When I read Matthew 5:7, I am perplexed. Jesus declares, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” I thought that the mercy that God showed to me was not dependent upon me being merciful to others. So I had to ask God to unpack this for me. Is this beatitude, nestled within […]
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” — Matthew 5:6 To hunger and thirst for righteousness is to crave—deeply and persistently—a life aligned with God’s will. Jesus uses visceral language here: hunger and thirst are primal, urgent needs. He’s not talking about a casual interest in being good; […]
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” — Matthew 5:5 This beatitude, nestled in the heart of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, has stirred centuries of reflection, debate, and even discomfort. In a world that celebrates dominance, ambition, and assertiveness, the idea that the meek — often misunderstood as weak or passive […]
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” — Matthew 5:4 (NIV) At first glance, Jesus’ second beatitude seems like a contradiction. How can mourning—grief, sorrow, lament—be a blessing? In a world that avoids pain and idolizes happiness, Jesus’ words are radically countercultural. Yet within this paradox lies one of the most profound […]
In this era of political correctness and so-called religious tolerance we are led to believe that all religions lead to God and we often hear it said, “we are all children of God.” Unfortunately, this is not true. It is completely correct to say “we are all loved by God”. God “created us in His […]
Whether you believe it or not, your sin has condemned you to an eternal life separated from God. Whenever men and women turn their backs on God, evil fills the vacuum with hate, misery, pain, suffering, and alienation, supplanting love, joy, happiness, and belonging. Therefore, a wise person would recognize the importance of redemption. Redemption […]
Tolerance once meant a free and open discussion in search for the truth. Modern science is based on searching for the truth. Tolerance used to be a respectful discourse open to “all points of view”. In Western culture today it has become the god of liberal elitists and ultimately it leads to chaos and loss […]
We all have desires. Our God-given instincts include food and shelter. As parents we desire to help our children succeed in life. We desire loving spouses, a good job, compassionate employers, effective employees, quality healthcare, reliable transportation, and healthy recreation. So when do our desires become covetousness? Coveting—an intense desire for something that belongs to […]
The Ninth Commandment, “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16), is a clear two-part moral directive. One, God wants people to tell the truth. Two, God wants people to NOT harm their neighbors. So the question about lying should be pretty easy, but it isn’t. First, we must remember that the […]
In the name of social justice, some modern scholars say that stealing is okay if it is addressing a social inequity. After all, they contend, people who have gotten “ahead” in this world did so by taking advantage of others. But that is not what God says. Four thousand years ago, God carved in stone […]
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