Mateo 18:8-35 Rva

For Reading and Meditation:     Luke 16:19-31

The final state of those who die without availing themselves of the forgiveness God offers them at the Cross is eternal banishment from God's presence. The Bible calls this "hell." "There is no heaven with a little hell in it," said George MacDonald, meaning that the God who is passionately for righteousness and...

For Reading and Meditation:     Proverbs 11:16-31

Those who know how to be merciful are men and women to be envied. They get back what they give. Psychologists are always pointing out that our attitudes and emotions are contagious. Scripture puts the same truth in these words: "A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly" (

For Reading and Meditation:     Luke 6:27-40

The fifth Beatitude - "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy" - is quite different from the ones that precede it. In the first four, there is a contrast between the need and the fulfilment. The "poor in spirit" receive the kingdom; those "who mourn" are comforted; "the meek" inherit the earth; those who...

For Reading and Meditation:     Luke 15:1-10

We turn now to look at another aspect of Christianity's uniqueness - the issue of personal salvation. The vocabulary of salvation is distasteful to those of other religions and many insist we should give it up. They say, "It smacks of spiritual smugness and arrogance." But before we answer this criticism we must realize...

As far as the Bible is concerned, there must be the testimony of two or three witnesses in order to form a valid judgment. If we would only observe this principle, we would save ourselves oceans of trouble.

The natural tendency for us is to hear one person's side of a case and to immediately decide in his favor. He sounds convincing and our sympathies go out to him. Then later we learn that his was only one side of the story. When we hear the other side, we realize that the first man...

For the Samaritans, the center of worship was on Mt. Gerizim. For the Jews, Jerusalem was the place on earth where God had placed His Name. But Jesus announced a new order to the woman of Samaria, "…the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him."

There is no longer a single place on earth which is designated for worship. In our dispensation, a Holy Person has taken the place of a holy...

It seems to me that the horse and the mule picture two wrong attitudes we might have when we are seeking the Lord's guidance. The horse wants to charge ahead; the mule wants to lag behind. The horse tends to be impatient, high-spirited and impetuous. The mule on the other hand is stubborn, intractable and lazy. The psalmist says that neither animal has understanding. Both have to be controlled by bit and bridle, otherwise they will not come near to their master.

God's desire is that we...

There is a definite order to be followed in connection with Scriptural forgiveness. If we would follow this order we would save ourselves a lot of headaches and heartaches.

The first thing to do when you have been wronged is to forgive that person in your heart. You don't tell him yet that he has been forgiven, but by forgiving him in your heart, you leave the matter between the Lord and him. This prevents your gastric juices from turning into sulphuric acid, and saves you from other...

Someone has done or said something which has offended you or bothered you in some way. The Bible says to go and tell him his fault, but you don't want to do it; it's too difficult.

So you start brooding about it. You begin rehearsing what he has done, how he was utterly in the wrong. When you should be working, your mind is going over all the details, and your gastric juices become sulphurous. When you should be sleeping, you resurrect the unpleasant incident, and the pressure builds...

The death of children is always an especially severe trial of the faith of God's people, and it is important to have some solid moorings to hold us at such a time.

The general belief among Christians is that children who die before they reach the age of accountability are safe through the blood of Jesus. The reasoning goes something like this: the child himself has never had the capacity to either accept or reject the Savior, so God reckons to him all the value of the work of Christ on...