What does it mean to follow Jesus? Being a follower of Jesus means accepting Him as God, believing He died for your sins, and accepting the gift of His righteousness in place of your own in the final judgement. He also calls you to love others in the same way that He has loved you. … [Read more…]
After 35 years of Bible study, prayer, and reflection, I am more convinced than ever that the message of Justification by faith needs to be taken more seriously. Many pastors and teachers give it lip service, but their hearts are geared towards teaching morality and Christian living. They forget the Holy Spirit is only given … [Read more…]
Being obedient to Christ is not legalism. Keeping Commandments is not legalism. Focusing on the rules over relationships is not legalism. PLACING CONDITIONS ON ETERNAL LIFE OTHER THAN SIMPLE FAITH AND TRUST IN CHRIST IS LEGALISM. Legalism is a curse upon professed followers of Christ who are more concerned with their own righteousness than with … [Read more…]
The relationship between the old and new covenants of the Holy Scriptures have perplexed many theologians over the last 2000 years. Some bible scholars believe the old and new covenants represent two separate plans of salvation. Others have a difficult time separating the mosaic laws from the original covenant God made with Adam and Eve. … [Read more…]
QUESTION: Do I have to believe in all of the 28 Fundamental beliefs to become a Seventh-day Adventist Christian? ANSWER: It is important to make the distinction between the official teachings of the Seventh-day Adventist church as recognized by the General Conference and test of fellowship that is required by new believers when they are … [Read more…]
I wish could exclude myself from this conclusion, but being a former post-graduate student qualifies me to partake of the criticism. Having a degree or two in a particular subject does not make one infallible. There are Atheists with doctoral degrees, there are Pantheists with doctoral degrees, and there are Polytheists with doctoral degrees. The … [Read more…]
My position on the 2300 days prophecy is if the baptism and death of Christ was foretold by this view of prophecy then why not allow it to extend to its logical conclusion: 1844. What Happened in 1844? 1. People awakened to an urgency of the second coming of Christ and the message about the … [Read more…]
Gratitude-Relationships-Intercession-Petition 1. Gratitude: Start your prayers by thanking God for all His blessings. List them one by one and praise Him for being a loving friend. 2. Relationships: Ask God to help you to love Him with all your heart, mind, and soul. Once you have spent some time on this topic then shift your … [Read more…]
1. God is the judge and not man. 2. Jesus is our mediator and not a pastor, priest, or pope. 3. Jesus died once for all–no reoccurring mass as atonement for sin. 4. God judges from the mercy seat where mercy triumphs over condemnation for those written in the book of life. 5. Sins are … [Read more…]
QUESTION: Why do you call yourself a Gospel Adventist? ANSWER: I am a 4th generation Seventh-day Adventist who grew up in the church. As a teenager I thought that the spirit of God would allow us to perfect our characters, if not now, then prior to probation closing. Once probation closed than we would be … [Read more…]
Many Christians still struggle with the relationship between faith and works. Are we saved by our good works? No. Are we saved by our faith and good works? No. Are we saved by faith that works? No. Then How are we saved? We are saved by faith FOR good works. This is a huge paradigm … [Read more…]
“Give me a text from the Bible,” she said. “Okay, how about this one,” he replied. “That doesn’t mean what you think it means. See I told you that you don’t have any scriptures that back up your beliefs.” “How about this one over here.” “You are completely misguided. You don’t know how to read … [Read more…]
As a Gospel Adventist, I believe that the Ten Commandments are the eternal law of God. This is the law by which all human beings are judged. This is the law that condemns us all. The law has never changed, and God still requires obedience to ALL His commandments. What has changed is that we … [Read more…]
Is Doctrine Important to our Salvation? God reveals truth to us through the scriptures. We ignore the essential teachings at our own risk. If bad theology is the result of an innocent error then God may overlook our ignorance. However, if we willfully reject the plain teaching of His word then we run the risk … [Read more…]
Do Gospel Adventists believe in the investigative judgement? Do we believe that God judges both the righteous and wicked prior to the second coming of Jesus to decide their place in eternity? The answer to this question is yes. The problem has never been about whether there is an investigative judgement (IJ), but the real … [Read more…]
