Why Should I Keep My Heart Pure?
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). There are basically only two kinds of religion in the world: those based on human achievement and those…
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). There are basically only two kinds of religion in the world: those based on human achievement and those…
Dear Roger, I’m very concerned about what I just read in Joshua chapter seven. A man named Achan knowingly disobeyed God. Then, God stoned him and his family to death…
One of my favorite authors, Donald Grey Barnhouse, said, “Love that reaches up is adoration. Love that reaches out is affection. But love that stoops is grace.” Philippians 2:5-11 deals…
“He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” Psalm 23:3 NKJV A friend organized a Christmas cookie swap for our church office staff. The plan was…
The language in the Ten Commandments is countercultural, counterintuitive, offensive, and shocking to anyone who has not embraced the God-centeredness of God. We might summarize the first two commandments like…
Paul, in his first epistle to the Thessalonians, clarified further what the concept of “being ready for the coming of the Lord” is all about. He used the same analogy-being…
The term Beatitudes means ‘The Blessings’ or ‘be- attitudes’, as in the attitudes we should live by or be. These character traits, when observed by others within an individual’s life,…
The anointing of the Holy Spirit enables the believer to minister with God’s power. It allows us to discern truth from error. www.ocbf.org
“Conscience is what makes a boy tell his mother before his sister does.” ― Evan Esar “It is neither right nor safe to go against my conscience.” ― Martin Luther…
We need to build our faith on a strong foundation that will protect us when the storms rage. Because a man is the foundation of our society, anything a spiritually-strong…
It’s ten o’clock, do you know where your husband is? Apparently many Americans are asking this question, judging by the sales and buzz generated by The Script: The 100% Predictable Things…
Every once in a while a new movement comes along that seeks to capture the attention of people away from traditional faith commitments. My attention was grabbed by one so-called…
“Just as you’ll never understand the mystery of life forming in a pregnant woman, so you’ll never understand the mystery at work in all that God does” (Ecclesiastes 11:5 MSG).…
Would it surprise you to know that according to at least one study, 20.4 million Americans practice yoga?[i] Can Christians do yoga? Should Christians do yoga? When my wife approached…
Dear Roger, My pastor told me that I never have to sin again. How can that be true? Sincerely, Katie Dear Katie, The problem is a misunderstanding of what really…
John Piper, in his magnificent book, “Why I Love the Apostle Paul,” asks us why Paul didn’t boast more about his vision of the third heaven. Where did Paul go?…
John Piper, in his magnificent book, “Why I Love the Apostle Paul,” asks us why Paul didn’t boast more about his vision of the third heaven. Where did Paul go?…
What do you want out of your Christian experience? If you’re like most people you might answer that you are looking for peace, strength during difficulties, or even some level…
Do you need to make a decision about something that seems so exciting, but you can’t seem to shake the hesitation in your heart? We have a family friend named…
Intercessors live on the frontier of change. We are positioned to stand between the needs of man and the provision of God. Because we are the agents of redemption, Satan…
CNN’s Belief Blog presented four signs that a person’s religious beliefs might be radicalized. This stood in contrast to a TED presentation showed that 75 percent of the world’s population…
Hello Roger, I was just reading your teaching on divorce and remarriage and I find it very fulfilling because we are dealing with those issues in our church and this…
Dear Roger, We live in an age of Blamers. Won’t anybody stand up and admit they are guilty without making excuses! We were discussing this in my small group…
I’m not sure if this is in a book somewhere, but it’s widely known that the easiest way to get out of a Christian dating relationship is to throw the…
Anger is a God-given emotion. Which of these statements about anger is true? “I should never allow myself to become angry.” “Anger can become a sin, and that’s okay.” “The…
Dear Roger, I am a high school senior and I got into a discussion about Jesus with my best friend. She is not a Christian and I’ve been…
Introverts and extroverts — it seems like a useful designation for personality types. Even if they’re not biblical categories, they lead to an interesting conversation for Christians, and to this…
There is a girl in church (or group of girls who wear totally inappropriate clothes to church. What do I say? Drop Your Stone For those of us who…
“What would you do if you were 22 again?” I was recently asked that question as part of a conference on world missions. I turned 22 in the middle of…
Genesis 2:18 “The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” NIV I will make….. …a helper…
Saul was a bad king. He was impatient when he should have waited, and he hesitated when he should have advanced. Chapter 15 of 1st Samuel is a dark moment for…
Theological conclusions depend more on our biography than most of us admit. We’d like to think we reached our views through an unbiased approach to the biblical text, but self-reflection…
