by Jonathan Koehler | Jun 19, 2024 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Hebrews 2:1-3a) The warning is to “pay attention…lest we drift away from it”. In the first chapter of Hebrews the author details the superiority of Jesus over angels and prophets. In fact, he says Jesus is God’s word spoken to us in these final days. Pay attention to Jesus and salvation because He is the “radiance of His [God’s] glory, the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all thing by the word of His power”. In other words, Jesus Christ is God with skin on. If we do not pay attention to Jesus, then we will drift away from Him. “Drift” means to “slip away” or “pass by almost unnoticed”. Drifting away from Jesus can be almost imperceptible, at least in the beginning. This might entail a subtle shift in our thinking, perhaps illustrated by denial of conscience because we think we can afford the consequences of the action we are considering, or that circumstances justify our action. Or drifting might involve a re-definition of sin, labeling “OK” what God says is wrong. A lack of vigilance leads to drifting, ending up in neglect of our salvation. For us in the 21st century, this can mean misunderstanding the gift of grace in the gospel. The modern concept of grace too often considers grace as permission to do anything we...
by Jonathan Koehler | May 21, 2024 | Articles, Mentors Corner
The book of Hebrews has a series of warnings to those professing Christ, but drawn to the safety of the past. The epistle is an enigma at times, but also a key to a treasure trove of understanding the Old Testament . It is also a book of worship as it emphasizes the superiority of Jesus and is the only place in Scripture where Jesus is called our High Priest. I would suggest that besides the Epistle to the Romans, the Epistle to the Hebrews has some of the most theologically concentrated, complex, and challenging concepts in the Bible. Hebrews also contains several passages that engender some of the most intense debate among Christians. It is generally well accepted that the book was written, perhaps as a sermon, to some number of professing Christians in a church in or near the city of Rome, a portion of whom were suffering persecution for their Christian faith. These recipients were likely Jews very familiar with the Old Testament , and were either tempted to turn or had turned back to the relative safety of Judaism in order to escape persecution meted out to those claiming to be followers of Christ, or were drifting from their faith. Perhaps the key theme of the book is the exhortation to hold fast to their faith, to persevere, to endure. As modern readers of Hebrews we are challenged to discern the relevance of a book written for a people with whom virtually all of us have little to nothing in common-at least at first glance. But as we face the continuing decline of our culture...
by Bill McCurine | May 7, 2024 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:18–20 (ESV) God gave mankind sex for procreation, intimacy, and commitment. Procreation is part of God’s special means to create a bride for His Son who is worthy of His Son. The Father determined that in order to create a bride for His Son, children must be born. Mankind must increase in number. Because many are called but few are chosen, there must be many births in order to create the perfect number of saints to constitute the bride for Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that when God created man “God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it….”[1] God gives us sex to create intimacy. The more we understand and value intimacy the more we are able to understand and value our relationship with Jesus Christ. Fornication destroys intimacy between a husband and wife. It also destroys our intimacy with God. The less we understand the spiritual nature of intimacy the weaker our ability to understand and value our relationship with Jesus Christ. Fornication eventually produces alienation rather than intimacy. It is doubtful that sex will exist in heaven because our intimacy with Christ will be wonderful and satisfying, fulfilling our deepest desires. The intimacy...
by Chris Martin | Apr 22, 2024 | Articles, Mentors Corner
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every though captive to the obedience of Christ” (II Corinthians 10:3-5). Paul’s admonition to the follower of Christ in the conclusion of these verses is to take “every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” It doesn’t take a man much effort to conclude that he can only entertain one individual thought at any given time. He may quickly rotate between a few different thoughts at a rapid pace, but only one thought can be on the “screen” of a man’s mind at any given time. The Scriptures further instruct us that how we think, and what we think about (our thoughts) are of paramount importance to the believer. Proverbs 23:7 tells us “For as he thinks within himself, so he is.” Correct thinking results in correct living, and incorrect thinking results in incorrect living. Thus, any man, by a function of exerting his WILL, can control what he thinks about and successfully take “every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” The WILL controls the MIND and what thoughts we entertain. A logical question is, how does a man do this? Paul gives us some helpful instruction earlier in the passage. First, in verse 3 Paul brings to our attention that even though we walk “in the flesh” (the temporal), this is not where we...
by Ron Hocutt | Apr 9, 2024 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Jesus tells us “…..No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). This passage is commonly understood as referring to one who begins a work only to regret the decision, wishing to retreat from the work at hand. He who does not count the cost and desires to take his hand off the plough (i.e. the work of God), forfeits his assurance that he belongs to the King. While this is a reasonable exegesis of the passage and holds true in its application, there is another understanding, rooted in the agricultural environment in which the writers of the gospel lived that also contains an additional weighty application. To a farmer, there is only one reason to look back once he puts his hand to the plough, and it isn’t to cease ploughing – it is to measure the quality and quantity of his work. A farmer looks back to see if his rows are straight and how much of the field he’s ploughed. Those of Jesus’ day would have immediately understood this given the agrarian nature of their society. Looking back creates a problem, however, as ploughing straight rows requires looking forward at all times. Any time a farmer looks back, he has taken his eye off the target, which is the end of the row. This results in a poorly ploughed field that produces an inferior crop. Along with this understanding, there are warnings here for the believer. Who among us is not desirous to see the results of his efforts in the Kingdom? We evangelize...
by Scott Bangert | Mar 26, 2024 | Articles, Mentors Corner
The attached is the concluding article of the 3 part series of the believer’s relationship to social media and smart phones. If you missed parts 1 and 2, click on the authors section within this website and click on Scott Bangert. It will take you to Part 1 and Part 2. At the end of this Part 3 are some questions for your thinking as you consider the ramifications of Scott’s challenge. Part 3 of 3: The Mind and Heart Conquered Comparison 2 Corinthians 4:17 “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.” According to the Declaration of Independence, one of the most basic rights of human beings is “the pursuit of happiness.” It is therefore not surprising that the desire to be happy is highly valued in the United States. What is surprising, however, is that psychologists believe that the more likely a person is to value being happy, the less likely he is to attain it. When the desire to be happy becomes extreme and inflexible, it leads to disordered emotional regulation and depression. I believe that I ought to be happy all the time, but I find that reality does not meet my expectations. As I compare my desired emotional state to reality, the gap between the two produces emotional strain. Hence, an extreme pursuit of happiness has the tendency to produce the opposite effect. Much attention has been focused on the link between smartphone use and depression, particularly among adolescents. This is probably multifactorial, and factors like sleep deprivation and addiction likely play a role. Cyber...
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