Born.Again.Christian.

Many Christians hold the view that it is what we do, not what we say, that is most important in spreading the gospel, however this viewpoint is entirely unbiblical. The phrase “preach the gospel and use words if necessary” spoken by Francis of Assisi is often quoted to back up the view, but Francis of Assisi never actually spoke these words at all. What he did say was, “[we]…should preach by our deeds.” ( Rule 1221, Chapter 12 ). The meaning of this is completely different to the meaning of the phrase we often hear used in our churches today. Whilst some Christian believers in the ‘actions not words’ approach are sincere and perhaps naïve, the majority who hold strong to this view do so out of cowardice and fear to speak out for Christ. Granted some people are more gifted with public speaking than others, but this should not stop any of those who have chosen to follow the Lord Jesus from speaking up and out for Him: whether it is preaching; encouraging a fellow Christia...

We are all accountable to laws. It is by the law that we are able to live peaceably and order is kept. The law is good. Knowing that there are laws in place gives us peace of mind (unless you break it, of course). Countries have objective legal structures in place and without them there would be anarchy. The laws which we live by every day are based on the principles laid down by God. Man may change and introduce different laws from time to time that are not of God, but on a whole, the moral laws in place across the world such as do not steal, do not murder, do not defraud, are all based upon God and God’s law. (The picture shows the US Supreme Court building which has the Ten Commandments etched into the stone).   We all live accountable to the local laws where we live, however we are all also accountable to God’s law which is much more sovereign and unchanging than any earthly legal system. As our laws are based on God’s law, it is sometimes easier to understand the Gos...

Psalm 12: Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases!
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men. 2  They speak idly everyone with his neighbor;
 With flattering lips and a double heart they speak. 3  May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
 And the tongue that speaks proud things, 4  Who have said,
“With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own;
Who is lord over us?” 5  “For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord;
“I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.” 6  The words of the Lord are pure words,
 Like silver tried in a furnace of earth,
Purified seven times. 7  You shall keep them, O Lord,
You shall preserve them from this generation forever. 8  The wicked prowl on every side,
When vileness is exalted among the sons of men. This Psalm is increasingly becoming a correct description of our world today. This Psalm is not focusing on the sin ...

Politicians generally have a poor reputation. Young political minds generally aspire to become politicians to try and fix the problems caused by current politicians. Rarely is a politician looked upon favourably, although there are some. Most often the reason politicians have a poor reputation is because they make all sorts of promises, but then never really act on them. A politician who makes extravagant claims but does not act upon them is not to be trusted. He is a liar and the reason for why politicians have such bad reputations. However, a politician who makes claims and backs them up by putting them into practice is to be trusted, for he has proven that he is credible. The same principle is true for the Bible. The Bible makes extravagant claims, however unlike politicians; the Bible goes further and backs up its claims with actions. This is how we know that the Bible can be trusted as God’s Word. Our trust is not based on the claims alone. It is based on the f...

There is only one way to heaven and that is through Jesus Christ. In John 14:6 Jesus states “I am the way the truth and the life, nobody comes to the Father except through Me.” However there are two ways we can approach God. We can either approach God based on His goodness or we can approach God based on our sin and shortcomings. We can praise God for His goodness or we can seek God and cry out in repentance of our sin. The Psalms uses these two approaches throughout. Many Psalms praise the goodness of the Lord and his attributes, whilst others cry out to Him in anguish of the writer’s sin. Psalm 45 focuses solely on God’s goodness. Psalm 45:2-3 “Everyday I will bless You and I will praise Your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.” Psalm 118 too focuses upon God’s goodness: Psalm 118:1 “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” Nothing is greater t...

The final chapter in Joshua: Joshua, before his death in verse 29, speaks to the people of Israel , whom He had led into the promised land, at Shechem, remembering all that the Lord had done for them and makes a covenant with God to serve Him and only Him. Joshua 24:13-14 13  I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’ 14  “Now therefore, fear the Lord , serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt . Serve the Lord ! Here we are given yet another picture of the gospel of Christ and the mercy of God toward His people. Verse 13: God has blessed his people immensely. He has taken them out of Egypt were they were slaves and brought them into a land of great abundance. There, He delivered to them cities which they did not build and vineyards an...

Matthew 5:16 " Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." Have we begun to misunderstand the meaning of shining our light before men? People have come to interpret this command as living a life of good works and happy smiles, as if this make themselves a 'better Christian' and somehow points others towards God, but this is a grave misinterpretation. Many cowardly Christians, the most cowardly of all, use this verse as an excuse not to confess Christ before men. They state that actions speak louder than words and therefore devote their lives to actions and charitable deeds whilst staying quiet; not because of any sincere belief that they hold to, but rather because it is convenient for them to hide away from their duty to preach the Gospel of Christ behind their good works. By shining their light, these types of people are are not showing the glory of God any more than the unsaved charitable person...