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In Bible Study, Blog, Matthew on
October 14, 2024

Can I Love Others Before I Love Myself?

What is the greatest commandment? If you’ve spent time studying God’s Word, you probably know the answer: to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind (and all your strength, depending on which Gospel you’re reading). Jesus declared this to be the greatest commandment in the Law when He was speaking to a group of Pharisees who were trying to test Him. Of course, being the omniscient Son of God, Jesus is not one to be outwitted or outsmarted. He replied without hesitation, giving them an answer that not only refers to a specific Old Testament command (Deuteronomy 6:5) but also encompasses the purpose of the entire Law God laid out for His people.

At the same time, Jesus also shares the second greatest commandment, another one you’re likely familiar with: love your neighbor as yourself. What it looks like to love your neighbor has been a highly discussed topic, both in ancient times and recent years. Many professing believers have misused this passage or taken it out of context. Some have used this verse to argue that one cannot love their neighbors until they love themselves, but is this true? Is this really what Jesus meant when He said these words?

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In Blog, Fruit of the Spirit, Theology on
September 15, 2024

Doing Good

Nobody wants to be called a “do-gooder.” Like the name suggests, a do-gooder is a person who does good things. However, the good things a do-gooder does are often not as helpful as they’d like them to be. Their actions are often ineffective, pointless, or even just downright annoying. Even worse than being called a do-gooder is being called a “goody-goody” or a “goody two-shoes,” which implies that you do good things just to please those in authority and that you look down upon those who are not as good as you.

The Bible calls Christians to be good, to do good. In fact, goodness is one of nine attributes listed in the Fruit of the Spirit, the characteristics of the person who is filled with the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). But what does it look like to practice goodness according to Scripture, and how can we avoid earning these monikers as a result of our good deeds?

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In Bible Study, Blog, Exodus on
August 12, 2024

No Other Gods

If you spent any significant amount of time in Sunday School growing up or you’ve watched the classic DreamWorks animated film, The Prince of Egypt, you are probably familiar with the biblical story of the Ten Plagues. But if it’s been a while since you’ve brushed up on your early biblical history, let me refresh you:

After Joseph, son of Jacob (Israel), rose to power following his enslavement and false imprisonment and became the second-in-command in Egypt, his entire family moved to Egypt to escape the famine ravaging the land (Genesis 45:16-28). The family settled into their appointed portion of Egyptian land, and they stayed there for many generations. Over the centuries, the number of Israelites residing in Egyptian territory grew and grew, and the Pharaoh who came to power felt threatened by them and their strength as a people (Genesis 1:8-10). So, he oppressed Israel and enslaved them, even going so far as to command their infant sons to be cast into the Nile River (Exodus 1:13-14, 22).

Israel cried out for help, and God heard them, remembering the covenant He had made with their ancestor, Abraham (Exodus 2:23-24). And He sent a man named Moses to speak to Pharoah and plead for Israel’s release from their slavery (Exodus 3:1-10). Pharoah, of course, refused, and thus began the Ten Plagues (Exodus 5:1-2). God unleashed ten horrifying plagues upon the land of Egypt—from the Nile River turning to blood and the nation being infested with frogs and flies to the people being covered in boils and the land being submerged into complete darkness. After every plague, Moses would demand Pharoah free the Israelites, and he continued to refuse until the very last plague—the death of every firstborn. Then, Pharoah finally relented and let Israel escape into the wilderness.

If you’re like me, you’ve probably heard this story and thought the Ten Plagues were just ten random punishments doled out onto Egypt for their abuse of the Israelites. But if we take a closer look at the cultural context, we’ll discover that these ten plagues were not random at all and that God had a bigger purpose in mind than just disciplining the Egyptians.

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In Blog, Book Reviews, Church on
July 14, 2024

A Short Guide to Church

It’s becoming increasingly common for Christians to skip church on Sundays. There are numerous reasons for this. Some are traveling on Sunday mornings, whether that be for work, for pleasure, or for their children’s sports tournaments. Others have such busy lives that they just want to sleep in and rest on their one day off from other responsibilities. Some have been hurt by a church in the past and don’t want to find a new church to attend, lest they be hurt again. And still others don’t see a need at all to go to Sunday worship services (after all, the Church isn’t a building, right?).

According to Ligonier’s The State of Theology survey in 2022, forty-four percent of professing Evangelicals do not believe that every Christian is obligated to join a local church, and fifty-six percent believe that worshipping alone or with one’s family is a valid replacement for regular church attendance.[1] This means that about half of self-proclaimed Evangelical believers today do not believe it’s necessary for Christians to attend church regularly or become a member of a local church. This fact is both alarming and problematic, and it’s one reason why Dean Inserra wrote his newest book, A Short Guide to Church.

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In Biblical Theology, Blog, Theology on
June 16, 2024

Covenants Crash Course

Weddings are big, exciting events. My best friend just got engaged a couple months ago, and she’s been searching for the perfect venue and deciding on important details, like what colors her bridesmaids will wear and what food they’ll serve at the reception. Last month, I even got the chance to go wedding dress shopping with her (and she picked out a truly beautiful gown).

While weddings are fun to attend or be a part of, they are more than just lavish parties where people dress up, and dance, and drink, and celebrate two people who have fallen in love. The real purpose of the wedding ceremony is to establish a marriage covenant between one man and one woman who promise to love each other for the rest of their lives and build a family that honors the Lord.

Nowadays, we don’t see a lot of people making covenants (outside of marriage), but they were quite common in ancient history. In Scripture, we find covenants being discussed often (the Hebrew and Greek words that translate as “covenant” appear about 300 times throughout the Bible). In fact, covenants play a key theme in the grand biblical narrative, and it’s important that we’re all familiar with the major biblical covenants and what they mean for us today.

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