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“Then a scribe came and said to Him, ‘Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.’ Jesus said to him, ‘The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head’” (Matthew 8:19–20). Superficially, Jesus’ expression “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” has nothing to do with the scribe’s confident words. In proverbial style He simply wanted to caution the man that even though He was God’s Son, His ministry did...

Matt Chandler, lead pastor of The Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas, recently criticized the amusement-driven church and encouraged Christians to participate in the Body of Christ for the purposes of discipleship and community — not entertainment. In a sermon delivered May 12, Chandler shared how, shortly after he began his ministry at The Village Church, his congregation grew from several hundred to several thousand. “My passion has not changed. I do not want to be a conference speaker. That is not what we’re doing,” he said. “You and I are so overstimulated, you and I are so overwhelmed with...

I’ve talked a lot about abortion in the last month, since the New York legislature cheered it’s extreme late-term abortion bill. Part of that story was how badly the legislation reflected on Christians. Just days after touting his Roman Catholic faith in a speech, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Reproductive Health Act into law, making it legal to kill unborn babies in his state all the way up to birth. I’m not Catholic, but I’ve long admired the Catholic Church’s moral clarity and courageous stand on behalf of unborn children. When many evangelical and Protestant churches were AWOL...

Question: "I am a new Christian. What is the next step?" Answer: Congratulations! If you are a new believer, you have just experienced the beginning of your new, eternal life (John 3:16; 10:10). Your sins have been forgiven and you have been given a fresh start (Romans 4:7). You have now been given inexpressible, glorious joy (1 Peter 1:8-9). In addition to the wonderful blessings of knowing Christ, you are probably thinking, “Now what? What is the next step?” The Bible offers some important principles for those who have begun a relationship with God. First, as a new Christian, begin...

Five Disciplines of Discipleship - A Homily for the 13th Sunday of the Year Msgr. Charles Pope • June 25, 2016 • The Gospel today portrays for us some disciplines that are important for disciples. They are portrayed in the life of Jesus, but are to be applied in our lives. Let’s look at each of them in turn. I. Purposefulness – The text says, When the days for Jesus’ being taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him.Note that Jesus was resolute. He was heading to Jerusalem to...

Evangelicals Didn’t Even Study for This Test ...this year, LifeWay used more stringent criteria for evangelical faith, as defined by some group called the National Association of Evangelicals. Only participants who called the Bible their highest authority, said personal evangelism is important, and indicated that trusting in Jesus’ death on the cross is the only way of salvation, were labeled “evangelical.” They totaled 586 survey-takers. Everyone expected them to perform better than most Americans. No one expected them to perform worse. Seven in ten evangelicals—more than the population at large—said that Jesus was the first being God created. Fifty-six percent...

Perhaps that seems like a strange question. Can we see faith? You decide. - Noah built the ark by faith (Heb. 11:7). What did the people without faith do? - Rahab hid the spies by faith (Heb. 11:31). If she hadn't had faith, wouldn't she have turned them in instead? Did the people hunting for the spies have faith? - Abraham left his home and went where God led him, not even knowing where he was going, because he had faith (Heb. 11:8-9). If he hadn't had faith, would he have gone or stayed home? It is faith that causes...

Peek behind the curtain of some "progressive" or "hip" evangelical churches, past the savvy technology and secular music, and you will find more than just a contemporary worship service. You'll find faith leaders encouraging young evangelicals to trade in their Christian convictions for a gospel filled with compromise. They're slowly attempting to give evangelicalism an "update"—and the change is not for the good. It's painful for me to admit, but we can no longer rest carefree in our evangelical identity—because it is changing. No doubt you have seen the headlines declaring that evangelicalism is doomed because evangelical kids are leaving...

It’s not a secret the church has been in decline for a number of years and for a variety of reasons. You can read some statistics and views on why, here and here and here. Everyone has their opinions.Abuse, apostasy, and irrelevance are just a few of the words that keep coming up in the search for reasons for the decline. There are a variety of compelling opinions and I even have a few of my own.But I suggest there is another area of decline more significant and perhaps much less obvious—and one that certainly contributes to the church’s decline...

