Dec 24, 2017
In the OT, the Hebrew word shalom carried with it the idea of completeness or wholeness within a person’s life. This word also conveyed a sense of harmony between people or God Himself. Many times, shalom came through making a covenant between people or with God so they could co-exist (Num. 25:12; Isa. 54:10). In...
Dec 17, 2017
Joy often goes hand in hand with a hope that is realized or satisfaction from something completed. The greatest joy comes in knowing what God has done for us and what we can do for Him. Joy in Christ often flows from using our gifts from Christ for the glory of Christ. The reason God leaves Christians on earth is to...
Dec 10, 2017
Unlike other religions or belief systems, the Bible speaks of God as not ‘able to love’ or ‘feels love’ but is described as love. God is known as having love intrinsically as part of His nature. Humans are built to know and experience love because love is a reality of God Himself (1 John 4:8). The personal...
Dec 3, 2017
As humans can’t know or control the future, hope is a gift from God that fuels forward-thinking and energizes action. Without hope, humans despair (Prov. 13:12). Hope, however, requires some distance between desire and delivery. A desire that can be realized immediately does not need hope (Rom. 8:24). For believers,...
Nov 26, 2017
At creation, God designed humanity to be self-regulating and live under the reign of God while ruling over the earth (Gen. 1:28). After sin, God instituted a structure of governance, run by people, to keep order and control chaos like anarchy. Temporary government mirrors the eternal government of God. Governments are...