Many people wonder how God speaks to me. How can I claim to speak the words of God unless I am able to discern the voice of God? It took me awhile to be able to explain how I am able to separate the word of God from my own inner voice. The simplest … [Read more…]
Betrand Russell, a famous Atheist in his day, wrote in his book “Why I am Not a Christian” that Jesus misled the disciples, because He told them that His second coming would happen within their generation. In response to the disciples asking about His second coming, after giving a few signs to look for Jesus … [Read more…]
The doctrine of justification by faith alone is what sparked the protestant reformation in 1517. On October 31, a Catholic priest named Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door of All Saints Church protesting the abuses of the Catholic Church regarding the sale of indulgences. The document was meant to start a local … [Read more…]
Martin Luther, the icon of the protestant reformation, said it best when he proclaimed the doctrine of Justification by faith to be articulus stantis vel cadentis ecclesiae “the article of faith that decides whether the church is standing or falling” (Packer). The doctrine of Justification by faith is not only one out of many church … [Read more…]
The only thing that any minister of the gospel can do is share what we believe is the truth with honesty and conviction. We cannot convince anyone to change their mind unless those people see the need for change. The role of the Holy Spirit is to convict people of their need. Our job is … [Read more…]
What does it mean to be not “Under Law” but “Under Grace”? When the New Testament scriptures state we are not “Under Law” but “Under Grace” it means we are no longer subject to the penalty of the law and are not subject to its condemnation. “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who … [Read more…]
“Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.” Luke 6:26, NIV I fear many Christians are afraid to speak their minds about God’s word. They worry that other people will turn against them, or that they might offend someone who is opposed to the … [Read more…]
“ One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God” (Luke 6:12, NIV). One of the major hallmarks of Jesus’s earthly ministry was His personal prayer life. He understood His dependence on the Father for the power to live a perfect life. As a result, He … [Read more…]
“Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O LORD, and whom you teach out of your law,” ~ Psalm 94:12, ESV Over the past 40 years of my life, I have had some wonderful Bible teachers. I have sat at the feet of countless pastors and evangelists who poured their knowledge into me and taught … [Read more…]
Sometimes I look back over my life and meditate on what might have happened if I had made different decisions in my life. For example, if I hadn’t put in a job application that led to me being hired by a particular company, or if I hadn’t stopped to talk to a military recruiter that … [Read more…]
I have a confession to make that may surprise some of you. I hated school when I was a kid. It wasn’t the English, the Spelling, or the History classes that I hated. But I dreaded Math. Most of the time my homework was only half done in those classes, and I was lucky to … [Read more…]
We are saved by trusting Jesus for the forgiveness of sin; we are blessed and rewarded by obedience to the Ten Commandments. Our salvation depends on simple faith in the blood of Christ, while our rewards in heaven depend upon our willingness to be obedient to God in all things. Without the law there is … [Read more…]
Those who think that it is hateful to call other religions wrong, do not have a problem with religion, but they have a problem with the nature of truth. Truth by definition is exclusive. To call something true means the opposite is false. This is simple logic. If no one has the truth then what … [Read more…]
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” ~ 2 Timothy 2:15, KJV I am concerned about the lack of attention that is being paid to the essentials of the historic Christian faith. I am not talking about the debatable subjects that … [Read more…]
One of the characteristics of an educated mind is that it welcomes competing ideas as a way to force an examination of the basic assumptions about what makes something true or false. There is nothing wrong with a healthy debate! I am concerned about people who want to shut down the free flow of ideas … [Read more…]
Recently, I came across the question that some find hard to answer: What difference does God make? Ultimately, this question is not hard to answer. Those who have had a genuine experience with the Creator of the Universe will tell you that God has made the biggest difference in their lives. But then some might … [Read more…]
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Matthew 6:33, KJV Do we think that God is not aware of our needs? If we trust Him, He WILL provide. This does not mean that we will not have hardships. In fact, there WILL … [Read more…]
