Christians should be known as great givers. But what causes should you be giving to? You should support local churches and other ministries in teaching and preaching the grace gospel. But where else should Christians focus their giving? The Apostle Paul was a church planter and a missionary. He’s best known for preaching the gospel […]

What would you do if you could follow Jesus for three years? How would you occupy your time if you could walk alongside the Messiah—alongside God incarnate? I’ll tell you what the disciples did—they argued! Specifically, they argued about who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven: They came to Capernaum. When he was in […]

Question: “I would really like to know: is listening to secular music (note: not satanic music like metal, etc...) a sin, and am I eternally damned for listening to it as a Christian?” Answer:Dear W—, There are a few layers to your question. First, you ask if a Christian can lose his or her salvation […]

How is your thought life? What kinds of things do you think about, and what do you think about most? Do you ever spend time thinking about your faith? Are there areas of your thought life that you know are out of line with Christ? How important is it that you address those areas? Here’s […]

One of the hardest things about parenting is getting my kids to pay attention. Getting them to remember instructions has been very challenging. I know they’re capable of it. They have amazing memories…when they want to! They can remember, down to the penny, how much money I owe them for doing chores. Or they can […]

Does your salvation depend on how you handle money? Throughout the centuries, Christians have often been taught that going to heaven or hell can depend on what you do with your wallet. But the grace message can help clarify many of those misconceptions, giving you a more Biblical view of giving. Confusion about money and […]

A concerned reader wrote: “I am writing you to express my concerns regarding Shawn’s FGI blog on December 28, 2022, ‘The Riches You Already Possess (Ephesians 3:8).’ Under the guise of focusing on Christ, this blog is telling believers not to focus on eternal rewards. This is basically a denial of the importance of eternal […]

I overheard some people criticizing a famous preacher for his illustration of what it means to repent. Frankly, they were right—his illustration was terrible. But I couldn’t fault him for trying to translate a theological term using language his audience could understand. Have you ever listened to a sermon and had no idea what was […]

What is God able to do for you? Has He made any promises you can take as true as you live by faith? Handley Moule, an early Keswick speaker and New Testament scholar at Cambridge, thought people needed to be reminded of God’s promises to work in their life. Faith always needs an object. If […]

Are you still hopeful about the Christian life or are you just about ready to give up? Have you been burned out for so long that you’re not sure how much longer you can go on? You can get so beat down by sin that you don’t know what’s possible for Christ to do for […]

Where does your charitable giving go? You’re generous with your money, but are you sure it’s not being wasted? Michael Eaton, a British theologian pastoring in Africa, once complained, “wealthy Christians are not very skillful at asking questions and finding out where their money goes” (Eaton, Branch Commentary, p. 631). Should that be a concern […]

My day hadn’t started off well. Just before Christmas, I caught what Texans call “the crud.” It’s something that’s worse than a cold but not quite as bad as the flu. I had been coughing and headachy and had feverish dreams all night long. Aren’t fever dreams the weirdest? That night I dreamt I was […]

Have you made your New Years’ resolutions? What are you planning? Will you go to the gym regularly? Cut out carbs? Buckle down on learning that new language? Save more money? Drink more water and less alcohol? Read the Bible in a year? Do you know what those resolutions are? Laws. They’re little-“l” laws you […]

As my kids get older, it’s satisfying to see them do more and more on their own. Today, Daphne spent five hours working on a horse ranch. She won’t be paid any money; she’s earning riding lessons. At breakfast, Abby was teaching Scout how to make oatmeal. She already knows how to make the instant […]

Who or what do you depend on for what you have? Some Christians are reluctant to give because they don’t trust God to provide for them. They know they should be giving, but they’re more certain of the bills they have to pay than they are of God’s provisions. They worry that if they give […]

“Eternal rewards aren’t the goal,” my friend insisted over lunch. “You don’t believe in eternal rewards?” I asked skeptically. “I absolutely believe in them,” he answered. “But I’m saying they aren’t the goal.” “How so?” “I think we can be so focused on eternal rewards that we lose sight of what we should really be […]

All religions and philosophies have the same fundamental story and structure. As Alfred Edersheim wrote: “Every moral system is a road by which, through self-denial, discipline, and effort, men seek to reach the goal” (Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah). Whether Vikings trying to get into Valhalla, Muslims into Paradise, Mormons into Celestial […]

Christmas season is upon us, and millions of people will be exchanging gifts, for just as many reasons. Some will give out of goodwill; some under pressure. Some will give out of love, and others to be loved. This is the season for giving. But what should motivate Christians to give? In his book, Give […]

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your […]

All Christians are designed to be fruitful. Jesus compared us to branches on a vine, and in John 15:1-5, He presented four possibilities of fruitfulness: you can bear no fruit, some fruit, more fruit, or much fruit (see here). However, it is worth pointing out that you can take two very different approaches to the […]