Agape is the difference

 by David Long

Agape is the difference between darkness and light (1 John 2:7-11).

Agape is the difference between death and life (1 John 3:11-18).

Agape is the difference between fear and confidence (1 John 4:7-21).

Why should I obey God?

 by David Long

"And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go" (Ex. 5:1-2).

That's good question for us to ask and answer, "Who is the Lord that we should obey Him?" 

1. We should obey God because He is the Creator (Ex. 20:11; Rev. 4:11).

2. We should obey God because He is the Provider (Acts 17:28; 14:17; Matt. 6:26).

3. We should obey God because He is the Sustainer (Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:3; Psa. 23).

4. We should obey God because He is the Savior (Isa. 43:11; John 4:40-42). 

idols

 by David Long

"Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen" (1 John 5:21).

"Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry" (1 Cor. 10:14).

What is an idol? It is anything or anyone we put before God. If we aren't seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33) then we are idol worshipers. 

Vile affections

 by David Long

"Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet" (Rom. 1:24-27).

Sin is sin but there are some sins that have serious consequences. The sin described in Romans 1:24-27 is one of those sins that has serious consequences, not only to the persons involved in it but to society itself. It's a sin that perverts God's original design (Gen. 1:27). 

What does it mean to believe?

 by David Long

What does it mean to believe in God or Jesus? Does it mean just to have some mental acknowledgement of them? 

"He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life; but he that obeyeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36).

"And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that were disobedient? And we see that they were not able to enter in because of unbelief" (Heb. 3:18-19).

To believe on Jesus means to obey Him. To not obey means to not believe even though a person may claim faith (James 2:17-26). 

Anti-Christ

 by David Long

Are you looking for the anti-Christ to come? Well, I got news for you, you can stop looking. Listen to the Bible concerning the anti-Christ.

"Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time" (1 John 2:18).

"Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son" (1 John 2:22).

"And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world" (1 John 4:3).

"For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist" (2 John 7).

Narrow minded

 by David Long

People don't like the idea of being narrow minded. Just one way to heaven does not set well with the "opened minded" folks. They like the idea that we are all going to heaven just on different roads or different ways. They like the idea that people in different churches or religions are going to heaven. But the truth is the way to heaven is narrow not broad (Matt. 7:13-14). Jesus was very narrow minded. "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6). Read Eph. 4:4-6.

Death beds are coming

 by David Long

"For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told. The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath. So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom" (Psa. 90:9-12).

We are all headed to the grave. The funeral we attend today will some day be our own. We need to live every day prepared to meet our Maker. It is foolish to live thinking we are guaranteed tomorrow and put off what we should do today. 

Love not the world

 by David Long

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15). We can't live like the world, act like the world, have an attitude like the world and love God as the same time. If you are in love with the world then you are not in love with God. If the world is your friend then God is your enemy (James 4:4).

God sees

 by David Long

"Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do" (Heb. 4:13).

"The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good" (Prov. 15:3).

Remember: God sees. 

The Bible is the guide in life

 by David Long

The Bible is more than just a road map to heaven, it is a guide in life too. The Bible is the book that not only pertains to our spiritual health but also to our mental and physical health. "According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue" (2 Pet. 1:3). Don't count the Bible out when it comes to its ability to deal with life's problems. It has the answers. The problem is, we may not like its answers. 

God's way or no way

 by David Long

"So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage. And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean" (2 Kings. 5:9-14).

There are many people like Naaman, they don't like God's plan. They want God to do it their way. If we want to be cleansed from sin then we must do it God's way (Acts 22:16). Any other way, won't work. 

All talk and no action

 by David Long

"And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Lk. 6:46). To call Jesus the Lord of your life and not keep His commandments is all talk and no action.

"If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15). To claim to love Jesus and not keep His commandments is all talk and no action.

"Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only" (James 2:24). To say you have faith or believe in Jesus and not obey Him is all talk and no action. 

Are you all talk and no action? 

Those inspired men

 by David Long

"We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error" (1 John 4:6). Who is the "we" in this verse? It was the inspired men, John being one of those men. Those inspired men were guided into all truth (John 16:13). To reject their message is to reject Christ (Lk. 10:16). Their message is the New Testament. Do you believe it? Are you obeying it? Or are who hearing another gospel (Gal. 1:6-9)?

Gluttony

 by David Long

Gluttony is one of those topics that people don't want to hear about. What is gluttony? It is defined as, "habitual greed, excess eating or drinking or excessive indulgence." Gluttony is the sin associated with unhealthy indulgence in material delights, usually food and drink. It is creating an idol out of something material, often consumable. If anything material or fleshy is in control, then there is gluttony. 

"one of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, idle gluttons" (Titus 1:12).

"Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things" (Phil. 3:19). Their palate is their god. They worship and serve their desires. That's gluttony. 

Why did Cain slaughter his brother?

 by David Long

"In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous" (1 John 3:10-12).

Why did Cain murder Abel? Because Cain's works were evil and Abel's righteous. Read Genesis 4 and Hebrews 11:4. Abel obeyed God and was accepted while Cain disobeyed God and was rejected. Cain wanted to do as he pleased and be accepted by God. Sorry that's not the way it works. Instead of repenting and doing what God said do, he killed Abel. Don't know what he thought he would accomplish by killing Abel but it just made matters worse.