Simply Gospel

May my steps be worship. May my thoughts be praise.

  • Second Mile Thinking

    Say you are driving your dream car (let’s say a two-seater sports car) and stopped at a stoplight, where you see three people standing in a torrential downpour. One is an elderly lady having chest pains, your best friend who saved your life in college, and you dream girl or guy. This is not a Continue reading

  • Treasure in Jars of Clay

    II Corinthians is an interesting letter by Paul. It does not flow as smoothly as most of his other epistles, and we see a very emotional side of Paul throughout the book, particularly in chapter 2. He continually returns to the concepts of glory, of mercy, and of his own efforts as a minister in Continue reading

  • True Conversion

    To be converted is to turn away from one thing to deliberately turn toward another. It is a decisive change. To what then were you converted? We preach, “hear, believe, repent, and be baptized,” which is not a bad approach to take. The problem may be, however, that our approach converts people to ideas and Continue reading

  • Attitude Affects Altitude

    Some time ago, the Ashville, North Carolina’s tourism board ran an advertisement campaign that “Altitude affects attitude.” The idea is that going higher in the mountains makes us feel better. Conversely, in our spiritual lives, our attitude affects our altitude. It affects and reflects how high our aspirations climb. It is a powerful thing, and Continue reading

  • Paul, Philemon, and One “Illegal”

    At 460 words (in the ESV), Philemon is the third shortest book in the entire Bible. Only II John and III John manage a greater economy of words. It’s a small book in which little happens, and, in Bible studies in many congregations, it will seldom even get a full lesson to itself. I’ve found Continue reading

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  • Putting a Smile on the Cross

    We often use emoticons in our text messages, emails, and status updates to convey a mood for whatever we’re writing. Often, we’ll use a smiley face to lighten the mood, to show happiness in something we’re sharing. Can we then put a smiley face on the cross? Are we drifting toward simply being a feel-good Continue reading

  • An Earnest Hope

    Hope is what directs our footsteps toward our heavenly goal. It drives our faith and our service. I Peter 3:15 encourages us to be able to answer for the hope within us, encouraging us that we must be living as if we do indeed have hope, a hope others will see in us. In Titus Continue reading

  • A Dependable Faith

    In I Timothy 6:11, Paul encourages the young preacher to feel carnality and worldliness, encouraging him to seek after things like meekness, patience, and faith. Then, in II Timothy 2:22, Paul calls on Timothy to flee youthful lusts but to rather pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace. Then, in Galatians 5 draws a contrast between Continue reading

  • Do Not Fret

    Psalm 37 is a Psalm of David that contrasts the ways of the wicked with the ways of the righteous. David is in a good position to comment on the things listed in this Psalm, for David really did face almost every high and low a person can experience in their life. He faced trials, Continue reading

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  • Fulfilling the Whole

    Many Christians are familiar with the general outline of Ecclesiastes. The first couple chapters follow the author – very likely Solomon – searching for fulfillment in the accomplishments and possessions of this life, and none of these bring satisfaction. He then turns to various states of emotion, of intelligence, of sorrow, and ignorance. Throughout this, Continue reading