by Craig McAndrews | Jul 25, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
In Luke 14:25-35 Jesus makes it clear that it costs to follow Him and in concise language He spells out the details on what the cost will be. The words He uses in this teaching really got my attention and challenged me to think about paying the price. His statements are direct and very absolute. Consider verse 26, where He says, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple”, or when He says in verse 27, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” Statements like “hate his own father and mother”, “carry your own cross”, and “cannot be my disciple” provide little room for interpretation. Studying these verses has challenged me to ask two very specific questions of myself and I wanted to share them with you as you seek to know our savior more deeply: Question 1: What has following Jesus cost you in your life? Question 2: When have you been uncomfortable or inconvenienced for the sake of Jesus? Are these questions tough to answer? I know when I first started thinking through these questions, I really wondered if following Jesus had cost me anything. In the Luke verses He tells us that being His disciple can cost us relationships, a lot of inconvenient living, our resources of time or money, and even all our possessions. Had I given up any of those things for the sake of Jesus? Fortunately, as I prayerfully thought...
by Gayle Jackson | Jun 13, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Joh_1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Joh_1:14 And the Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us. And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and of truth. Words are important to our being. Matthew 12: 36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the Day of Judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 38 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” We think with words, therefore a sloppy vocabulary yields a sloppy mind. A vocabulary full of what we call curse words or slang will yield that kind of thinking. This generation loves the “f:” word. That will be a dominate influence in their thinking. We can’t believe that there is no impact from a bad, poor, dirty, etc. vocabulary. We think with words. Ergo, a society with a small vocabulary have a limited opportunity to develop. I have been told that those who study the “lost” tribes in the jungle, find the people with a small anemic vocabulary have a very underdeveloped culture. Think of the inner city’s vocabulary and look at the product. Just think of hip hop verses classical music and their impact of society. Evidence says we are better off with a strong good vocabulary in our culture. But all tribes of people have a word for God. The key to speed reading is your vocabulary. If you have a weak vocabulary, you are constantly struggling with...
by Gayle Jackson | May 16, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Forgiveness is a very large subject in the bible. In thinking on it, I realized that it is a key concept for the Church to survive. We must have a working creed of forgiveness and understand it or the church will come unraveled. The subject of forgiveness is much too extensive for a blog from me, so I am going to take it on in pieces. This issue covers the concept of forgiveness that is most prevalent among families and friends. As I have gotten older I realize the problem that my family, friends and associates have with forgiveness. I especially see this in family relations and a major focus of the angst is centered on the parents. I think as we age we just don’t shed bad experiences well. However forgiveness is a major issue with God and that is the reason we need to discuss it. Forgiveness: The definition from the Greek is cry, forgive, forsake, lay aside, leave, omit, put (send) away, remit, suffer, and yield up. The dictionary says FORGIVENESS- pardon, forgiveness; to let pass, take away, hide, wash, purify, release You get the sense that when you forgive you are putting an issue out of your life. Observation: Forgiveness is an act of the will. An emotion may be involved but a willful resolve is the force in the action of forgiveness. Your forgiveness is not governed by the other person’s response. You do it because God said to do it. Facts on Forgiveness: 1. It is commanded in the bible. 2. It is an act of the will. Emotion may or may not follow. 3. Your forgiveness may or may not be accepted by the other party. 4. It is unidirectional, no...
by Walt Henrichsen | Feb 29, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority.” 1Timothy 2:1-2 The New Testament authors agree that Christ’s followers must submit to authority.1 In all of the New Testament, I find no reference to resisting secular authority unless the government compels the believer to break God’s commandments; in all other areas he must submit. God controls the activities of all in authority: “…the Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”2 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever He will.”3 The admonition contained in this verse is especially applicable for those who disapprove of the authority placed over them. You pray for them; you do not resist them. This does not mean that you affirm wrong with your silence. Rather, you call to their attention that they are wrong if and when they give you opportunity. However, in such encounters, you must be ready to defend before God that you confront them because you have their best interest in mind, and not because you are defending yourself. 1 Cf., e.g., Romans 13:1-5 and 1Peter 2:13-14, 17 2 Hebrews 13:6 3 Proverbs...
by Micah Olson | Feb 8, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Balaam is an interesting character in the Bible. The biblical narrative about him is mostly confined to 3 chapters – Numbers 22-24 – but his story clearly resonates with numerous authors of the bible. He is referred to in Deuteronomy, Joshua, Nehemiah, Micah, 2 Peter, Jude, and Revelation. I will summarize the story of Balaam, but I mostly want to focus on the New Testament references to Balaam which highlight the importance of Balaam’s story to us today. The New Testament warnings regarding Balaam focus on two things: 1) he loved the wages of unrighteousness, 2) he tempted Israel to commit idolatry and sexual immorality It is the warning regarding sexual immorality that I want to focus this article. God promises to Abraham in the book of Genesis that He will give Abraham’s future descendants the land of Canaan “for an everlasting possession.” From Exodus through the end of Deuteronomy, Scripture describes Israel’s journey from Egypt to the plains east of the Jordan River, where in the book of Joshua the Israelites will launch their attack and eventually conquer the Promised Land. After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the new generation of Israelites were finally on the cusp of entering the Promised Land. In Numbers 22, Balak, the king of Moab, gets nervous that the nation of Israel is making their camp in his land. He becomes fearful of Israel’s military might and hires a famous diviner from Mesopotamia named Balaam. Balak’s goal is that Balaam would curse Israel, which would then allow the Moabites to destroy them. If all we knew about Balaam was what we read in Numbers 22-24, we might be inclined to think that he was a righteous man....
by Walt Henrichsen | Feb 1, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“The LORD endowed Solomon with wisdom and discernment in great measure, with understanding as vast as the sands on the seashore.” 1Kings 4:29 This is one of the most terrifying aspects of walking with Christ. All of your gifts, abilities, assets, and relationships are blessings from God that have the potential of inflicting great harm. To the degree that you are so blessed, at least three things can happen to you, and two of them are bad. The benefit of being richly endowed, as was Solomon, is your ability to glorify God during the years that He gives you. The two dangers are, you can misunderstand what God has given you, and thus misuse your gifts. Evidently Solomon saw himself as someone special in the sight of God, and presumed upon his relationship with Him by ignoring His commandments. You find the second danger in the words of Jesus, “And to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom they commit much, of him will they ask the more.”1 The misuse of God’s blessings can inflict great harm on you, if you are not careful. Rejoice in the blessings God has given, but be very careful in how you steward them. 1 Luke 12:48 for more articles by this...
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