God created a perfect world. But because of the disobedience of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, each of us has inherited a sinful nature. The bad news is that without Christ we are completely lost and not even God can save us. The good news is that because of Christ we now … [Read more…]
Not only did Jesus identify Himself as the “I AM” of the Old Testament, but He also established Himself as the “I AM” of the New Covenant: 1. “I AM the bread of life” (John 6:35) 2. “I AM the light of the world” (8:12, 9:5) 3. “I AM the door” (10:7,9) 4. “I AM … [Read more…]
“Now it happened in the process of time that the king of Egypt died. Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with … [Read more…]
Most mature Bible believing Christians are familiar with 2 Timothy 3:16- “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (NIV). But who can tell me the verse that comes immediately before this one? Don’t look in your bibles! Can you say it from memory? Here it is: “and … [Read more…]
“Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” ~ Hebrews 1:14, NIV We rarely bring up the subject of Angels in modern-times. Each of us has guardian angels who assist us in our battle against the forces of darkness. They don’t seem to get a lot of credit, but … [Read more…]
If a house was on fire, wouldn’t you call the fire department and then attempt to get everyone out of the house safely? What kind of a person would say, “it’s not my house and its not my business”? Christians have a moral obligation to sound the alarm to a world that is perishing. If … [Read more…]
I love this question: “I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” ~Jeremiah 32:27, NIV The obvious answer to this question is a resounding, “NO!” This is why Jesus had to keep scolding His disciples when they faced a seemingly hopeless situation with doubt, anxiety, and fear: “Oh … [Read more…]
When I was teenager, I became weary of the word “obedience”. This happened because of the hundreds of rules that I was expected to follow that resulted in punishment if I was caught violating one. I wasn’t rebellious, but I couldn’t wait to grow up so I could make my own rules. Then I joined … [Read more…]
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO JESUS CHRIST AND TO THE ETERNAL KINGDOM OF LOVE HE IS THE ONE WHO SAVES MY SOUL MERCIFUL AND LOVING HOLY AND JUST CREATOR OF ALL WORTHY OF ALL HONOR AND POWER. ~Stephen Beagles
The increase in spiritual attacks against Christ and the church will continue to get worse until the end of time. Jesus said, “take up your cross and follow me!” Jesus went to the cross to remove the wrath of God against those who believe and trust in Him. His followers are called to sacrifice ALL if … [Read more…]
I have been watching “Surviving the Cut”, a documentary series on Military Special Forces training. As a Marine, I learned first hand the type of motivation, perseverance, knowledge, courage, and loyalty that this type of training requires from each student. The documentary brings back many memories of sleepless nights, lack of food, endless hiking, seemingly … [Read more…]
For a long time the church has been preaching the gospel in reverse. This has led to the same results as attempting to carry a horse on our backs for hundreds of miles over rough terrain. It simply doesn’t work. The false gospel is that God loves the righteous and hates the wicked. The truth … [Read more…]
“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24, KJV There are many churches that focus on truth and yet their spirit is cold. Not only are there many cold churches, but there are also those whose spirit is on fire but water down doctrinal … [Read more…]
A few days ago, I purchased a book from my local Christian bookstore written by A.W. Tozer. The title of the book was, “The Crucified Life: How To Live Out A Deeper Christian Experience.” Actually, it was more of an edited paraphrase of various sermons he had preached during his lifetime. The editor James Snyder … [Read more…]
Now that I am older, I dislike Halloween. When I was a kid, I thought it was fun to dress up crazy and get candy. But now I have no desire to put on a costume, and I can buy all the candy I want from the store. I also know the true meaning behind … [Read more…]
What does it mean to live a crucified life? First, it means that we have died to our self-sufficiency and spiritual pride. We must rely completely on the merits of Jesus for salvation. Second, it also means that we are called to do the right thing–no matter the personal cost or sacrifice to ourselves. Jesus … [Read more…]
Heaven fill me with your glorious light Lead me from the darkness of the night Let the angels guide me on this way Guard my heart from evil – Lord I pray. ~Stephen Beagles
Genuine holiness is found in loving the God who first loved us. When we focus on the love of God in Jesus Christ, it is impossible for us not to be filled with the fruits of His spirit. The Bible says, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” … [Read more…]