Jesus told us that the essence of the Law is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves. But how do we put this love into practice in our daily lives, especially as we live with one another…

What does it really mean to love my neighbor? Quoting from this Old Testament passage, Jesus told us that showing love to our neighbors summed up a big portion of what the Law of Moses was all about. And today’s passage helps us see that love for our neighbors goes…

It isn’t just backwoods fire-and-brimstone preachers who talk about Hell, you know. Isaiah’s vision of the new heavens and the new earth includes the eternal torment of those who have sinned against God, saying that “their worm does not die and their fire is not quenched.” And of course in…

“You Christians are trying to tell everyone what to do!” That’s what lots of folks say these days when topics like abortion or drug use or sexual behavior come up. Christians are often accused of trying to set up a theocracy, a situation where the Church is in charge of…

Have you ever felt like you were being pulled in different directions, wanting to do the right thing but giving into temptation instead? You’re not alone. Verse 25 tells us that even the Apostle Paul went through this. In fact, this sort of division is inevitable for anyone who follows…

In their legalistic mania to justify themselves in the sight of God, the Pharisees took God’s Sabbath requirement and blew it up to ridiculous proportions. It was work to have a snack while walking through a field? It was work for Jesus to do a miracle of healing? Really? So,…

On Independence Day, we celebrate the fact that we Americans get to choose our own leaders. And we Presbyterians also have the blessing of choosing the pastors and ruling elders who lead our congregations. But what sorts of leaders should we choose? Jesus gives us some good indicators in today’s…

Once for all. That’s so hard for us independent Americans to believe. We want to think there’s something we can do to add to our salvation, something that will complete the process and perhaps earn God’s favor for us, something that we can be proud of. That was one of…

Why doesn’t Jesus solve my problems? Why doesn’t He put everything right? I mean, in verse 7, Isaiah predicted that Jesus would be able to open the eyes of the blind, and He did just that. We know Jesus was the Servant of God, the promised Messiah Isaiah was talking…

How should Christians handle authority? Well, Paul tells masters to treat their slaves with justice and fairness, and although slavery has been illegal in the United States since 1865, this principle can just as easily apply to anyone who has people who answer to him. Whenever Christians are in charge,…