UBC Wed For Life

After the previous topics addressed in this discussion, it should be understood that when we come to our faith, we should seek to move in the direction of goodness. To do that we need to seek knowledge of God so that we truly understand what goodness means. Peter said the next step after obtaining knowledge is to add self-control. It should be easy to understand why self-control comes next. It is true for anything that knowing and doing are not the same. A person’s knowledge of good doesn’t guarantee that a person will always do the right thing nor does that knowledge guarantee that a person will always avoid evil. A person needs self-control to accomplish those goals. Most people who choose to follow Jesus will try to do good things when the opportunities arise. However, even many who are on fire for God find it difficult to avoid sin completely. Getting to that point is a process, and self-control is what makes the process work. Another word for self-control is discipline.

    2 Peter 1:5-7 gave us a list of steps we need to take after we’ve come to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. The previous blog discussed goodness, the first thing we must add to our faith. As soon as we choose Jesus, we should seek to do the right thing, and with the Holy Spirit inside of us, we can work towards that immediately upon being saved. However, that is just a start. If we truly want to grow, we have to come to a true understanding of what God wants from us, and that requires seeking knowledge. As Paul said to the church in Philippi in one of his letter:   And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. – Philippians 1:9-10   Greater knowledge can enable us to better navigate our paths without falling victim to the obstacles of sin. Think about traveling in a normal sense. Suppose we wanted to travel f

When we make the decision to follow Jesus and live according to God’s will, we understand that we need to give up on our sinful ways and many of our earthly desires. For most of us, that transition is easier said than done. If our faith is true and we rely on the Holy Spirit that resides in us, no change is too great. Still, as people, we often need a plan, checklist, or something that might allow us to stay on track and understand what we’re working towards. The Bible provides some insight that could be helpful in 2 Peter 1:5-7. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. The pathway to salvation is the development and profession of faith. The above scripture provides an ordered list of the attributes we should seek after we’ve come to the Faith. To some e

Typically, I try to stay away from writing anything too personal in this blog. For one, it is not my blog, it is the United Baptist Church blog (so please UBC family feel free to contribute to it as God leads you), and second, I tend to be more private in my thoughts. However, sometimes God lays things on your heart and directs you to go against the norm, so I’m breaking tradition a little with this entry. This year hasn’t been the best for my family financially. Thank God that our bills have always been paid and we haven’t had to suffer any true hardship. Still, a number of things just didn’t go our way and others didn’t work out the way we expected or would have liked. As a result, both my wife and I have felt frustrated numerous times throughout the year. Despite those frustrations, I feel like we did a better job of turning to God and putting our faith in him, and both my wife and I have found ways to be even more active in his service. While that has resulted in us being m

What do we mean when we say we believe in Jesus? That’s a strange question to ask at this point in the discussion, but in some ways it is reflective of how we behave when it comes to our Faith. Many of us grow up in the church or are, at least, exposed to Christianity at an early age. We believe we know who Jesus is and what he represents, but don’t always ask if that belief is true to what the Bible teaches. Is it just conditioning devoid of true understanding? Consider the concept of Christian Atheism. A quick look at Wikipedia reveals the concept as such: Christian atheism is a form of cultural Christianity and an ethics system drawing its beliefs and practices from Jesus’ life and teachings as recorded in the New Testament Gospels and other sources, whilst rejecting the supernatural claims of Christianity. In other words, Christian Atheists treat Jesus as if he is a character like Paul Revere or Johnny Appleseed. They likely believe he existed, but look at the New Testamen

  Our marriages are a picture of the gospel. The greatest place to look for a picture of the gospel is the cross. The cross is an instrument of torture. People die by way of crucifixion. Jesus died on the cross. However it was not suffocation or lung collapse or asphyxia that caused the death of our Lord. He willingly gave His life up (John 10:18). 17 "Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. 18 "No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father." (John 10:17-18 NKJ) Therefore in marriage someone MUST die. Not murder lol...but willingly laying down your life for your spouse. When one person dies for the other, true love is experienced. Greater love has no man than this than to lay down one's life for his spouse. Okay, the Bible actually says " his friend " (John 15:13). 13 "Greater love has

Many believe that Christians are tasked with getting people saved. That’s not exactly true. As Believers, we are supposed to spread the Gospel. Ideally, upon hearing the Word, non-believers will come to God. However, things do not always work like that. In fact, many have no desire to even hear about Jesus, and will quickly shut down any attempt by a Believer to raise the subject of Jesus. In those cases, it is easy for us to feel like we have failed, especially for those who are particularly passionate about spreading the Good News and converting people to the Faith. What happens when people simply do not want to believe? First, we have to understand that we spread the Gospel, but the process of a person being saved is not really about us. It’s all about God. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. – Ephesians 2:8-9 We may feel a sense of rejection when we try to s

