The Apostle Paul made three significant missionary endeavors that are recorded for us in the Scriptures. One thing stands out in all of them. No matter where he went, no matter where he stayed, no matter where he preached, the message of the gospel was received by some and rejected by others. One might dismissContinue reading “A Matter of Receiving”
Author Archives: randylivingston
A Lesson for Those in Authority
One of the great moments in Israel’s history occurred when God “appeared to Solomon in a dream by night…and said, ask what I shall give thee” (I Kings 3:5). Solomon, David’s son, had just ascended to the throne and God offers him a blank check. Wow! Solomon responded by first acknowledging his privileged position byContinue reading “A Lesson for Those in Authority”
Yet in Your Sins
Paul had previously presented to the believers in Corinth irrefutable eye-witness testimony of our Lord’s bodily resurrection from the dead. This he had done after testifying that Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection were scripturally foretold (I Corinthians 15:1-8). Nonetheless, there were those in Corinth that did not believe in any resurrection of the body andContinue reading “Yet in Your Sins”
Working for the Gospel’s Sake
Paul expressed his disappointment with the Corinthians’ lack of spiritual growth and rebuked them for their divisive favoritism (I Corinthians 3:2-4). He went on to explain that this unwarranted elevation of personalities struck at the very core of the gospel ministry. He challenged his readers, “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministersContinue reading “Working for the Gospel’s Sake”
We Have Received of His Spirit
Paul speaks of the most remarkable gift to the believer having reminded his audience that the world by its own wisdom could not find out God. To those who have believed the gospel, he assures them “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that weContinue reading “We Have Received of His Spirit”
Walk Before Me…
“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me and be thou perfect” (Genesis 17:1). In this brief statement by God, we find important truth that provides fundamental insight into God’s dealing with each of us. First, theContinue reading “Walk Before Me…”
Prophecy or Tongues?
The gift of “tongues” was an important gift found in the early church and necessary for advancing the gospel among different ethnic groups. Tongues in the New Testament has reference to foreign languages unknown or unlearned by the speaker. It would be as if I were able to speak French or German without any instructionContinue reading “Prophecy or Tongues?”
The Working Clothes of Love (Part 3)
We continue to examine Paul’s working definition of love as revealed to him by the Spirit of God and so come to a phrase that should genuinely give us pause. Perhaps, it is because this phrase strike very close to home. He writes that love “seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh noContinue reading “The Working Clothes of Love (Part 3)”
The Working Clothes of Love (Part 2)
In his letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul was constrained to speak on the gifts of the Holy Spirit and how they are to be ministered under the operation of love. That being so, it became necessary for him to spend some time showing what love looked like in its “working clothes.” He continuedContinue reading “The Working Clothes of Love (Part 2)”
The Working Clothes of Love
The concept of love in our modern American society is so very distorted from the truth. It ranges somewhere between the Hollywood version that is nothing more than fleshly lust to the smarmy Kodak version of love we see in television commercials, e.g., a man and a woman walking their dog on the beach inContinue reading “The Working Clothes of Love”
From the Chaplain 