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Forgive Us Our Debts as We Forgive Our Debtors
Matthew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your father who is in heaven will forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your father forgive you your trespasses.
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Baptized into Christ
The word “baptized” is not the translation of the Greek work in Romans 6:3-4, but a transliteration spelling it out in English letters. The word in the original language means to dip. The figurative use of the word means to take on a new identification. After I dip a white shirt into red dye I no longer refer to it as the “white shirt,” but the red shirt. It has a new identification.
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Whose Slave Are You?
Free to serve God sounds like a paradox.
Only God is totally free. There is no such thing as absolute freedom for anyone other than God. No human being is absolutely free to do anything and everything he may want to do. Every individual is limited by or enslaved by someone or something. No one is autonomous.
We are either slaves in bondage to sin or servants of Jesus Christ. However, to be a slave of Jesus Christ is to enjoy true freedom.
This is why the apostle Paul argues in
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Chance To Grow
For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. (NLT) ( James 1:3 )
Yes, we do endure trials that will test our faith. Yes, we may fail and not behave as honorably as we would like, but use it as a learning experience. The next time you find yourself getting swept away in drama, bitterness, and anger, step away. Regain your composure and consult God to provide you with the attitude and words that will allow you to respond in a loving manner and produce an endurance of faith.
Charge it to My Account
“Charge it.” “Charge it to my account.” Those are words we hear every day in the business world.
But did you know that those words have eternal significance, too?
“Imputation” (logizomai) is a word the apostle Paul used meaning, “to reckon,” “to charge to one’s account.”
In Philemon 18 the apostle asked Philemon to have Onesimus’ debts transferred to Paul. “I …
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Some Assembly Required
Some people joke about the “Bedside Baptists” who attend the “Chapel of the Tube” on Sunday mornings. But it’s more than a joke. Many people refuse to get near a church unless their nephew is playing the role of a sheep in the Christmas pageant! They claim they can get more out of a walk in the woods than from the typical sermon.
Can a Christian survive apart from a church? Some Christians have no choice. They are trapped in a hospital bed, or working in a …
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Why Should Christians Attend Church?
For believers, there is no substitute for attending church. Besides something that pleases God, it is necessary for a believer’s spiritual well-being. For shut-ins or invalids who aren’t able to go to church, the ministries on radio or TV might be the only kind of fellowship or spiritual nourishment that they get. God certainly understands the circumstances of these people, and recognizes the sincerity of their hearts. However, it is a different matter for those who could attend church but are t …
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Being Thankful in Tough Times
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” Philippians 4:6 (NLT)
1. Don’t worry about anything. Worrying doesn’t change anything. It’s stewing without doing. There’s no such thing as born worriers; worry is a learned response. You learned it from your parents. You learned it from your peers. You learned it from experience. That’s good news …
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Jacob, Why Are You Limping?
Can you imagine a man wrestling with God and winning?
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What to do After Revival?
Heritage is freshly off a Great Awakening, but what is next. First, we need to understand what a revival is. Revival brings much needed exposure to the Word of God, and the Word of God refreshes and revives the faith that lives within us. We gain a new-found hunger for the things of God that have been lost after the mundane and stressful things of life take hold upon us. After the meetings pass, when the services become “normal” and the mundane/stressful things of …
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