Dear Roger, I need to know why I can’t seem to sense God is with me. Have I been rejected for some reason? Romans 8:35-39 states several things that cannot…
Professor Julia Blum teaches at eteacherbiblical.com out of Tel Aviv, Israel. Her profound knowledge of the Bible and Jewish history will greatly bless you this Christmas: When was the Silent…
End-times Christians will be lovers of themselves, greedy, boastful, proud, abusive and disobedient to parents. We can stand out from the crowd by failing to conform to the decadence of…
When is the last time you preached or heard a message on grieving or lamenting that was not at a funeral? When is the last time your church sang a…
It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine… That’s a line from the chorus of a hit song by the band R.E.M. And I think,…
Pastor Francis Chan deals with the moral failure of a church leader in a wise, compassionate, godly fashion. Sin must be dealt with, but our focus in facing the issue…
Raising money. Challenging, but doable. According to social policy expert Dr. John McKnight, “you don’t know what you need until you know what you have.” Needs are easy to spot…
“Blessed is the person who is not offended by me.” ~ Matthew 11:6 To be offended means to stumble or trip. The Scripture tells us that Jesus is a rock…
Anticipate and reflect! Experiences aren’t truly yours until you think about them, analyze them, examine them, question them, reflect on them, and finally understand them. — Warren Bennis My favorite…
If you’ve listened to fairy tales, or if you’ve watched early classic Disney cartoons, one thing becomes clear: a lot of “poor little” princes and princesses shared a common family…
Just a few days after my husband’s passing, my phone rang. For the sake of protecting the guilty, let’s say the caller represented Shady Pines Old Folks Home. Me: “A…
Churchgoers can listen to a sermon and never apply it. If they trusted Christ when they were young, they often trust that one-time decision to keep them out of hell…
Hebrews 12 teaches that systems will be shaken, but in God’s power we will remain stable. Relationships will be shaken, but in God’s presence, we will remain secure. Hope will…
The Master held a great banquet. When he issued invitations, everyone made excuses not to come. Francis Chan talks about the importance of honoring God, entering His Throne Room, and…
The Feast of Booths is all about this homecoming – the journey the Israelites would make and the disappointments they would have to face . It is the feast of…
Christians have made the gospel about so many things … things other than Christ. Jesus Christ is the gravitational pull that brings everything together and gives them significance, reality, and…
You probably hear a lot about how much our society has progressed. Whether it’s technological or scientific advancement, breakthroughs in medicine or manufacturing, or any other area where progress can…
Francis Chan uses the television show “24” as an illustration to remind us that we must live for eternity. God is in control, and we must not be complacently. Many…
No one wants their garbage revealed. You have this picture of this big God. Jesus said to the church at Sardis, “Recognize who I am, and that you are dead…
Months after Rick’s father died, Rick’s wife Cathy began to worry about her husband. “Rick has never cried or talked about his father’s death,” she says. “Now he spends all…
In the third sermon of the series “Blueprint,” Pastor Glenn Barteau makes the following observations about entering into the joy of God. Stop seeking a precise formula for the spiritual…
Bleary-eye and pre-coffee, I stumbled into my bathroom and took a gander in the mirror. YIKES! All I could see were bags beneath my eyes and sags where I used…
Dear Roger, I recently became a Christian and I have a question. The woman who led me to Christ encouraged me to start reading my Bible immediately. She told me…
Because of Jesus, we have been washed completely clean, set apart for God’s purposes, and declared just before God. All of these blessings come at the huge price of Jesus’…
Pastor, I know you’ve got a lot on your plate and the last thing you need is more stuff to deal with. But you ought to know about a few…
God is serious about our commitment to Him. Our prayers must be carefully crafted and come from an obedient heart and an expectant faith. Chan summarizes examples from Scripture where…
Why does God put us on the shelf? Let’s look at Moses, Paul and Jesus and find out why… Just got home. Opened the frig. An odiferous gallon of…
When you are dealing with someone, be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Differentiate between the Holy Spirit’s revelation and your manipulation. Don’t ignore red flags. Don’t internalize, verbalize. And finally,…
Who is this God to whom your prayers ascend? Belief in what God can do will give you strength and more confidence in your prayer life. When unbelief takes control,…
The godly person stays apart from worldly influences, reverences God supremely and feeds on His Word continually. He will weather any storms. from Cornerstone Church archives, Cornerstone Church, Simi Valley,…
Francis Chan continues his series on how the Holy Spirit operates in our lives and the life of the church. In this sermon from Galatians 5:16-26, he encourages to live…
It all happened in one day. One day he could choose his tee time at the nicest golf course in the country; the next he couldn’t even be the caddie.…
Hosea was asked by God to marry an unfaithful woman and love her unconditionally. In doing so, he demonstrated the kind of amazing love God has for his children.
