Living By The Word

  Preparing for Battle—Prayer and Praise ( June 27, 2025) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7) One certainty of life is that we all have to endure hardships and trials. Jesus said, “ In the world you w ill have tribulation; but be of good cheer,   I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) Since seasons of suffering are inevitable, Christians should stock up our storehouses of faith in Christ, the source of salvation and eternal hope that bolsters us when we face adversity. A biblical example of the proper response to life’s difficulties is Jehoshaphat, one of the few godly kings of ancient Israel who exhibited his faith in God in a crisis situation through prayer and praise. When an imposing enemy force came against his kingdom of Judah...

  A God Who Gets the Human Experience ( June 11, 2025) “ Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.” (Romans 12:15) Sometimes a welcome blessing that we can share with others is our genuine compassion and understanding based on personal experience. There are difficult times when we need the empathy of a family member, friend, or other trusted person who can genuinely relate to what we’re going through. It is comforting to share our burdens with someone who has dealt with similar situations and knows first-hand how we feel. We have found such a friend when we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, who, above everyone else, understands the human condition. Our Savior lived among humanity as God incarnate and, unlike us all, did it without blemish so that He could become the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Having trod this earth as both God and man for about 33 years, Jesus can personally relate to any circumstance that we experience in our modern da...

  A Place in Paradise (June 4, 2025) “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13) In a fallen world in which human nature has been corrupted by sin, we should thank God constantly for His abiding grace. Although many are in a state of denial, God’s Word says we are all sinners who have fallen short of His glory and, as a result, deserve to suffer the consequence of our transgressions, spiritual death. Thankfully, though, God is merciful and does not will that we get what we deserve. Instead, He has offered each of us what we do not deserve—His grace—when we turn away from our sins and come to Jesus Christ for forgiveness, salvation, and an eternal home in the paradise of heaven. No sin, however despicable, is beyond the far reaches of God’s amazing grace. Only outright rejection of this unmerited favor offered by the LORD condemns the unbeliever to His wrathful judgment. Crucified between two criminals on a hil...