As discussed in the previous blog, the Holy Spirit can help us to remain strong in our belief no matter what we encounter. However, that begs an important question. “What about those who don’t already believe?” One must profess belief in Jesus Christ to be gifted with the Holy Spirit, so those who have not accepted Jesus as their savior do not have access to the Holy Spirit in the same way. We, as Believers, are tasked with spreading the Gospel and bringing souls to God, but how do we convince someone who simply does not believe? A story about God taking the form of a man and then coming down to earth living as one of us, dying, and being resurrected to save us all from our sins might be a hard pill for some to swallow. Jesus and his apostles encountered the same problem. They had to convert people who did not believe. Some reading this might immediately point out that they were able to win people by performing miracles. It is true that miracles played an important part in h

A pervasive misconception exists regarding the Christian concept of salvation. If you ask several different people, Believers or non-believers, how you get to Heaven, you’re likely to get several different answers. In truth, only one answer is correct. Christian salvation requires belief in Jesus. This means to confess him as Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10). Essentially it is to believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). That’s all there is to it. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. - Romans 10:10 Of course, salvation leads to new things in your life. The Holy Spirit will enter you, and your life will change accordingly. Walking the road on which salvation sets you may not always be easy. Still, the pass that gets you on that road is simply belief in Jesus as Lord and Savior. That soun

We now find ourselves in the Halloween season. It is a holiday that many Believers choose not to celebrate. As with many things, the Christian railing against Halloween is a bit misguided due to a lack of understanding about the history behind the holiday. With that said, it is undeniable that much of what has come to be associated with the holiday is not what most would consider to be of God. Still, God can use anything to make his will realized, even things that we may consider to be dark or scary. Anyone who has ever read the book of Revelation can attest to that. With a casual reading one might see this book to be the Bible’s version of a horror story, filled with monsters, death, and destruction. Even against such a dismal backdrop as is painted in Revelation, we are able to see the glory of God. This book is really about Jesus being fully revealed as the Savior and judge of the Earth. It is in this book that we get our best look at Jesus’ promised return. I saw heaven

Take a moment to honestly ask yourself a question. Where is your favorite place to be? What popped into your mind first? Was it the mall or a shopping center? Was it a favorite bar, lounge, or other social spot? Maybe it’s the gym, golf course, or other sports related venue. Was it church? For many of us, the honest answer to that question is “No.” Does church at least make your top 3? Top 5? Sure, as Believers, most of us are committed to going to church. Many of us take on responsibilities, sing along with the songs, and fellowship with our fellow congregation members. We do what we feel is required of us. We treat church the same way we treat our jobs, and though we are thankful for our jobs, they probably weren’t the answer to the questions posed above either. Why do we look at church as something akin more to work than recreation? Our relationships with God and the mission given by him are serious business for sure, but should we approach going to the House of the

Humans have subscribed to a variety of belief systems over our history. Some systems like the Greek mythology that many know from stories was pantheistic, meaning the people worshipped many gods. The Abrahamic faiths (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) are all monotheistic. We believe in one supreme God. However, even among the Abrahamic faiths, most forms of Christianity are unique in that we believe that God presents himself to us in three aspects, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The concept of a single God in three persons is one of the more difficult concepts presented to us in the Bible. The New Testament expounds upon the idea the most, but the plurality of God was evident from the beginning. Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, an over all the creatures that move along the ground.” - Genesis 1:26 Despite valiant ef

We all know the story of Adam and Eve. God created paradise and then created the first two humans to live in it. Upon facing their first temptation in the form of Satan’s trickery, they made a bad choice and disobeyed God. As a result of their action, paradise was lost, not just for them but for all of humanity (Genesis 2:4-3:24). To some that might have seemed like a harsh punishment for a first offense, but when we come to understand what the Word is telling us, we realize that it was not just a simple punishment. Because of the actions of Adam and Eve, humanity was tainted. We were no longer worthy of paradise because every generation after Adam and Eve has been born in sin. Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned - Romans 5-12 Born in sin – that’s a concept discussed several times in the Bible, but what does it truly mean? Adam and Eve tasted fruit from the Tree of Go

    As Believers we know that we are supposed to obey God’s commands and take the Bible as his Word. Still, it can be difficult understanding how some of the Bible applies to us given how different our world is from the one in which the Bible was written. However, when we read the Bible, we see that even in Jesus’ time, some had that same problem. God in his wisdom, through the Bible, has provided answers whose relevance does not fade with time. Consider the question, which was posed to Jesus about which commandments we should follow.   Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and Prophet