What Does the Bible Say about Praying for the Peace of Jerusalem
Our hearts are broken for the people of Israel who have endured such great atrocities inflicted upon women and children and the elderly, slaughtered mercilessly. I also pray for those…
Our hearts are broken for the people of Israel who have endured such great atrocities inflicted upon women and children and the elderly, slaughtered mercilessly. I also pray for those…
Question from a reader: If we are all co-heirs with Christ, then who are we going to be ruling over on the New Earth? Otherwise wouldn’t we all just be…
George Mueller once said something like this (not verbatim, but this is its essence): “I read Scripture until I come to a verse that can bear my whole weight, and…
Sex as God intended—in marriage, between a man and a woman—is a pleasure to be celebrated (see Proverbs 5:15-19). Sex outside of marriage brings serious negative consequences—emotional, physical, and spiritual. Promising…
The joy of giving is something we can instill in the hearts of our children and grandchildren from a young age. I learned of a family sponsoring a child whose…
The angels must have been stunned to see the second member of the triune God become a human being! The baby of Bethlehem was Creator of the universe, pitching His…
“Providence” is a word we use frequently in talking about God, but we may not have thought deeply about what it means. Theologian Timothy George defines it as “God’s faithful…
Rejoicing always in the Lord (see Philippians 4:4) may seem unrealistic at times. But we must remember that this rejoicing is centered not in a passing circumstance but in a constant…
Big books full of Scripture, theology, and quotations from people long dead don’t normally sell well. Yet to my surprise, and the publisher’s, over a million copies of my 2004…
I shared the following notes with a pastor friend who was preparing a message addressing sexual immorality and gender confusion. It’s a different approach, a verse by verse brief commentary…
Augustine said, “By hearing Thee I am happy; because of Thy voice I am happy.” There’s no place we can go to hear God speak authoritatively, to hear His voice…
If we recognize God’s sovereignty even over Satan’s work, it changes our perspective about our lives and suffering. Satan and God intend the same suffering for entirely different purposes, but…
We’re told that we are aliens and strangers in this world, and should be longing for a better country (Hebrews 11:13-16). However, that better country isn’t up in the clouds—it’s…
Playing into Satan’s Strategy The increase in Christians bickering over non-essentials doesn’t seem to be a passing phase. And it injures our witness, inviting eye rolls and mockery from unbelievers…
Of all the misconceptions we have about Heaven, which is the most destructive? That’s a difficult and important question to tackle. Once, while preaching about the New Earth, I cited…
“If an individual Christian does not show love toward other true Christians, the world has a right to judge that he or she is not a Christian.” —Francis Schaeffer I…
I shared the following notes with a pastor friend who was preparing a message addressing sexual immorality and gender confusion. It’s a different approach, a verse by verse brief commentary…
What will we experience on the New Earth? (Make your own list. This is just a portion of mine.) Forever more: Closeness to God greater than we’ve ever known The…
One of the most frequent questions I’ve been asked about Heaven over the years is about the nature of marriage there. As I share in my book Heaven, there will be one…
While speaking about sexual purity at my church several years ago, I told parents that if they’re going to let their children have unrestricted Internet access in the privacy of…
God is portrayed in Scripture as full of light. He has a bright radiance, seen by Moses and Elijah and Isaiah and the apostle John and shown in Christ at…
In the late 1990s, Martin Seligman, the president of the American Psychological Association, noted psychology’s emphasis on the negative side of life, including depression and anxiety, while ignoring the positive,…
How do you spend your free time? Here are Randy Alcorn’s terrific insights: “We have to look at our lives as a window of opportunity, because none of us has…
What do we know about the coming kingdom? Randy Alcorn shares his insights: “In Daniel 7:13-14 we’re given a prophetic revelation of four earthly kingdoms, beginning with Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon, that will…
I’ve developed the following material and presented it to many young people and their parents over many years. When my now married daughters were teenagers, I honed it further for…
Am I sinning if I’m not happy as a Christian?” In answering this question, I’m assuming two things of readers: You are familiar with what I’ve written about how happiness and…
Flight crews routinely announce, “If you’re traveling with a child or someone who requires assistance, in the case of an emergency, secure your own oxygen mask first before helping the…