INTRODUCTION:        This is another chapter in the study of the Seven Baptisms, one book of the series entitled, Fundamental Facts For Searching Saints (Acts 2:41,42). Baptism has quite a significant meaning in The God’s Word according to the viewpoint of The God. What does baptism mean to you? How does your meaning of Baptism by The Holy Spirit compare with The God’s as clarified by His Dearly Beloved Son?    In order to fix the basic facts firmly in our minds, a brief review is always helpful. The word “baptism” is the translation of the Greek noun βάπτισμα (Báhp-teesmah). It comes from the verb βαπτίζω (bahptéez0) translated ‘baptize’ and...

Last night I had the opportunity for the first time to see the Passion Play. Aside from the positive message presented in the play, what struck me most about the performance was the number of local actors involved and the ramifications that such a number of Christians equipped to share Christ’s message could have on the local region.

John MacArthur has a new book coming out entitled, Slave: The Hidden Truth About Your Identity in Christ. This blog post includes a promo video. MacArthur claims that the Greek word doulos which is used a 150 time in the NT has been improperly translated as servant and that has negatively impacted how Christ-followers have viewed their identity. Thoughts?

A big determinant of your hermeneutics is the people you sit next to in church. Calvin, Barth, Bultmann, and Meredith Kline have all trickled down to you a little, but they don't hold a candle to the influence of Joe, Steve, Liz, and Mary. Hermeneutics, in other words, is mainly taught incarnationally. Nobody knows this, of course. We all think we're just believing what the Bible says. But as the fish is the last to know he is in water (because of the ubiquity of the water), so each church swims in its own soup, that only an outsider can...

www.catholicnewsagency.com Get rid of your 'false hang-ups' and be disciples of Christ, cardinal says Cardinal Stanyslaw Rylko Rome, Nov 14, 2008 / 11:49 pm (CNA).- The president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, Cardinal Stanyslaw Rylko, said this week, “The time has come to free ourselves from our false hang-ups of inferiority towards the secular world and courageously be ourselves, disciples of Christ.”During his remarks at the opening of the Council’s plenary assembly, which this year is focused on the theme, “Twenty years after Christifideles laici: memory, development and new challenges and tasks,” the cardinal stated that “our...

Do you really want to hate your family or stop from having one or he wants you to be humble as your arrogance is so great that you could leave and hate your own family in the name of God? The CatalystWhat is it that makes your life different?There is always something that makes you the way you are, something that is not part of your life but it had an influence in the way you do things, what you talk about, in general your "values".A catalyst is something that produces a change, but not part of the result. Acknowledgement of...

“‘Follow Me’: The Call to Discipleship” (Matthew 4:18-22)Today we begin a series of five messages based on the “Follow me” sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. We were going to start this series this past Wednesday night, but the ice kept that from happening. So we begin today, and then we’re back on schedule for this coming Wednesday. “‘Follow Me’: Jesus Calls Us to Discipleship” is our series theme. Note: Calls “us.” For as we hear Jesus calling disciples in the first century, he is also speaking to us in the twenty-first century, saying to us even now,...

This is a video of a missionary who is truly preaching the Truth and ought to cause everyone, through his message of the Word, to repent. (See 2 Corinthians 13:5) Watch this video which someone took an made it a music video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OY6F0...eature=related Full Message: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuabITeO4l8 He is the director of HeartCry Missionary Society (http://www.heartcrymissionary.com/co...page/Itemid,1/). When you watch it make sure you have the time to sit down like you would a church service get out a pen and your bible and follow along. If you’re a leader in the church whether it be a youth worker, Bible teacher, greeter...

Becoming a Disciple By Elder Neal A. MaxwellOf the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Next > < Previous Neal A. Maxwell, “Becoming a Disciple,” Ensign, Jun 1996,  12He who bore the atoning yoke has asked us to “take my yoke upon you and learn of me.” Indeed, the taking of Jesus’ yoke upon us is what constitutes serious discipleship.How grateful I am that we may rejoice in God’s great gift of immortality, unearned and universally given to mankind through the Resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be...

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. For lo, those who are far from thee shall perish; thou dost put an end to those who are false to thee. But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all thy works. Psalm 73: 26-28 Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus,  by the new and living way which he opened for us through the curtain,...

And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every infirmity.  When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest." Matthew 9: 35-38RSV Compassion -- to suffer with. O Lord, Emmanuel, God with Us, Who suffers with us, Who feels our griefs,...