Simply Gospel

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

  • Man and the Sabbath

    And [Jesus] said unto them, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: so that the Son of man is lord even of the sabbath” (Mark 2:27-28). Perhaps one of the greatest points of contention between Jesus and the Pharisees and other religious authorities involved the Sabbath. In the Law of Moses, God commanded the Israelites to sanctify the seventh day as a day of rest – the Sabbath day (Exodus 20:8-11). Israelites, their servants, their animals, and sojourners in their midst were to do no labor on that day. For many years the people profaned… Continue reading

  • Christian Community

    The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a communion of the body of Christ? Seeing that we, who are many, are one bread, one body: for we are all partake of the one bread (1 Corinthians 10:16-17). One of the drawbacks of our technological developments over the past two centuries involves the loss of a sense of community with our fellow man. Many of us live in detached housing, travel to and from work and other events in cars, and go shopping,… Continue reading

  • “Complete My Joy”

    Paul does not often single individuals out in his letters unless it is something positive. However, when he does, Paul is serious about what he’s talking about. One such letter containing an instance of Paul singling individuals out is Philippians in chapter 4:2-3. He specifically entreats Euodia and Syntyche to live peacefully with each other. We don’t know the exact nature of the problem, but often these type of conflicts occur when the focus is on me. “I’m not getting my way;” “I can’t believe someone doesn’t agree with me;” and much of this letter seems to be centered around… Continue reading

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  • The One Verse Judge

    As we progress through the successes and shortcoming of God’s people found in the book of Joshua, we see a five-year journey of Israel spreading themselves across the Promised Land. In chapter 13, God comes to Joshua and says much work is left to be done, and it seems that the people were growing content with the progress they had made while failing to look farther. We also can grow as content as the children of Israel in our spiritual work. We think we can rest upon the progress we have made, but, as we see in the book of… Continue reading

  • Conformity

    For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8:29). And be not fashioned [conformed] according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, and ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2). Conformity involves taking the shape of one’s surroundings. A simple way to see conformity in action is to consider a glass of water: if the glass is tall and thin, the water is tall and thin. If… Continue reading

  • The Beginning of Wisdom

    And unto man he said, “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding” (Job 28:28). The pursuit of wisdom has been one of the great pursuits of the ages. For generations, people have sought out wisdom and have attempted to preserve it for their descendants. Yet, unlike technology, advancements in knowledge, and other such pursuits. the pursuit of wisdom seems to begin anew with every successive generation. Why is it that we can learn about tools and information from those who came before us, but not wisdom? For far too many, wisdom… Continue reading

  • One Step At a Time

    There are many principles we follow that make us successful in this world that we can and should be applying to our lives with God. It’s all about the choices we make. At the end of the day, have the choices I made drawn me closer to or farther from God? What motivates us on a daily basis? Until we can understand why we would want to draw closer to God, we can’t fully follow those steps to grow closer to Him. What does God expect of us? He wants us to be like Him, knowing that, if we are… Continue reading

  • The Weightier Matters

    “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye tithe mint and anise and cummin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, and mercy, and faith: but these ye ought to have done, and not to have left the other undone” (Matthew 23:23). Human beings have a tendency to maintain a narrow focus on various matters in life. It is easy for people to allow a select few criteria be their guide in the world: they decide to see everything through a certain set of lenses. The Pharisees and scribes were not much different. The New… Continue reading

  • Having Favor with the People

    And day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to them day by day those that were saved (Acts 2:46-47). When Christians consider the relationship that exists between them and the people in the world around them, it is easy to focus on the difficulties they present. Since people in the world are living according to the flesh and are therefore hostile to God, unable to fulfill His law,… Continue reading

  • Is God Real To You?

    Is God real to you? This might seem like an easy question to anyone who pursues Biblical knowledge or who come together to worship Him every week. The question, however, is not one of belief in existence. Rather, is God real to you? There is a difference between acknowledgement of theoretical existence and application of reality. We are a culture of the virtual – things that look real but are not. Has God been reduced to a theoretical exercise among those who would claim to be His followers? Why and How God Becomes Theoretical Why does God become less real… Continue reading