Husbands and Wives

Jim Leffel

Ephesians 5:21-22

It is clear that the ethical thinking of Christianity has been very progressive, as Christ turns traditional gender-based power structures on their head. The Bible presents husbands and wives as unified equals. The Bible calls wives to allow their husbands to lead as husbands are called to love their wives with the sacrificial love of Christ.

The Path to Spiritual Maturity (Part 2)

Gary DeLashmutt

Colossians 3:5-17

Part two of a two-part series on the path to spiritual maturity. Paul encourages the Colossians to embrace a lifestyle consistent with what God has provided us through Christ. He urges them to ?put aside? a self-centered way of life and to ?put on? an other-centered, loving lifestyle. As we cultivate a mental focus on ?the things above? (part one) and replace a selfish lifestyle with a loving one (part two), God changes us from the inside out.

An Invitation To Suffer

Ryan Lowery

Philippians 3:8-9

God's love and grace gave Paul the motivation to become a servant with a purpose, but it did not spare him of a life free of suffering. In fact, serving God requires Christians to wade into suffering so that others may know Him just as Christ was willing to undergo suffering for our sake. This sort of service requires that: we become servant leaders by laying down our lives for others, we bring the truth of God to those who don't know Him, and we commit to other people through discipleship.

Who is Jesus?

Ryan Lowery

John 14:8-11

Since God's love is what gives us the power to love others, an important part of understanding God's love is understanding who Jesus is. Jesus is: 1) our redeemer; 2) the highest form of revelation; 3) creator and owner of everything; 4) the highest authority; 5) the head of the church; 6) God.\r\nWhile the divinity and humanity of Jesus are constantly under attack, the truth that God became a human and died in our place is the basis for love and the only true gospel.

The Father's Reward

Jim Leffel

Matthew 6:1-6

The uniqueness of our relationship with God the Father is broken down into three parts: 1) the Father's passion towards us as His children, 2) the Father's redemption of His people, and 3) the Father's reward. The Father's reward is not something we work for to bolster our own image but instead work that points others to God.

Jesus: The Slain Lamb

Jeff Gordon

Revelation 5

John details seeing Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, represented as the ransom for God's people. The Lamb was slaughtered, but was able to take the scroll that no one else could open, and he was declared worthy of it. With reference to Exodus 12 and Isaiah 53, this vision symbolizes the gospel message: that Christ died in our place to offer salvation to all people.

It all turns out to be true!

Dennis McCallum

John 20:1-31

Three days after Jesus' death on the cross, Mary Magdalene, John and Peter discover his tomb to be empty. Regarding the empty tomb, several theories have been posed to account for the event, but the most rational explanation that also explains the effects after the cross is that Jesus physically resurrected as he had predicted. Without this being true, Jesus' claims would be completely false, his followers would be liars and the Bible would be worthless. Since there is real evidence that his resurrection happened, then Jesus is true; he is the sole authoritative spokesman for God and God accepted his sacrifice as adequate. As a result, there is a basis for an afterlife and having a new life in Christ.

Behold, Your King

Scott Risley

Psalms 22:14-18

Death by crucifixion is brutal and bloody, and Jesus' death on the cross was no exception. However, Jesus' death was not merely an execution but rather God's plan for the salvation of mankind, and his death simultaneously fulfilled Old Testament prophecy and satisfied God's wrath. Through his sacrifice, we are able have our moral debt paid in full and to experience a personal relationship with God.

The God of the Bible

Jeff Gordon

Revelation 1:1-20

God communicates through John to write to the seven churches in Asia about their new standing in Christ and how they can anticipate His return. John's vision of Christ's deity and a closer look at the elements in the vision reveal Christ's power and motivations as the perfect sacrifice and ultimate master of death.