My Thoughts and Reflections

"He has told you, human one, what is good and what the  Lord  requires from you: to do justice, embrace faithful love, and walk  humbly  with your God." Micah 6:8 (CEB) As followers of Jesus Christ, we believe that we receive salvation by grace through faith apart from works.  However, we do good works as a result of our faith.  It is out of our gratitude to God for the great and amazing things that he has done for us that we do good works in the world. In this passage, the prophet Micah is telling the people of Israel how God is calling us to live as a response to his goodness towards his people.  We should not get hung up on the word "require" because we know that as faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, this is what we want to do whether or not is is required. Out of a response to God's goodness towards us, we are called to do justice, embrace faithful love, and walk humbly with our God.  We are called to seek out justice in th...

"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." - Romans 15:5-6 (NIV) After Jesus sent the Holy Spirit into each of his disciples at Pentecost, he expected his followers to not only spread the good news of the gospel to those in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth, but he also expected them to model the same lifestyle as he did while he was on earth. Part of that modeling included maintaining the same attitude that Jesus had, an attitude of endurance and encouragement. During Jesus' ministry, he commanded his disciples to love each other with the same love that he showed for them. Part of loving each other with the same love of Christ includes lots of encouragement. It is hard to go through the day without either needing some encouragement or seeing the need in those wh...

“Jesus came near and spoke to them, “I’ve received all authority in heaven and on earth.  Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything that I’ve commanded you.  Look, I myself will be with you every day until the end of this present age.””  – Matthew 28:18-20 (CEB) It has been a common misconception in the church today that evangelism is meant to be left for the “professionals,” i.e., pastors, missionaries, and professional evangelists.  What a sad misconception!  This command recorded at the end of Matthew’s gospel is Jesus’ last command to his disciples.  At that time, those who were present at Jesus' ascension were the church.  Therefore, Christ’s command wasn’t just for those who are in church ministry, but for the entire church!  Did you notice Jesus saying to, “go and make disciples?”  He isn’t just intere...