Brother Lawrence (1614–1691) wrote The Practice of the Presence of God about his constant, conscious rehearsal of God’s presence. He saw his relationship with God not as a mountaintop experience that fades…
The widely stated notion “all sin is alike to God” is not grounded in Scripture. Yes, all sin is bad, separates us from God, and is deserving of God’s wrath.…
The God who lives in unapproachable light became approachable in the person of Jesus (John 1:14). In fact, it was Jesus Himself who made God visible to us: “No one…
I was asked a few days ago three questions related to our finances and needed perspective during these challenging times with the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis. Honestly, our needs as Christ…
When I saw the movie Paul, Apostle of Christ, I was surprised at how dark it was, focusing almost exclusively on Rome’s brutal violence done against Christians and their children.…
We are facing worldwide crises daily. Many people are struggling with fear over the future. As followers of Jesus, what should our response be? One Chinese pastor wrote, “We are…
I was asked a few days ago three questions related to our finances and needed perspective during these challenging times with the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis. Honestly, our needs as Christ…
Many people, including many readers of this blog, are facing some level of financial uncertainty right now because of the coronavirus crisis. These are challenging times, and you may find…
Many people, including many readers of this blog, are facing some level of financial uncertainty right now because of the coronavirus crisis. These are challenging times, and you may find…
God never guarantees that the Christian life will be smooth or easy. In fact, he promises the opposite: “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution”…
In Revelation, after the apostle John describes the river of life, he mentions another striking feature: “On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops…
Most people intuitively know that our expectations profoundly affect our life experiences. Yet even as believers, we simultaneously expect too much and too little. We need to discover what we…
Recently I received a thoughtful question from a reader asking if homosexuality is a “worse” sin than others in God’s view. Here’s my answer. The point isn’t that homosexual sin…
God created us to love people and use things, but materialists love things and use people. Materialism drives not just the “bad apples” of society; it drives “the best and…
How can God use stress in our lives to produce good. How can it conform us to the image of Christ. Randy Alcorn writes: 1. God uses stress to get…
Many Christians ask me, “Am I sinning if I’m not happy as a Christian?” In answering this question, I’m assuming two things of readers: Happiness and joy are synonyms, and…
Why don’t we talk about death? Why are we silent about the inevitable? Randy Alcorn shares his thoughts: “There’s an old story of a slave who travels with his master…
While I doubt anyone this side of Heaven will ever manage to fully “explain” how God’s sovereignty and human choice fully fit together, I believe Scripture provides us with many…
Do you really want to see Jesus? Randy Alcorn reflects on the happiness we will experience as we look on the face of Christ: “Ancient theologians often spoke of the…
After the first edition of my book Heaven, this question was one of the most frequently asked. It’s worth considering. Though it’s possible we may cover vast distances at immense speeds…
Have you ever sensed a time when you were fighting a spiritual battle? This is what Randy Alcorn has to say: “The warfare against demonic powers depicted in Scripture is…
Most people know that we’ll worship God in Heaven. But they don’t grasp how thrilling that will be. Multitudes of God’s people—of every nation, tribe, people, and language—will gather to…
1. Position yourself in prayer by reading Scripture first. “In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD…
I heard a pastor say, “There will be no more learning in Heaven.” One writer says that in Heaven, “Activities such as investigation, comprehending and probing will never be necessary.…
These days, it’s easy to become obsessed with everything that’s wrong with the world. We’re continually bombarded by “news” (which is sometimes more sensational than informative) that dwells on the…
Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov said, “I don’t believe in an afterlife, so I don’t have to spend my whole life fearing hell, or fearing heaven even more. For whatever…
Is everyone equal in heaven? What does the Bible teach? All people are equal in worth, but they differ in gifting and performance. God is the creator of diversity, and…
Perhaps you’re familiar with Christ’s promise in John 14: “In my Father’s house are many mansions. . . . I go to prepare a place for you” (v. 2, KJV). The Vulgate, the…
