“Thus says the Lord: ‘What wrong did your fathers find in me that they went far from me, and went after worthlessness, and became worthless?'” (ESV – Read the chapter)
When someone rejects God, there’s a reason for it. That seems like it should be obvious, but perhaps it’s not so obvious as it should be. If someone has been exposed to the Gospel and then left it for something else, there’s a reason for it. Read the rest…
“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Here is a truth that the world doesn’t know and Jesus followers forget much too often and always at our peril: Our chief enemies in the battle to advance the Gospel are always ideas and never people. People are never our enemies. They are always, only, and ever creatures bearing the image of God and, prayerfully, future brothers and sisters in Christ. Our opponents are the ideas they carry and advance. It is ideas that undermine and tear down the Christian worldview. Ideas have consequences. Bad ideas have victims. We must be ruthless with ideas, but gentle and loving with people. This is a tough balance to achieve, but one we must if we are to boldly advance the Gospel as is our call.
“…for we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of man.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
But I thought honoring God was our chief concern! It is. And if something is honorable in the sight of God, but dishonorable in the sight of men, then we are just going to have to be dishonorable in the sight of men. But, neither is our goal to needlessly offend the people around us. One of the hallmarks of the earliest church is that they had favor with God, but also had the favor of all the people. Read the rest…
“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?” (ESV – Read the chapter)
This is a tough verse. It’s tough mostly because of its implications. I don’t think Paul’s point here is that we need to cloister ourselves off from the world. Rather, we should not attach ourselves to the world in such a way that we are depending on it for the things for which we should primarily depend on the Lord. Read the Rest…
“We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as imposters, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
When it comes to sharing the Gospel with the world around us, our goal should be to make certain that the only offensive thing about us is our message, the Gospel itself. Everything else about us should be a gigantic yes to the world. Or, as Paul puts it here, we commend ourselves in every way. Read the rest…
The Nexus 