PTM WEEKLY UPDATE -- APRIL 14, 2008

In the May-June issue of the award-winning Plain Truth magazine

Law or Grace -- Barking Up the Wrong Tree?
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil could be called “the law tree” because it offered knowledge about the rules of right and wrong. But when a Christian focuses on doing right and avoiding wrong, he is completely missing the point of the cross as it relates to his lifestyle. He is functioning from the law tree, not life.

The Shepherd's Call  
"I can keep following you and rescuing you out of all the places you get stuck, or you can turn around and follow me and I will lead you to the heights of my glory."

Doing Church Jesus' Way
Could we possibly be getting it more wrong? It’s no wonder that church participation rates have fallen to single digits in Europe and are dwindling steadily in America. Imagine, though, what could happen if we tried doing church Jesus' way. We can’t rewrite our history. But we can make fresh and better decisions today.

The Good Fight
Our human love for one another will fail and disappoint us. But God’s love will never fail. It will always be there in the Person of Jesus Christ.

A Parable for Troubled Times
Incredibly, an oblivious world accepts Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s promises of peace while overlooking his warlike words. The Bible tells a similar story -- the story of how the great nation of Persia was nearly hijacked by a madman with plans to destroy all Jews.

The Cure for MFD
This article is for the people who are secretly annoyed by Mother’s and Father’s Day (MFD). After all, it’s not like God himself ordained MFD; it’s simply a clever money-making scheme invented by the greeting card companies. On the other hand, so what? All holidays were invented by someone.

Up Close and Personal
Jesus is not merely some historical footnote existing on some dusty library shelf. Jesus is not a nice memory in a theological scrapbook no one ever looks at, but he is risen, alive, existing in the present now-ness of our lives. Jesus is, not just was.

On the Outside Looking "In"
Did you ever feel that you were not "with it?" Did you ever feel that you didn't belong?

The Land Dispute
Organized institutional religion has thought for many centuries that it was rightly oriented to the cornerstone of Christianity in Jesus Christ. Imagine their dismay when they are informed that they have constructed their religious city in the wrong direction, and what they thought was their "land" does not belong to them.

Mother's Day Cards
Read the story of two brothers -- one a success who cared nothing for his mother -- the other a failure who cared deeply.

Grace on a Sugar Cone
"Without my kids, I might still be under the illusion that I was a good person. With them, I recognize how desperately I need God’s grace."

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