Date:
September 13-15, 2011Help Me Understand: Spiritual Warfare—The Flesh
Although we are Christians, we still struggle with sin in our flesh (Galatians 5:17-21). If we live according to the flesh we will reap dead works.
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Sin
Sin isn’t a popular word. Most people think of sin as doing something really bad, like murder, assault, or robbery. But the word “sin” has the idea of missing the mark, not hitting the target.
The idea is that God has set a glorious standard and when we fail to live by it, we sin. We say, do, and think things that are contrary to God's standard, and the problem is that no matter how much we try and achieve change by ourselves, we just can't succeed.
The Bible teaches that our nature is imprisoned to sin. We miss the mark because we choose creation over the Creator. We look to succeed by our own strength, yet we never shake our own selfish sin. No matter what our education, religious heritage, ethnicity, or financial status, we cannot overcome the power of sin by ourselves. This is a problem.
Shaping Moral Character
When I was about eight I stole something. This event ranks as one of the top 10 of all my childhood memories, right up there with nearly drowning. I remember it so clearly.
Putting Integrity To The Test
Just a quick glance at the daily news reveals a world filled with compromise, scandal, and dark secrets. One thing lacking in so many of our would-be heroes and media-made mentors is integrity.
Help Me Understand: Marital Conflict
Conflict per se isn't necessarily bad. But when conflict is rooted in sin and self-centredness, or resolved in sinful ways then it will be unhealthy and destructive.
Help Me Understand: Forgiveness
For the most part I can tell someone who has done me wrong “I forgive you,” and really mean it. Where I have trouble is when that person has wronged someone I love.
When the Bible is Offensive
What do I do when the Bible offends me? Here are a few tips that may be helpful.
Help Me Understand: Guilt
We all have an intuitive sense of justice and that wrong must be atoned for. But because of our sin nature we are prone to self-atonement and false guilt, a sense and thought that we must somehow pay the penalty ourselves.
Lamentations: A Prophet’s Broken Heart
The ravages of war and the consequences of disaster are usually beyond belief or description. Few are those who can capture the tragic scene in words. Jeremiah was one of the few. His brief, biting journal of what he saw and felt following the fall of his beloved nation is contained in this short book.
Road Warrior
Each weekday at 7:40 a.m. and again at 4:30 p.m. my stress level rises considerably. This stress can last anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes, depending on—you guessed it—how traffic is. Yes, I'm talking about my work commute.
Help Me Understand: Suffering
Besides suffering being difficult physically, emotionally, and spiritually the fact that it often appears to have no rhyme or reason, and appears meaningless adds a measure of psychological suffering.
