I often hear people talk about the promise that “God won’t give you more than you can handle.” While no passage of Scripture uses those words, these folks probably have in mind what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:13:

No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the tempta­tion will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.

Is…

What Made You Do It ?

You can tell the folks who went through the prescribed form of becoming a
Christian, motivated solely by the fear of Hell, by the stingy and joyless way
in which they serve the Lord. While not presuming to deny that fear of
punishment is a strong motivating force in religious service, it should not
be the sole or even chief motivation. John, apostle of Christ, wrote: “There
is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear; because fear hath
torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love” (1 Jn 4:18).
Some…

“THE LORD HATH NEED OF THEM”
(Jim McDonald)

Acts 12 records the death of the first apostle, James. It also records the third imprisonment of Peter. James and John, sons of Zebedee and Salome, were among Jesus’ earliest disciples. They were apparently the first disciples of John the Baptist. John pointed Jesus out to them and John 1 tells that John and Andrew then sought Jesus out.

Spiritual growth and development was as much a part of the lives of the apostles as it is in our…

View Full Content Source:

WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE?
(Albert Brown)

Probably the most well-known verse in the Bible besides John 3:16 is Matthew 7:1. If anyone knows anything at all about the Bible they have probably memorized this verse. This is the verse where Jesus is quoted as saying, “Judge not, that ye be not judged” (ASV). For those who are caught in a sin this verse is their rallying point. They know that all they have to do with many Christians is to point to this verse and say, “You can't judge me!” They take comfort…

View Full Content Source:

For You Have Promised . . . Do I Believe?

In the second temptation of Christ as recorded in the gospel of Matthew
(4:5-7), Satan takes Jesus to a high temple and provokes him by saying, “If
you are the son of God you can jump from here. For it is written ‘He shall
command his angels concerning you and, on their hands, they shall bear
you up.’ ”
As I was growing up, I knew this as sin, because its source was the mouth of
the accuser. The problem is that Satan is not always so easy to be perceived.

Genesis Genealogy

The records of genealogy in the Bible are often the parts that we skip over.  The names are confusing, hard to pronounce, all of the “begats” start to run together, and honestly -- it’s just not that interesting.  But there are a few parts of Genesis, where the genealogy helps explain other passages in the Bible, and I’ve found them to be very interesting. We read in Jude that Enoch was a prophet who declared that God would execute judgment on the ungodly: …

View Full Content Source:

MAN'S SPIRIT AFTER DEATH
(Bill Crews)

How Did Jesus Prove The Resurrection Of The Dead?

The Sadducees, concentrated at Jerusalem and represented especially among the Jewish Levitical priests, were the liberal religious party among the Jews in the first century. They differed from the Pharisees by believing “that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit” (Acts 23:8). The Sadducees consistently denied both the existence of spirits and the reality of a coming resurrection. If humans are spiritual beings as well as physical beings, if physical death does not bring…

1. Resisting the temptation from the very beginning.
   "Joseph was handsome in form and appearance ... (and) his master's wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, "Lie with me." But he refused …”
2. He remembered his loyalty to his master,and did not want to wrong him. But, most of all,…

    This past week I witnessed kids of all ages attend Vacation Bible School to worship God and to learn about how they can be "Serving One Another." It was amazing to see young men anxiously wanting to be picked to lead a prayer or to see a little one excited as they recited the Memory Verse of the week with ease. Seeing their enthusiasm and excitement to learn about God shows that we have many young people who will continue to grow in their love towards serving the Lord.

    You may have heard this phrase spoken about young people…

On Patience and Perspective:Thoughts from Ecclesiastes

I once heard it said, that “patience is simply the art of concealing your
impatience.” Most of us will recognize the humor in that statement
because, if you’re anything like me, impatience is an oft reoccurring
struggle. Finding patience, being patient and staying patient can be
frustrating, discouraging and sometimes just downright hard.
Sound familiar? I would guess that it does. And even if you don’t
necessarily wrestle with impatience to the same degree I do, I’d suspect
most can relate or think of a time in the recent past where patience proved
to…