It’s my belief that the amount of real spiritual power someone has is equal to how much credit they are willing to give God in their hearts and actions. God greatly uses those who are finally ready to give him all the glory. If you still desire the praise, then God isn’t going to curse you with the power.
This trait of possessing power and yet knowing it comes from God is always present in those God uses the most. Joseph is a perfect example of this.
The account of Jesus feeding the 5000 is one of his most well-known miracles as it is one of the only miracles recorded in all four gospels. But why did Jesus feed the 5000?
The simple answer is that the people were hungry and out God is one who cares about daily, practical needs of people. There are more reasons, however, for why Jesus fed the 5000.
“Love your neighbor as yourself” is the golden rule. It is the summary of the entire law (Galatians 5:14). And it is the second greatest commandment within the entire Bible (Matthew 22:37-40).
But how do we love our neighbors as ourselves? To answer that, let’s look at Like 10:25-42.
The Bible says a lot about judging others. For example, Christians should not judge people’s motives, they should not judge non-believers, but they should judge other believers’ external actions if that Christian is living in sin. (For more on what the Bible says about judging others, read this article.)
However, what about being on the other side of the judgement? What should Christians do when they feel judged by others?
When I opened my email one recent Friday morning, I saw a notification regarding two new clients who would be checking into our program soon. One was getting out of prison after an eight-year term for two counts of rape. The other was coming to us after a twenty-year prison term for three counts of GSP (gross sexual imposition) and six counts of rape. Underneath their profile information was our Prison Outreach Chaplain’s signature line with the words, “Jesus, he breaks my chains!”
While the reminder of God’s power expressed in the gospel sent chills down my back, I can’t deny the internal war of feelings I had regarding these men: Why should we help these guys? They disgust me. They’re always going to be a threat to society. Nine counts of rape between the two of them! Why are they letting these men out?
But then that final line rang again in my ears, “Jesus, he breaks my chains!”
When you are a Christian who works in a secular work place, you have a real challenge in front of you. Even if you work in a Christian environment like a church or a non-profit, there will always be people who have a way of dragging you down rather than building you up. This is why Christian boundaries at work are such an important part of a healthy life.
You are not going to find the term “personal boundaries” in the Bible. However, the Bible does talk about personal boundaries in principle.
As Christians, most of us have a general awareness that it is a good thing to pray for other people and to have other people praying for you. But perhaps praying for each other is more than “good,” perhaps it is crucial.
So why should we pray for others? What benefits are there to interceding for people? Why is it so important that we pray for each other?
Why does God forgive us? He can forgive us because of the sacrifice of Jesus. But he chooses to forgive us because he is love and because he loves us.
Why should we forgive others? We can forgive others because of the sacrifice of Jesus. And we should choose to forgive because to be God’s child is to reflect his loving image. If we don’t forgive others their sins, then God will not forgive ours because this proves we have not become his children through grace (Matthew 6:14).
One AGW reader wrote in to ask a question about helping a friend who is living in sin. Below is our conversation. What advice would you share with Emily? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.