THE BLOG
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Remember The Greatness of Your Salvation
Mel Fisher had a great 64th birthday. A treasure hunter, Fisher owned Treasure Salvoras, Inc., and had been looking for the Spanish galleon (Neustra Senora de Atocha) for 17 years. The ship, loaded with precious cargo, sank in 1622 during a hurricane. It was on its maiden voyage from Havana to Spain. On a July day just before his 64th birthday, Fisher discovered the ship and its treasure about 40 miles west of Key West, Florida. Imagine his joy that day as his divers brought up from the deep an estimated 150 pounds of gold, including 76 gold bars, gold chains, and gold disks! In addition to this find, more than 900 silver bars and 100 gold bars have been recovered. It is estimated that the ship’s fortune may contain a treasure worth more than $340 million. Wow! Can you even imagine?!
Living Hope
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1:3).
The tone of the opening of Peter's letter is full of praise to God, encouraging the believers to keep their hopes up! After expounding on our great salvation and the future that awaits believers, Peter declares in verse 13, "Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:13).
How Does a Christian View Sin?
After Romans 5, Paul asks a pivotal question of those who do believe in 6:1, “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may increase?” This is an important question for those of us who believe, and I hope, the majority of us who are receiving this weekly CCFW email. How do we view sin once we are saved? We know that it is not a master enslaving us, that we no longer have imputed sin, and that God has created us anew through His Spirit (2 Cor 5:17). But we still struggle with sin, don’t we? Here are a few points that I hope will encourage us to have a proper view of sin now that we are in Christ:
Our Best C.E.O.
This past Sunday we highlighted two overarching ministries of the Holy Spirit in our study on Sound Doctrine. He is the Chief Executive and Chief Enabler of our Christian life. One of the points we stressed is making sure we do not over-emphasize the Holy Spirit (as our charismatic brothers and sisters tend to do) nor under-emphasize His ministry (as cessationists can tend to do). We are totally dependent in every way upon the Presence and power of the Holy Spirit.
As we continue to grow in our understanding and application of the Spirit’s ministry, we want to make sure we are responsive to the eight commands given about how we relate to the Holy Spirit:
Enticing Questions
Summertime always seems to be a greater opportunity to interact with people and engage in gospel conversations.
There’s more light.
There are more people out and about
Environments are more relaxed.
People seem happier and more relational.
That's My King! Do You Know Him?
Probably the greatest, most moving, and inspiring presentation of Jesus Christ I’ve ever heard was by Shadrach Meshack Lockridge, former Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in San Diego (1953–1993, now at home with the Lord). We have shared this presentation a number of times with our church family and it always elicits a fresh reminder of how unique, amazing, and praiseworthy our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is. It never gets old.
Why We Are Pro-Life
It is not because of the existence of life-killing organizations like Planned Parenthood who claim that abortion is only a tiny part of what they do when the facts clearly say otherwise (latest annual report states: adoption referrals–2,667; abortions–354,871).
It is not because of the life-denying statements that many of our public leaders have made this past week:
Knowing God?
The prophet Jeremiah quoted the Lord’s desire that we know Him: “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Let not a wise man boast in his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast in his might; let not a rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am Yahweh who shows lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,’ declares Yahweh.” (Jeremiah 9:23–24 The Legacy Standard Bible Translation)
S.U.M.M.E.R.T.I.M.E. Tips
We are all hoping (at least I am) for the beautiful sun to break out soon and give us some consecutive days to enjoy the summer together with our families, friends, and brothers and sisters in Christ. As you think about your summer plans, I’d like to share a few summertime tips.
Solomon tells us “there is an appointed time for everything…” (Ecclesiastes 3:1) and we all enjoy the summertime to get some extra time to relax, refresh, and enjoy an outdoor season of life.
Here are a few S.U.M.M.E.R.T.I.M.E. tips:
