Moses to the letter in many ways, Jesus still sees in him that he is too attached to his possessions, and we are told that the young man went away sorrowful and presumably did not comply with what Jesus asked of him. Will we let our material goods keep us from following Jesus? The problem with this young man is not that he is rich, powerful, and young. None of those factors nor the combination of them really affect his salvation. However, Jesus’ interaction with him seems to indicate that his connection to his “stuff” was deeper than it should have been. While the young man likely would have denied it if you were to ask him, Jesus simply was not worth as much to him as his “stuff” was.   When we come to follow Christ, there is an act of letting go that needs to happen: letting go of our past sins, letting go of sins we may currently be ensnared in, and letting go of anything else that may stand in the way of us following Christ. Letting go of these things is often called “repentance.” To repent literally means to turn around and go the opposite direction. Put another way, repent is to drop sin, leaving it behind never to be picked up again, as we follow Jesus forward, even knowing that His path will require us to pick up a cross.   On another occasion, Jesus says very clearly, “…he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” ( Matthew 10:38 ). The fact of the matter is Jesus taking up His cross has a two-fold meaning for us: on the one hand, and most importantly, He took on the punishment that we deserved for our sins. As the sacrificial Lamb of God, He died for us. Additionally though, He set an example of what it means to obediently do the Father’s will, and showed just how disliked and unpopular God’s people (or God Himself!) can be. By going to the cross, He demonstrated that God’s plan likely will mean temporary pain, even extreme suffering, but all for the hope of immeasurable glory. As Paul puts it, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18). No greater pain or glory has been experienced than the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that is the road He invites us to follow Him down. In short: “We love because He first loved us” ( 1 John 4:19 ).   Finally, perhaps one of the most to-the-point verses about what it means for us to take up our own crosses is Galatians 6:14 : “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”   Even though He was God, Jesus did not boast in being God or even in His miracles. He denied Himself, took up His cross, and lead the way to Golgotha. But as we well know, His story did not end there, and neither does ours. After the struggle of self-denial and self-sacrifice comes immeasurable glory and eternal life. In the mean time, let us boast only in Him and take up our cross day by day.

It’s all about Him. That’s the conclusion one will reach when they read the book of Colossians. It’s all about Jesus Christ. As Paul wrote to these saints, He spoke about the Preeminence of Christ. He spoke about His power and all that He had done for them. Paul reminded them that they had been rescued, redeemed, and reconciled through Jesus. We also see the importance of the Lord’s church in Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Let’s notice some observations.   “IN HIM” “For He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”   Colossians 1:13-14 The church is made up of people who are “In Him.” Those who heard and obeyed the truth, are in Christ, Colossians 1:4-5, 2:12 . When one is “In Him” they are also in His body, the church. Paul says in Colossians 1:18 , “He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” It is God who adds the saved to the church, Acts 2:47 . Those who are saved and added to the church must submit to the will of Jesus. Those who are in Christ also need to recognize the importance of being in His body. The body, the church, is not something that is optional. You can’t have Christ without His body. It can often happen that people want Christ, but they don’t want anything to do with His church. That’s not Biblical. One can’t have Christ without His church, Acts 8:3, 9:5 . Therefore, the church is not to be viewed as an afterthought. It’s designed as a body, which means we each play a vital role in it. “BY HIM” “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him.”  Colossians 1:16  All things were created by Christ. That includes the church. Christ promised to build His church in Matthew 16:18 . He purchased the church with His blood, Acts 20:28 . He is head over the church, Colossians 1:18 . Man did not establish this spiritual body, John 18:36 . Jesus did. Therefore, it is something special that only Jesus could design and create. It’s all about Him. How should this impact our lives? It should cause us to recognize and appreciate that we’re a part of something great. People like to be a part of something great or special (colleges, schools, sports, etc.). Being a part of the Lord’s church is something truly great! Consider the cost, Colossians 1:20 . Jesus gave up everything for it. Through the church Jesus has accomplished something that no one else could. He has brought both Jews and Gentiles into one body, Colossians 1:26-27. This is the great mystery that Paul spoke about. Jesus destroyed the