And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians. – Acts 11:26
The word “Christian” is nowhere used in the Bible as anything other than a noun. However, in American culture we constantly use “Christian” as an adjective or adverb to describe things such as music, movies, books, character, charitable acts, and so many other things. The great danger in this is the temptation to replace our genuine faith in Christ with traditions steeped in culture rather than God’s everlasting truth.
“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest . . . for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” –Matthew 11:28-29
Pain, who can escape this part of our reality? No one. Though we all try to avoid it, pain eventually catches up to us all.
Whether through the loss of a loved one, the lack of the life we’ve planned for, or through relational heartache, pain never discriminates. It eventually finds us all, brings us to our knees and makes us yearn for relief. Pain is raw, real, excruciating to go through, and completely unavoidable. This is a broken world, and no one escapes without some painful wounds.
There are always reasons why we sin, but there is never an excuse. In a day and age where everyone who attends high school is required to take a course in Psychology 101, where you can turn on the TV and watch Dr. Phil do a live counseling session, and where every behavioral problem in children is apparently linked back to a genetic problem solvable by medication, we are a society prone to look for the “root issue of the problem.”
It’s certainly not wrong to take a deeper look at how someone was raised, what genetic dispositions they may have, or how society has negatively shaped an individual. The Bible itself makes clear that bad actions (sin) are rooted not in the surface decisions being made but deeper, in the sinful nature (Galatians 5:17).
There are already so many great books on Christian singleness. Just do a Google search on “books on Christian singleness,” “Christian books about being single,” “best books for Christian singles,” “Christian books on finding a spouse,” “finding a godly husband,” “how to be a Christian in college.”
The results will be endless.
I’m sure you will find a lot of helpful advice in these Christian books about singleness. However, most of these Christian books about being single focus on one aspect of singleness: your relationship with God, godly dating, finding contentment as a Christian single, how to find a Christian spouse, and other such topics.
I believe the Ultimate Guide to Christian Singleness is so special because it covers nearly every common question asked about singleness. I get right to the point in these thirty chapters. I don’t waste time with long stories. And I give you extremely practical steps to take in each of the four stages most Christian singles go through. It’s great for small group Bible studies or for individuals too.
If you want answers, this book on Christian singleness was written for you.
Below is the full description. I hope you enjoy it. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email me at MarkBallenger@ApplyGodsWord.com.
Hoping you find the love, security, and guidance you need during your season of Christian singleness.
4Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. . . .
And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
11 “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”
Why does God value us so much? Where does our worth come from?
We are constantly trying to create worth in ourselves by our works. We often think God values and loves us because of what we bring to the table. It’s easy to think God chooses and elects us because he saw something special in us. But none of this is true. When God looks at people apart from the grace of Jesus Christ, he doesn’t see potential, he sees a problem.
God Values Us Because He Is Love
And yet he truly does love and value us immensely, more than we can ever fully know. The only reason God can love us even though we were his enemies is because his love is not based in us at all. He does not love us because of what we do. He loves us because of who he is, for “God is love” (1 John 4:8).
Sermon Manuscript: What Should You Do When You Have Questions About God? (John 20:24-31, John 14:4-7)
Today we will be talking about Thomas. Doubting Thomas, as he has been known throughout the centuries. As we read today, I think we will see that Thomas is a perfect example of all of us at times. We all have questions about God, some nagging thought we fear might unravel our faith if we investigate it too deeply, but then we blurt it out at God more as an accusation than a question asked in faith.
So as we study our texts of John 20:24-31 and John 14:4-7, I would like to answer this question, “What should you do when you have questions about God?” As we will see by studying these passages, Jesus doesn’t have a problem with our questions. He has a problem with our doubt. And there is a big difference between the two.
Christian dating breakups are common. Most 20-to-30-somethings have been in multiple dating relationships. Not all breakups are because of sin. Maybe after time, the two of you just realized it wasn’t meant to be. Or perhaps some of those relationships were sinful and ended because God wasn’t in it.
Regardless of the reason for the breakup, the weeks and months that follow can feel like you just got shoved down a river without a rafting guide and now you need to figure out how to survive class V whitewater rapids on the fly.
Jesus doesn’t want that for you. While the Bible doesn’t talk about Christian dating breakups, it does talk a lot about forgiveness, healing, and living a healthy life for God’s glory.
So here are four quick biblical tips that will help prepare you for the future by helping you deal with any past breakups that were unhealthy.
Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.-Luke 12:48
In a broken world, there are endless needs. So how do we decide who to support, who to serve, who to lead, and who to give our time and resources to?
There is no hard and fast rule about such things in the Bible. We are told to take care of our families (1 Timothy 5:8), we are told to help support other Christians (Romans 12:13), and we are also told to show hospitality to strangers (Hebrews 13:2). But to what degree should we offer the help since the needs of the world can be endless?
Throughout Jesus’ time on earth, he promised that his people will, without question, experience much pain, turmoil, and persecution on this earth. What is often overlooked is that he also promised that the prize for enduring these things for the sake of Christ will be far greater than the pain. Mark 10:28-30 explains:
