The Apostle Paul taught the Galatian believers that the gospel of God’s grace in Jesus Christ purchased their liberty from sin, both its penalty and its power. Therefore, they were no longer to be governed by self-love, but use this liberty to serve one another in love (Galatians 5:13). Paul went on to remind themContinue reading “Loving as Christ Loved”
Author Archives: randylivingston
Looking on the Things of Others
Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others” (Philippians 2:4). He was instructing his audience to be mindful of the state of affairs pertaining to those around them, whether spiritual or material. Paul was not advocating that they shouldContinue reading “Looking on the Things of Others”
Cut Off From the World
Have you ever thought that you just don’t fit in? I’m sure we’ve all found ourselves at one time or another feeling ill at ease with our surroundings as though we just did not belong there. For the Christian that should be a common or recurring experience as we make our journey through this life.Continue reading “Cut Off From the World”
Abstain from Fornication
Many Christians struggle to know the will of God for their lives. What profession should I pursue? Should I get married? How will I know the “right” one? Where should I settle down? All of these considerations are natural to man. As believers, we can be confident that God has a plan for our lives.Continue reading “Abstain from Fornication”
Whether It Be Right…
The spread of the gospel message in the early church was accompanied by signs and wonders performed by the Apostles. These miracles served to authenticate the message and the messenger as one sent from God. These miracles later became unnecessary with the completion of the New Testament Scriptures. We now have in His word allContinue reading “Whether It Be Right…”
What is a Christian?
The Bible tells us that the “disciples [of Jesus] were called Christians first in Antioch” (Acts 11:26). Over the centuries, the term “Christian” has grown in its embrace of peoples and practices that are anything but what those who coined the term observed of believers in first century Antioch. Reviewing the term in its originContinue reading “What is a Christian?”
We Ought to Obey God…
Following Christ is a path that regularly encounters opposition. In fact, the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy “all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12). If you are walking close with Christ, you know whereof Paul spoke. The world is not a friend to Jesus Christ nor his followers.Continue reading “We Ought to Obey God…”
To the Unknown God
“But when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of God was preached of Paul at Berea, they came thither also, and stirred up the people” (Acts 17:13). The gospel message is either received or rejected and, often, when it is rejected it is openly resisted. This was the case in Berea. Consequently,Continue reading “To the Unknown God”
The Gospel is for All
Chapter 10 in the Book of Acts records for us a very clear and important principle related to the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a matter of background, the Jewish religion incorporated a very extensive and specific dietary regimen. Leviticus 11 provides a detailed “law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of everyContinue reading “The Gospel is for All”
The Chief of Sinners
Paul’s viewpoint concerning his own conversion to Christianity gives insight to the unsearchable depths of God’s grace. Prior to his salvation, he was a fervent opponent of the faith and persecutor of the church. The Bible records that Saul (Paul) “breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, [he] went to the highContinue reading “The Chief of Sinners”
From the Chaplain 