Spiritual growth is not optional for the Christian—it is commanded. Peter wrote, “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18). In fact, he goes further and urges believers to give “all diligence” to their growth (2 Pet. 1:5, 10). Growth does not happen accidentally. It requires intentional effort to become more like Christ. In…
Let's Go Back to the Bible
Let's Go Back to the Bible
Posts by David Sproule
God tells us to love Him and Jesus (Matt. 22:37; John 14:15). God tells us to love our Christian brethren (John 13:34). God tells us to love our enemies (Matt. 5:44). God tells us to love our spouses (Eph. 5:25; Tit. 2:4). Then, He doesn’t allow us or rely on us to define what that “love” looks like. Instead, He…
Have you ever heard about a preacher being worn out on a Sunday night? “Seriously?! C’mon! That’s crazy! All he does is stand up and talk! (For too long!) That’s NOT that hard! Gimme a break!” But, being a true preacher of the gospel is more than just talking. Preachers who care look out and see the non-Christian visitor and try to carry…
Sometimes people hear sermons or read articles about “doing good works” and “working out your own salvation” and “always abounding in the work of the Lord” and “doing the will of the Father in heaven,” and they are sometimes filled with doubt or grief or trepidation (or even negative emotions toward the one who focused on those portions of Scripture). And here’s…
The Israelites’ archnemesis—the Philistines—“gathered together to fight with Israel,” having troops “as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude” (1 Sam. 13:5), and the Israelite “people were distressed” (13:6). Saul “waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel” (13:8), who was going to come and “offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of…
The book of Leviticus is predominantly a book of laws and ordinances given to Israel at Mount Sinai, which makes the two narrative (or story) sections of the book (in chapters 8-10 and chapter 24) really stand out as unique in the setting of the whole book. One event that God chose to specifically include was…
The Bible teaches that God requires Christians to engage faithfully in good works (Matt. 7:21; 1 Cor. 15:58; Phil. 2:12; Jas. 2:14-26; 1 John 1:7). The Bible teaches that God conditions salvation from sin and eternity in heaven upon faithful obedience to His commands. Can a Christian receive the crown of life without being faithful (Rev. 2:10)? Can a Christian receive eternal…
“As long as I’m going to church, does it really matter where?” Sometimes it may be easy to think that one church is as good as another. But is that true? Does it matter to you if the doctor you see has a degree from a medical school or from a culinary institute? Does it matter to you if your airline pilot was trained at…