Tag Archives: God

What Do You Expect When You Pray?

Posted on by

Acts 12:5 Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.  6 And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.  7 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.

In Acts 12, we find an incredible testament to the power of prayer.  Peter was in jail and the church prayed for him unceasingly.  God sends an angel to release Peter.  But that’s not the end of the story.  What is really interesting is the reaction of the Christians who were praying for Peter’s release. Continue reading →

The Kind of People You Want on Your Side

Posted on by

When I was a kid, we would often play games where we would have to pick teams.  We would elect two captains who would begin to take turns picking who they wanted on their team.  The picking was often strategic.  For example, the captain not only wanted good players, he also wanted team members who would be loyal to the team and would follow his leadership. Who would you want on your side?

When Saul was king of Israel and after he had rebelled, God told Samuel to anoint David to be king.  Saul, being who he was, continued in his rebellion and tried on a number of occasions to kill David.  David stays on the run during this time and gathers an army of followers.  These men help him evade capture and also fight the enemies of Israel.  The ultimate goal, however, was to turn the kingdom over to David as God desired.

1 Chronicles 12:23 And these are the numbers of the bands that were ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the LORD. Continue reading →

He Made the Stars Also

Posted on by

Genesis 1:16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

This one verse may contain the most understated fact in all the Bible.  After stating that God created a greater light to rule the day (the Sun) and a lesser light to rule the night (the Moon), it states that God “made the stars also”.  That is the first and only time stars are mentioned in the creation narrative. When one considers that mankind has attempted to count and catalog the stars down through history and at this point has numbered over 945,000,000 stars1, this statement seems to minimize the incredible magnitude of the accomplishment. Continue reading →

How God Justifies Sinners

Posted on by

Justification is a key doctrine in Christianity.  The basic problem is: (1) all human beings are sinners and (2) God is holy and must judge sin.  Justification has to do with how God justifies sinners (declares them to be righteous) so that they can be accepted by Him.  The following is one of many verses that address this doctrine.

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. Continue reading →

Resistance or Grace?

Posted on by

James 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

This verse is a paraphrase of Proverbs 3:34:

Proverbs 3:34 Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.

Pride, often manifested in scorn, will cause God to resist (oppose) us.  Pride is what caused Satan to be cast out of heaven (Isaiah 14:12-15).  Pride is one of the seven deadly sins (Proverbs 6:16-19).  If we desire God’s grace on our lives, we must be humble.  In short, we must resist pride or God will resist us.   Continue reading →