Bringing Scripture to Life

The Book of First John was written by Jesus' beloved disciple, the apostle John. The apostle  John was one of four men whom Jesus first called to follow Him, and of course one of the twelve apostles that Jesus appointed to lead the church into the utter ends of the earth. I am sure in that in those early days, some 60 years earlier before John wrote this epistle, that he could have never imagined that he would be the last living Apostle, and the only one that would be miraculously delivered from martyrdom.  John was the last living apostle, and as we begin our journey through the epistle of First John, we are going to see that he has been appointed by God to defend the Christian Faith, and primarily the truth of the Gospel and the true identity of Jesus Christ.  In this epistle John was writing to the churches of Asia Minor to combat a false doctrine that would later be known as Gnosticism, while at the same time John would seek to inspire  assurance into the lives of bel

We have all heard the Christmas Song, Deck the Halls.  You know how it goes; "Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la, la la la la." This is the season where most of the world is celebrating. For many, this celebration is driven by an evil monster named Materialism, and a jolly fictional-character named Santa Clause, who is all-knowing (he knows when we have been naughty or nice), and who flies around the entire world with his special Rain Deer. He visits each and every house that chooses to participate in Christmas with gifts, without waking a single person up, setting a single home-invasion alarm off, nor causing a single dog to bark. And he does this in less than 24 hours! You have to agree, that this is truly an amazing Christmas miracle. For some of us, we do our best to keep the real reason for Christmas at the forefront of our hearts and minds. We know that Christmas is truly about the One whom i

Are you tired of having trouble filling that empty void inside your heart? If so, maybe you are reading this article because you are a person who is trying to find a way to fill that void, while at the same time, find your real purpose in life? Let me ask you, are there times when you just know deep-down inside your heart that there is more to life than what you are currently experiencing? You know that you were created for something more that you should be living for? If this is you, I believe that this article can help you find the answers to why you feel this way, if you are willing to consider what is being presented. I also want to assure you, that what is written in this article is not simply a theory to think upon, but an actual experience to be had for anyone and everyone who wholeheartedly commits to it’s prescription. So if you are ready and willing to not only make a change in your life, but also to experience a total transformation of heart and mind, t

When Falling at 120 MPH, from 13000 feet above the earth, you better have equipment you can trust! The thrill that comes from jumping out of a perfectly good airplane from 13,000 feet above the earth is one of the most incredible thrills a person can ever experience in life. However, without the right working equipment, the thrill of freefalling can become the most horrifying and deadly experience a person can ever face. Once they have jumped out of the airplane there is no going back. Their equipment had better work, or they are in grave danger that is irreversible. When we die it is much like freefalling out of a perfectly good airplane. If we have the right equipment, equipment we can fully trust, the afterlife becomes the most thrilling experience a person can ever have. The Bible tells us that there are no human words that can express what  amazing things God has prepared in heaven for those of us who have trusted in Jesus and put God first in our life (1 Cor. 2:9). However, wh

Would you Sell your Eyes for 10 Million Dollars? Before answering "yes" too quickly, you might want to consider the fact that you would not be able to enjoy the 10 Million Dollars, due to the fact that you would not be able to see any of the places you would want to visit, or any of the things you might want to purchase. What's worse is you would no longer be able to see your family, friends, or even a reflection of yourself in the mirror for that matter. In other words, without your eyes you would live in complete darkness, and you would not be able to enjoy the 10 Million Dollars.  Now that you have probably decided that 10 Million dollars is not enough money to live the rest of your life in darkness for, let's consider what Jesus once said. Jesus said: "If your eye causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell" (Matthew 5:29). Jesus told  his follow

You are probably a really nice person. Did you know that God doesn't evaluate our lives by how nice we are to others? Instead, He's given us a tool by which He evaluates our actions and life with, called the 10 Commandments. This is what God uses to expose our true inner-being, much like the way we use a mirror to expose our outer-being. Just as we wouldn't leave our house without looking as good as we could, we shouldn't leave this life we are living without making sure we are in good spiritual-condition with God. Let's see how you are looking right now:  (1) Have you ever told a lie? (2) Have you ever taken something that doesn't belong to you? (3) Have you ever used God's name in vain? Did you know that Jesus says if you've ever lusted after someone you're guilty of committing adultery in your heart. If you're honest with yourself, you can see that in God's eyes you have not been able to live up to these perfect standards. The Word of Go

