Rhythm of Faith

Paul wrote, “the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). In Noah, we have an Old Testament illustration of this. Ponder how Noah’s warnings about fantastic “events as yet unseen” (Hebrews 11:7) must have sounded to his hearers (I’ve imagined two, Talmai and Bakbukiah). “This is madness!” Talmai was alarmed by the huge piles of logs around the vast clearing and all the hired men cutting and hauling them. “How long will this boat be?” Noah braced for a deluge of ridicule. “Three hundred cubits.” “Unbelievable!” Bakbukiah laughed incredulously. “Three hundred? You were right!” he said slapping Talmai’s back. “I said, ‘No one’s  that  stupid.’ But I stand corrected!” Talmai shook his head in disbelief. “Noah, you’ve lost your mind! No one can build a boat that big!” “You are an idiot!” shouted Bakbukiah. “You’re building a three hundred cubit boat six-day’s journey from the sea?” “It won’t n...

Photo by Werner Kunz We already talked about the need for us to reach out to others. But a part of the ministry that God has prepared for us is found within the four walls of our homes. The verse for today is a sobering truth. A woman has the power to destroy her home, or create a dwelling that is beautiful and strong. The Christian’s home should be a sanctuary to those who live there; a place where people are safe from the seductions of the world, where the weary find rest, the sad find comfort, and where character is formed. The home should be joyful, peaceful, and filled with love. Does this describe your home? No? Well, It doesn’t describe mine either. Not that often. It is easy to look at our homes, see all the things that are not meeting this standard, and feel discouraged and frustrated. But God has not left us alone and without help or hope in home-building! But how does a wise woman build a home that is God-honoring and uplifting to those who walk in the front door? Here are t...

The reason the gospel of Jesus is precious is that it offers joyful rescue from furious judgment. The Bible speaks of the “fury of the wrath of God the Almighty” (Revelation 19:15). And the Bible exults that “Jesus delivers us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10). It is God the Father himself who sent Jesus to rescue us from his own wrath: “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. . . . Therefore we shall be saved by him from the wrath of God” (Romans 5:8–9). How the Scriptures Speak of God’s Judgment There are at least five ways the Bible talks about God’s judgment. 1. In judgment, God hands over the impenitent to hardening in this life. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. . . . Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity. (Romans 1:18, 24; see Romans 11:7–8) 2. In judgment, God punishes nations in history...

Grace is at the heart of the Christian faith. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than at the cross of Christ. It is grace that the Son of God took on flesh, and grace that he taught us how to live — but it is especially grace that he died on the cross in our place. Moreover, this climactic grace shown at the cross has a specific shape — it has edges. These edges help us see what exactly happened when Jesus died. And it’s important that we see because seeing leads to worship — you can’t worship what you don’t know. So in hopes of more clarity — fuel for worship — here are five biblical truths about what Jesus accomplished on the cross. 1. The death of Jesus was for his enemies. God’s love is different than natural human love. God loves us when we’re utterly unlovable. When Jesus died, he died for the ungodly, for sinners, and for his enemies. Paul gets at how contrary this is to human nature when he writes, “For one will scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good pers...

Let’s go back to the Garden of Eden. The one tree in the garden that humans were forbidden to eat from was not, interestingly, the tree of life (Genesis 2:9). It was not life that God denied human beings. He forbade them to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17). The point of this prohibition was not to keep humans ignorant but, as  John Piper says , “to preserve [for us] the pleasures of the world.” It was as if God was saying, If you eat of that one [tree] you will be saying to me, ‘I’m smarter than you. I am more authoritative than you. I am wiser than you are. I think I can care for myself better than you care for me. You are not a very good Father. And so I am going to reject you.’ So don’t eat from the tree, because you will be rejecting me and all my good gifts and all my wisdom and all my care. Instead, keep on submitting to my will. Keep on affirming my wisdom. Keep on being thankful for my generosity. Keep on trusting me as a Father and keep on...

One of the most honest things you can tell people is that you will sin against them. Because of our brokenness, we will fall prey to the flesh. If you don’t persuade your will with the gospel, something else will. And therein lies the problem of many conflicts we experience. But there is hope. Here are four proper ways to process wounds made by people: 1. Realize Your Depravity.  We need to understand that before Jesus saved us, we hated God. We wanted nothing to do with Him. So when people hurt or wound us, it is painful but it should not be surprising. Not too long ago, we were with the angry crowd yelling “ crucify Him ,” instead of “ come to Him .” The more you realize the depth of your depravity, the more you will be satisfied with the gospel. When we begin our relationships not by putting people on a pedestal but rather seeing another human being who will sin against you – it changes our entire perspective of how we will handle issues and conflicts. 2...

Do find yourself drifting away from what you know is right? Do see you all the warning signs and not doing a thing about it? Here is a thoughtful quote my friend, Pamela Leding, shared recently that will make us think twice: "People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord.  We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance;  we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom;  we drift toward superstition and call it faith.  We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism;  we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated."                              ...

1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust.” Every day, we are bombarded with news of conflicts, natural disasters, diseases and new strains of drug-resistant viruses. We also hear of people losing their loved ones in freak accidents. And we ask ourselves, “Is there a place where I can take refuge from a world gone mad?” Yes, there is! God foresaw all these things and He has promised in His Word protection from every evil known to man. There is no trap set by the devil that our Father cannot deliver us from, if we trust in Him and take Him as our refuge. That is His promise in Psalm 91. Whether it is an earthquake at midnight, a crazy sniper, an unknown virus or a terrorist attack, God says, “You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the ...

Romans 12:2   ESV /  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. 1 Corinthians 10:31   ESV /  So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Philippians 4:8   ESV /  Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Ephesians 5:10   ESV /  And try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Romans 14:1-23   ESV /  As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who ...