92 results for tag: blog

Battle About the Bible – Greg Albrecht

... we do not worship the Bible. We do not believe it to be infallible. We believe that God alone is infallible. No human or human product is infallible. The Bible helps us to know God as God reveals himself to us through its pages.

What Do You Mean … The Narrow Gate? – Greg Albrecht

By Greg Albrecht— Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.—Matthew 7:13-14 This passage is often preached from the perspective of how hard it is to obey God and keep his laws—how hard it is to "make the grade" to get into heaven—how relatively few souls will be counted worthy of heaven while the broad majority will end up in hell. Matthew 7:13-14 is one of those passages that is regularly preached to mean something altogether different than the meaning that God intends. ...

He Can’t Stop Loving You – Greg Albrecht

By Greg Albrecht— Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”—John 11:25 Ray Charles is one of my favorite blues singers of all time. The movie about his life, produced several years ago, won several Academy Awards, and was simply titled “Ray.” Human suffering has given birth to much of our music, poetry, literature and art. The tragedies and the traumas of human relationships were the fertile soil from which many of the story lines and lyrics of Ray Charles’ music grew. CLICK HERE to ...

One In Christ Jesus – Greg Albrecht

By Greg Albrecht— There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.—Galatians 3:28 What exactly is a mother? What is her job description? What does a mother do? There's a story about a man who came home from a long day at work—when he drove into his driveway he saw his three children, still in their pajamas, covered from head to toe in mud, fighting and screaming. He was just too exhausted to deal with it, so he walked right past his kids, through the front door, into a house that was in upheaval. Chaos reigned supreme. The TV was blaring, furniture had been knocked over, dishes were piled ...

Eternal Torture – Divine or Human Vengeance? by Greg Albrecht

  Hell is a subject many religious people get all hot and bothered about. It's one of the most disputed and controversial teachings within Christendom. The squabbling is not about the surety of judgment for depravity and wickedness. Most Christians agree that there is and will be divine judgment for evil. The battle for hell is all about specifications, temperature and longevity. The debate involves comprehending and communicating divine justice—and in the process humans export definitions of time and space into eternity.     But the Bible does not suggest that God needs to import our flawed perspectives into the perfection of his eternity. ...

Take Away the Religious Rocks – Greg Albrecht

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. "Take away the stone," he said. —John 11:38-39 Religious rocks create barriers in our relationship with God. Notice the "red letter" words in our passage in John 11:39, the four words in this verse that Jesus actually spoke. Take away the stone.... The background for our passage begins in the first verse of chapter 11 of the book of John. Lazarus was sick. As the chapter unfolds we discover that Lazarus eventually died. His sisters Mary and Martha were overcome with shock and grief. Our message begins at the house of mourning, in a place where ...

I Am Making Everything New – Greg Albrecht

He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!"—Revelation 21:5 God making old things new is one of the great themes of the Bible—and is one of the powerful themes of the gospel.In the Bible we learn:• God gives us a new name.• God gives us new wine.• We sing a new song.• God gives us a new heart.• Jesus gives us a new commandment.• We become new men and women in Christ.• God makes a new covenant with us.• God gives us new life—life that never ages or wears out—eternal life. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:17 …if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new ...

Jesus: More Than a Man – by Greg Albrecht

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" (Matthew 16:13-15).        More than two thousand years ago, Jesus asked his closest disciples the same question that he has asked humans ever since. Who do you say that I am? The answer his disciples gave then, and that you and I give today, radically determines the direction of our lives.        Even those who have been skeptical ...

A Jesus Kind of Church — by Greg Albrecht

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." —Luke 4: 18-19 No Country for Old Men Out in the endless, desolate desert of west Texas, a hunter looking for antelope stumbles on a crime scene. Abandoned cars and trucks are pock marked with bullet holes, and a half dozen or so dead bodies are scattered around.   In that odd and somewhat glib euphemism used by the media, it's apparently a drug deal "gone wrong" (if indeed there was ...

Bitterness and Resentment – Greg Albrecht

Remember the older brother, the third major character of the parable of the prodigal son? As he witnessed the extravagant love and forgiveness of his father, lavished on his younger brother when he came home from wasting his inheritance, the older brother was eaten alive by jealously, envy and bitterness. The older, unforgiving brother refused to join in the festivities and celebration. The older, responsible, hard-working brother felt that he was a faithful and diligent son, always trying to earn his father's favor. But the celebration and festivities—the barbecue, the music and the dancing—were not in honor of all his hard work. ...

Which Religion is Right? Greg Albrecht

In our postmodern society, it seems that every belief system is afforded equal weight. Well-meaning wishful thinkers like to point out that world religions share many things in common—and if everyone would just focus on these commonalities, perhaps we could "all just get along."   Yet even a brief survey of world religions reveals huge contrasts and contradictions. How can so many contradicting ideas, philosophies and doctrines all be right? Of course, logically, they can't all be right. But then how can we know which one is right? And further—if Christianity is the only right "religion"—will only Christians go to heaven? The answer to ...

No Carry-on Baggage Allowed – Isaiah 46:1-4 – Greg Albrecht

Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low; their idols are born by beasts of burden. The images that are carried about are burdensome, a burden for the weary. They stoop and bow down together; unable to rescue the burden, they themselves go off into captivity. "Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." —Isaiah 46:1-4 If you have flown commercially lately, for business or pleasure, you know ...