When you really think about it this is one of the most important questions that you can ever answer in life. We only live once, and it is up to us to decide what we will live for. When we come to the end of our life this question will probably mean a lot more to all of us. In fact, if we are given the opportunity to think about what we lived for at the end of our life we will probably hope that we didn't waste our life living for the wrong things.  In the days when eastern Emperors were crowned at Constantinople, it is said to have been a custom to set before the Emperor a certain number of marble slabs, one of which he was to choose to be his tombstone. It was considered good for him to remember his funeral at his coronation. They believed that life should be lived in order to prepare for eternity. Much like the eastern Emperors used to imagine their future as being grand and meaningful, and with the hopes of leaving a positive influence on their generation, so does each one of

If you are feeling as if your life has no meaning and that you are all alone, there is help for you. The reason you are feeling like this is because you have been created for a purpose in life, and right now you are not living for that purpose. The bible tells us that God created you for His glory. "Bring all who claim Me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them" (Isaiah 43:7).  The fact that God tells us that you were created for His glory shows us that your life is important and significant to God Himself! The Bible tells us that the reason we feel alone is because God has made us for the primary purpose to have a relationship with Him, and when we are not making our relationship with God the most important part of our life, we will feel empty and alone inside. Think about this; How has your life been so far without living for God? The Bible tells us that there is only one way to begin a relationship with God and that is by having faith i

What was the Hardest Mountain Ever Climbed? If you are like most people you have probably guessed Mt. Everest, which has errantly been dubbed the "hardest mountain" to ever be conquered. However, this is not the correct answer. The correct answer is Mt. Calvary. This is a mountain that only one person has ever been able to conquer in the history of the world. Mt. Calvary is located in the country of Israel. Yes, Israel! The only time this mountain has ever been conquered was some 2,000 years ago. Who was its conqueror? Its conqueror was Jesus Christ. You see, the reason Mt. Calvary was the hardest mountain to ever be climbed is because prior to climbing this mountain, the scriptures tell us that Jesus was severely beaten for you and for me. The scriptures tell us, "when they saw him (climbing up Mt. Calvary), he was beaten and bloodied, so disfigured one would scarcely know he was a person" (Isaiah 52:12). As Jesus began His ascent up Mt. Calvary, he had alrea

Yes it is true, All Roads Lead to God. There is not one person that could argue this fact. God's word tells us that ALL ROADS LEAD TO GOD. It says, "At the name of Jesus every knee will bow... and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" (Philippians 2:10-11). As you can see the Bible tells us that every person will one day kneel befor e God and then confess that He is Lord, but not all will get to go to heaven. What is so interesting to think about is that there are many people who will read this and say, Jesus is not God, and therefore I will not bow down to him. However, that will not stop this inevitable event from taking place. You see, Jesus said He was God, and He was the only person to ever die for our sins, and then prove He was God by rising from the dead. Jesus told his followers in many places that He is God. He said to them, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). The Bible also tells us "in Him (Jesus) dwel

In this 3-minute clip Francis Chan is teaching on the new "middle road" that many Christians want to travel on. If you find yourself on that road Francis is describing, I hope that as you watch this video, you are challenged to make a change. God will bless you for it! Our Young Adult Group at The Church at Promenade went through the Crazy Love book/DVD series together this past summer, and they were very blessed by all that Francis challenged them to do. If you haven't read Crazy Lov e yet, and were inspired by this video, please make sure to pick it up soon.

Below is the powerful testimony given by a young 18 year-old North Korean girl in November of this year, at the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in Capetown, South Africa. Please keep this young lady in your prayers, and that God will use her to bring Him glory. Listen to her story here: "Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Revelation 2:10).