Category: Faith

AOTS Number 50

Despite years behind the iron curtain, with faith in God a crime and a secular and atheistic government in control, Russians continue to hold their faith in the existence of the Divine creator.

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“Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, ‘Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. 8 And the LORD, He is the one who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed’” (Deuteronomy 31:7-8).

Consider the implications of Moses’ words to Joshua. He would take over the rule of the people of God, to lead them into the promised land. There would be many battles, many hardships, and (as it turned out due to the unfaithfulness of the people) many setbacks in his time as the leader of Israel. The words, spoken in front of all the people, were designed not only to bolster Joshua’s courage, but to present him to Israel as God’s chosen leader over them. The path taken would not be easy, but the victory of Israel was assured due to God’s presence. “He is the one who goes before you.”

Continue reading “Be Strong and of Good Courage” →

AOTS Number 8

In scripture the premium is placed not only on hearing the word of God, but doing it!

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Podcast Number 45

The writer James explains the necessity of obedience, and the relationship between faith and works in his epistle, chapter 2.

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Faith in Jesus Christ reconciles us to God, thus giving peace, sonship, heirship and eternal life.

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Ephesians 2:8-10 not only establishes the means by which we obtain salvation (by grace through faith), but also establishes the responsibility of the child of God to perform the good works God has prepared for us.

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Podcast Number 36

Moses was a great man of faith. However, on one occasion he exhibited a lack of faith in God, as recorded in Numbers 20:7-12. Even in that failure he teaches us great and important lessons concerning the faith that we have toward God.

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Podcast Number 25

The doctrine of justification by faith is a doctrine full of comfort to the Christian. It is also one of the most misunderstood doctrines in the Bible.

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Podcast Number 22

Trials and tribulations in life test your faith. However, if you overcome the trial, you become stronger, and prove yourself worthy of the crown of life. (James 1:12).

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Podcast Number # 13

The Bible reveals the true purpose of living life. This is no secret, though many in the world do not understand that the reason for living is to, “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.”

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Hebrews 11:6 affirms that biblical faith consists not only of an assent to the existence of God, but also confidence that God rewards the obedient. This teaches us that the doctrine of faith only is deficient. Faith working together with obedience justifies man.

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KIEV (Reuters) – A man shouting that God would keep him safe was mauled to death by a lioness in Kiev zoo after he crept into the animal’s enclosure, a zoo official said on Monday.

“The man shouted ‘God will save me, if he exists’, lowered himself by a rope into the enclosure, took his shoes off and went up to the lions,” the official said.

“A lioness went straight for him, knocked him down and severed his carotid artery.”

The incident, Sunday evening when the zoo was packed with visitors, was the first of its kind at the attraction. Lions and tigers are kept in an “animal island” protected by thick concrete blocks.

Analysis

This news account is rather peculiar, as it does not indicate whether the man in question was one who had faith in God, or who had taken drastic means to prove to himself whether or not God exists.  If a man doubts the existence of God, it seems rather extreme to place himself in mortal danger to find out!  Continue reading “In the News: Lioness In Zoo Kills Man Who Invoked God” →

Sometimes Christians need to contemplate some basic truths about the Christian faith, hope, love, peace and joy, which will allow us to rejuvinate our Christian walk. We need to get back to the basics.

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Sermon Title: The Impact of Our Faith

Our faith has a direct impact on every aspect of our lives and the relationships we enjoy with others.

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In the August 13th issue of the Fort Worth Star Telegram, R. Scott Colglazier, compared the practice of religion to the individualized playlists on an iPod. The iPod is a stylized MP3 music player, and presently a cultural phenomenon. Note the following from Colglazier’s pen:

If we can learn and understand that faith is individualized because of our personal perspective, it inspires us to become more accepting of other people, especially those people who ultimately download different ideas about God into their spiritual iPods. This, of course, is problematic for those who think there is only one divine truth that should be accepted by all people.

Another implication is that the religious truth we finally discover says as much about us as it does about God. Just look at the variety of music on a person’s iPod and you’ll begin to see the unique essence of that individual. To acknowledge that our beliefs say as much, or more, about us as they do about God requires a healthy dose of humility- but in the end, humility is a good thing when comes to our religion.

Finally, if religion is about exploring our depth as human beings, then faiht will always be an individualized experience. Depth is our uniqueness, and living into our unique selves goes to the heart of the spiritual journey. This is true regardless of the difficulty it creates within religious organizations trying to spawn universal language and beliefs among its members.

Analysis:

In the preceding article, Colglazier expresses a common sentiment among religious people today. You will notice that he believes faith to be subjective rather than objective. In effect, he values the subjective perceptions of the individual above what is objectively taught in the Word of God. He is welcome to his view, but it must be recognized that his view directly contradicts what the Bible plainly says:

“And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:19-21).

“And consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation – as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.” (2 Peter 3:15-16).

The iPod may be a great thing, but an iPod religion is vain before God! (cf. Matthew 7:20-21).