I still chuckle when I think about the joke I heard about the game warden who got a quick lesson on fishing. It seems he noticed how this one particular…
Francis and Lisa Chan discuss how to have undivided devotion to God in a marriage and as a single person. A person who is not married has freedom and time…
What if you are confused by God’s actions? “Joseph … did what the Lord’s angel had told him to do.” Matthew 1:24 The white space between Bible verses is fertile…
The Apostle Paul (in 1 Cor. 13) challenges a couple of different paths where the believers have gotten sideways and are missing the “most excellent way” of living. It’s a…
Since it is virtually impossible to identify and erase all of the misleading information in our mental computers, the only way to change our thinking habits is to input new…
Dear Roger, Are there no accidents in death because God appoints all deaths? And if so, then why should we bother wearing seatbelts? Sincerely, H Dear H, …
Have you seen control and manipulation divide your church? Have you suffered through the fall of a spiritual leader into sexual sin? The life of Queen Jezebel gives us a…
God’s blessings in our lives can easily be turned into smug, self-satisfied arrogance if we grab the glory for ourselves rather than thanking Him. Climbing the ladder of success led…
We must have a God-centered, not man-centered theology. Therefore, it is our obligation to keep Christ’s Bride, the Church, pure. If we do not judge and discipline perpetual sin inside…
Is change, spiritual growth, a natural part of becoming a Christian? Yes. Living in the status of disciple has, as a natural part and progression, spiritual formation in Christlikeness. Progression…
The will of God often sends us to meet needs and into danger. It is hard to remember that Jesus did not come to make us safe, but rather to…
Psalm 51 is a great pattern for confession and repentance. After visiting a church in the midst of a great revival, Pastor Chan believes the key to revival and spiritual…
Salvation is by grace through faith. That is a foundational truth. But it is usually understood to mean that nothing you do contributes to salvation. With this, a pervasive passivity…
There are essentially two ways of responding to life’s hurts and unfair experiences. Every time we get hurt, we choose to respond in one of these two ways. The first,…
The “ready” position is the stance that an athlete takes to be prepared to take on any challenge. If you’re ready, you are not afraid. Don’t be afraid of tyrants,…
Coming into God’s presence for worship requires us to humble ourselves, listen, and put away any uncleanness that can scar our lives. God’s revelation of His holiness and glory will…
What should we continually pray? Should we just pray for the ordinary needs of our lives-safety, security and happiness? Paul encourages the Ephesian Christians to continually pray for a deeper…
My faith is grounded in history, supported by historical evidence. Therefore, my approach to history is critical. The modern approach precludes the possibility of the supernatural. I see that I…
Paul the apostle teaches that if we know who we are and believe who we are, then we must live who we are-walking worthy of Jesus Christ. We reflect His…
Just like the hedonistic culture that the Corinthian believers faced, Paul teaches that what we do on this earth has consequences in the next life. This life is not all…
Spiritual practices such as prayer, fasting and meditation lead to great freedom. They exist for our sake, not God’s. They enable us to do what we cannot do through direct…
The Lamb of God is also the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. When Christ cleansed the Temple, He became furious at the blatant, presumptious sinfulness of God’s people. We…
Jesus teaches in the Sermon on the Mount that a “worry free” life is always lived in the present. This faith-filled existence is focused on investing in God’s kingdom and…