Christmas presents piled high….how many toys do our children need? How do we make our Christmas less about money and more about Jesus? Randy Alcorn writes: “An alarming number of…
Years ago, I interviewed a young man from Burundi who told me something profound: “If I fear death as unbelievers do, I have nothing to offer unbelievers. Only when you…
Christmas is not always a time of joy. Randy Alcorn shows us five ways to rejoice this holy season. He writes: “Family tensions (whose house do we go to when?),…
Joy Hlavka Forney grew up in our church. She is a missionary to Uganda and teaches powerfully on how to live victoriously in the midst of difficult circumstances. Here are Joy’s…
Why didn’t God send Jesus to the earth to die right after Adam and Eve sinned? Why did God wait all that time between Adam and Eve and the cross?…
We’ll have many desires in Heaven, but they won’t be unholy desires. Everything we want will be good. Our desires will please God. All will be right with the world, nothing forbidden.…
Do your children run to your side when they come home from school? Do family members stare silently at their smartphones during meal times? Do you stop thinking creatively when…
One of the most frequent questions I’ve been asked about Heaven over the years is about the nature of marriage there. As I share in my book Heaven, there will be one…
Augustine and Aquinas—two of history’s most influential theologians—imagined that in Heaven people would focus exclusively on God and that relationships between human beings would be minimal or insignificant.[i] These great…
I think joy in eternity will be the same sort of thing we know as joy and happiness and delight right now. But it will be purified and absolute in…
Without an eternal perspective, without understanding the reality that the best is yet to come, we assume that people who die young, who are handicapped, who aren’t healthy, who don’t…
Life is done by little decisions. The purpose of self-discipline is that we might be godly. Reclaim the hours of your day that are wasted by reading God’s Word, great…
Imagine you’re part of a NASA team preparing for a five-year mission to Mars. After a period of extensive training, the launch date finally arrives. As the rocket lifts off,…
Augustine and Aquinas—two of history’s most influential theologians—imagined that in Heaven people would focus exclusively on God and that relationships between human beings would be minimal or insignificant.[i] These great…
Do you want to experience true happiness? God’s Word gives us seven ways to be happy in Him. 1. God’s Immeasurable Love for Us In Ephesians, Paul prays that the…
What difference is Heaven supposed to make in our lives now? Why do you think many Christians don’t look forward to Heaven anymore? What are some of the biggest misconceptions…
When a man retires at sixty-five, studies show his chances of having a fatal heart attack immediately double. Our minds and bodies weren’t made to be shut down. Nowhere in…
People usually think of “Heaven” as the place Christians go when they die. A better definition explains that Heaven is God’s central dwelling place, the location of his throne from which…
Given the substantial evidence of Scripture to the contrary, the burden of proof is on those who argue people in heaven are unconcerned with and unaware of what is happening…
When asked if we would recognize friends in Heaven, George MacDonald responded, “Shall we be greater fools in Paradise than we are here?” Yet many people wonder whether we’ll know…
I talked with a young woman who viewed the Christian life as one of utter dullness. She knew that following Christ was the right thing to do, but she was…
The disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! —John 20:19 Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and…
Even though I believe we’ll live in time in Heaven, God is certainly capable of bending time and opening doors in time’s fabric for us. Perhaps we’ll be able to…
Given the substantial evidence of Scripture to the contrary, the burden of proof is on those who argue people in heaven are unconcerned with and unaware of what is happening…
Is it okay to talk to our loved ones who’ve gone on to be with Jesus? First, would it even be possible for someone in Heaven to know what’s happening…
People usually think of “Heaven” as the place Christians go when they die. A better definition explains that Heaven is God’s central dwelling place, the location of his throne from which…
People usually think of “Heaven” as the place Christians go when they die. A better definition explains that Heaven is God’s central dwelling place, the location of his throne from which…
We need to suffer in order to reign with Christ. When you are in the middle of suffering and you doubt that Jesus cares for you, picture Him stretching His…
Heaven is the place where God will bring good from bad. The greatest stories have powerful beginnings and triumphant endings. In the middle, things go wrong. Jesus is the God-Man…