by Cody Hartshorn | Jan 21, 2019 | Articles, Testimonies
As men, we are driven by a desire for power. Though the Bible doesn’t define power, the essence of power is the ability to change or affect something. Wealth, sex, and authority are the means we use to exercise and gain a sense of power. God’s Word teaches that we are governed by powers which we cannot control (Jer 10:23). The curse of Adam was that sin was given power over us, and we can no longer exert our will in line with the God that guides and directs the creation (Eph 2:1). The Law cannot save us from the power of sin because the righteousness of the Law has no power of its own (Rom 8:3). This means that any attempt to overcome the power of sin strictly through obedience to the commands of God leads to condemnation. Sin has real power, it takes the Law captive and leads to death. Romans 6 teaches that when Christ triumphed over death, he took back the power of sin, making it possible that we could once again will with God. The power we have by the Gospel is contradictory to the power of the flesh. Our weaknesses are our strengths, we lead by serving, and we humble ourselves to be exalted. If our hope is that God will give us the desires of our flesh, we will be misled when things go according to plan. When we attribute our selfish gain to God, we are mastered by the power of sin. When we hold God accountable for the undesirable events of this world, we are similarly without reason to hope...
by Walt Henrichsen | Jan 2, 2019 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night; for it is written, `I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’” Matthew 26:31 If, prior to the betrayal of our Lord, the disciples had discussed how they could most completely misunderstand the events surrounding Jesus arrest, trial, and crucifixion, they could not have done a better job. What they perceived and what happened were exact opposites. They looked at the unfolding events as a tragedy of the first magnitude; dashed hopes, unfulfilled expectations, the destruction of their dreams. In reality, the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ provided the basis for their hope of heaven and a life of purpose here on earth. This illustrates how wrong your perception of events can be. If you are like I am, you can look back on your life and see things that happened to you that you thought were counter productive to your best interest, if not a tragedy. Later you discover that it proved a blessing in disguise, as illustrated by the person who was angry because he missed his flight, only to find out later that the plane crashed. Conversely, you remember things that you initially thought were pure blessing, only to later discover were just the opposite, as illustrated by people who felt blessed that their spouse agreed to marry them, only to discover that they had entered into an unfortunate alliance. Pray that God will deliver you from bad decisions and circumstances, and then give Him thanks when events unfold in a way that make...
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