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What exactly is the “Gospel”? There is a specific definition: “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the Gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you; unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.” (1 Corinthians 15:1-5) Jesus died for (because of our sins); Jesus was buried; Jesus rose, Jesus was seen. There are many ways that can be s

(Author’s note: this article is an excerpt from my book “The Gospel of John – As Seen Through The Eyes of a Relative Nobody – Volume 2”) In John 14:6 Jesus refers to Himself as “the truth”. Later, as He prepares the disciples for His departure, He refers to the Holy Spirit as “the Spirit of truth”. “…when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.” (John 15:26) He explains why this is a good thing. “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” (John 16:7) The term “it is to

“A man who wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.” (Proverb 21:16) The word “assembly” literally means “congregation.” I did a word search in the King James and it only shows up in English in the New Testament one time (referring to those attending a Jewish synagogue for non-Christian worship). The other 330 times it shows up are all in the Old Testament all referring to whole units of people - nations. A few of those refer to pagan nations like the Amorites. Pretty much all the rest refer to the nation of Israel as a “congregation” or whole nation. (Conspicuously absent is ANY mention of fragments of the whole Body of Christ as “congregations” – the way

I was reading a story on social media recently. In this true story some cowards were beating a defenseless man in the street. No one used their cellphone to call the police to save the man. They were too busy videotaping the beating….and laughing about it. People are bragging about how many abortions they have had. They obviously don’t care that they helped murder all those babies. They also do not care about those who wanted to have babies but miscarried and grieve that loss deeply. Others openly make fun of people with physical, mental, or psychological disabilities. I’ve seen people post videos of drug addicts stumbling around and fighting invisible foes that they are hallucinating. Other

"Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad." (Proverb 12:25) This verse made me think about anxiety and depression, some of which is related to physical problems and I know that some has demonic origins. However, most is related to lifestyle issues and beliefs that harm the human soul. I’ve been around a long time now. I’ve NEVER seen so much anxiety and depression in the world. I’m sorry to say that I believe it will get worse and worse….unless something significant changes. I believe this because so many God-given boundaries are being challenged and abandoned. God designed and BUILT people. In every creation there are limitations. There are ways they are

I was reading a book review today in a Christian magazine to which I have subscribed for years and the reviewer voiced his approval of the writer(s) of a book with these words: “…believing the Christian faith is a good product, just one that’s been marketed poorly.” I don’t have a problem with sales people marketing “products”. I’m all for a free market in which products are bought and sold. Toothpaste and hair spray and other items should be advertised and sold. It DOES, however, irritate me to no end to see faith in Jesus treated like a product. Faith is not a commodity. Belief in Jesus is not something to be bought and sold, yet, we see people in the RELIGION known in the world as Christi

I experienced something this past Saturday night and on my way back to where I am staying the Lord revealed something about the whole experience. In order for me to communicate it in a way that will matter, I have to give some background. Eighteen months ago I was called to Houston from where I live in North Texas. A beloved friend, a man I had pastored for many years, had died in his sleep. I rushed down to provide support for his surviving friends and to try to make his funeral arrangements. It was an exceedingly sad time for me. I watch over the souls of a few others in Houston and while I was there I had dinner with one of them (Michael) who has a ministry there and who also watches over