racial divide that stood for so long. He’s brought unity in one body, the church. That’s awesome. No political party will be able to do what is accomplished through the church. No fraternity, school, or any other club can do what Jesus has done. It’s all about Him and what He has done. “FOR HIM” “…All things have been created through Him and for Him…”   Colossians 1:16 . All things have been created for Him. That includes the church. This is a game changer. We live in a “ME Mentality” age. For some, it can be all about them. It’s about our rights, our desires, and our needs. But when it comes to the church, it’s not about ME. It’s not even about WE. It’s about HE. Is this the attitude we have as members of the Lord’s church? Everything we do is to be for Him. Our motivation to serve, to worship, to submit is all for Him! When we have this mindset, this will truly change our perspective of Christ and His church. It’s all about giving Him the glory, Ephesians 3:20-21 . We can give Him glory in our worship. We can strive not to forsake the assembly because it’s all about Him. We will forgive one another when we sin, because it’s all about Him. We will put our needs to the sides and help others, because it’s all about Him. We will not quibble with His pattern or worship, because it’s all about Him. We will not quit and give up on the church, because it’s all about Him. We will struggle for one another because it’s all about Him. He struggled for us. We will do the same. It’s all about Him! Let’s demonstrate our love for Him.

One of the most epic accounts in the Old Testament is that of the flood. We know from the beginning of scripture in the garden of Eden that God sees His people, knows what they are up to, and knows what their hearts are like for better or for worse.   In Genesis 6:5-8 , “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the LORD said, ‘I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.’” However, we are told, “Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.”   Do you ever feel like Noah? If you pay attention to politics or the news, you may feel like “the wickedness of man is very great on the earth,” and most peoples intentions and thoughts are primarily evil. Maybe (hopefully) are not this cynical, but life may feel that way at times. A few verses later, the Holy Spirit goes into even more detail about the evil in the world, saying that, “the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth’” ( Genesis 6:11-13 ).   Then, God sends the water. It rains for 40 days and 40 nights, with only 8 people and 2 of every animal safely on board the ark that Noah had made. As the floods came, “everything on the dry land in whose nostrils was the breath of life died. [God] blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens. They were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ark” ( Genesis 7:22-23 ).   After the flood though, God creates a rainbow, which He explains to Noah is a “sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth” ( 9:12-16 ).   Ultimately, God makes it clear that He took no pleasure in destroying mankind, but rather was sorrowful and only sent the flood to wipe out the evil that mankind had become involved with. God is holy and righteous and created everything, including humanity, to be perfect and good. He created us so that He could love us, and to reject God by sinning goes against the very purpose for which we were made. God loves us and wants to bless us, but He is also holy and just and cannot allow evil to continue unchecked. I would imagine if we were to “put ourselves in God’s shoes,” so to speak, when we read about the horrible, rampant violence that was all over the earth and in the hearts of all mankind before the flood, we can understand why God would want to take drastic measures to “clean house,” and restore His creation to the perfect state it was in when He created it. Obviously, it did not stay perfect forever, and even Noah himself committed a terrible sin at one point ( Genesis 9:20-29 ). However, the flood serves us as an example of God’s judgment: He wipes out evil with a mighty hand, and sees and preserves the righteous, using them for His purposes and sparing them in the day of trouble.   In the New Testament, Peter directly correlates the flood to baptism, explaining how we too are “brought safely through water,” redeemed, and made righteous, despite our sins and the sinfulness of our world:    “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” ( 1 Peter 3:18-21 )   Let us be perfectly clear: baptism saves us. Jesus came and suffered, taking on death on our behalf, so that through baptism we could be cleansed from our sins. Just like in Noah’s case, our salvation requires the grace of God, our faith in Him, and action both on God’s part and on ours. In his second letter, Peter assures us that, “if [God] did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly…then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority” ( 2 Peter 2:5, 9-10 ).   No matter how evil, vulgar, and violent the world around us may be (or how much worse it may get in the future), God’s instructions are simple: have faith, listen to Me, and I will bring you safely through the water.   “…He who promised is faithful.”( Hebrews 10:23 )