Roots by the River

Here are a few of my favorite verses in Scripture: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4). “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments” (1 Corinthians 2:14-15). “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (John 14:6). “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you” (Isaiah 26:3). “But who can discern their own errors? For...

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:27-29). Let me break this down in short phrases so we can savor them separately and then again as a whole. ·        Glorious riches ·        Christ in you ·        The hope of glory (the certainty of glory) ·        Proclaim Him ·        Admonishing and teaching ·        Everyone with all wisdom ·        Everyone perfect in Christ ·        With all His energy ·    ...

Here are two verses that have a close relationship with each other:                    “Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up” (Romans 15:2). “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29). Do you see the common thread? Building others up! What we do and what we say is to benefit other Christians. Here are similar thoughts on evangelism: “Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those...

“From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another” (John 1:16). “But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble’” (James 4:6). “But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! …. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ…. The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Romans 5:15, 17, 20). “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8). “And in their prayers for ...

There are rewards in heaven. Should they be a motivation to obey God? If they were the lone motivation, the obedience might not be real. And of course that would be known by God. If these rewards are connected with our love for God and love for others, they are   a promise given by God and should be rejoiced in. Here are a few of the promised rewards: “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward” (Matthew 10:40-42). “Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever” (Daniel 12:3).

In October of my sophomore year at the Naval Academy, I passed from death to life. I had just turned twenty years old. Eighteen months later, my life began to have an effect on my classmates and those both junior and senior to me. This continued for the next seven years while I was on active duty in the Navy and ever since in civilian life. During my seventy-three years as a Christian, I have seen men turn to Christ and experience the joy of having their sins forgiven. I have also seen the harassment they get because of Jesus Christ. Some of them came through the persecution, and some of them caved. What happened in the cities in the Book of Acts happens to every new Christian. It is “revival and riot” on an individual level all over the world. Jesus prepared us for this beforehand. “All this I have told you so that you will not go astray. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God. They w...

“What advice can you give for Christian military couples preparing for deployment? What are the most needed things for them to focus on while the husband is deployed?” Here are five things to focus on, in order of priority. 1.      The husband and wife should be in the Word daily , perhaps on the same texts. Write down your blessings from the texts. 2.      The husband and wife must keep short accounts with the Lord and with each other (confession of sin). 3.      Even if mail or email is not able to go out daily, the husband must write to his wife daily —even if it is just two sentences. Send the messages when you can. (If you are in a position to call her, do that when you can.) Do not write about the danger. The wife should write all kinds of news about herself and the kids. Do not write about problems, except to ask for decisions, wisdom, and prayer. 4.      Husbands should regularly write sepa...