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Sin Nature

In Bible Study, Blog, Thanksgiving on
November 22, 2021

But God

When the clock struck midnight on January 1, 2021, people were ecstatic to leave the woes and troubles of 2020 behind. However, it appears that 2020’s issues followed us into 2021 and, in some cases, became even worse. People are still contracting and dying from diseases, often without any family or friends beside them as they take their final breaths. Workers are still being let go from their jobs, even though there is an ongoing nationwide worker shortage. Small businesses are still facing product delays, and the threats of inflation keep rising and rising. Corrupt world leaders are still enacting laws and policies that oppress their constituents, getting bolder and more authoritarian by the day. And many churches are still parroting the slogans and jargon of our secular culture and beginning to move away from biblical Christianity.

With all these things happening in our culture, country, and world, it may seem hard to find something to be thankful for this year. But we, as Christians, have a lot to be thankful for regardless of what’s going on around us. Whenever we’re feeling discouraged or disappointed, we just need to remember two little words: “But God.”

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In Blog, Common Questions, Theology on
September 13, 2021

What is God’s Will for My Life?

Discerning the will of God is something I think every Christian has attempted to do at one point or another. It’s definitely something I’ve prayed for and longed for and tried to figure out. I’ve often asked that God would reveal His will to me about different decisions or situations, but most of the time I never get a clear, solid answer. Honestly, I sometimes wish I could be like Gideon and put out a fleece to get some answers from God (please, do not do this the next time you need to make a decision).

God’s will can be a tricky thing to understand. We’re told that nothing happens outside of God’s will. But does that mean it’s God will for a family member to be diagnosed with cancer? Is it God’s will for a friend to get in a serious car accident? Is it God’s will for a child to tragically die at a young age? And how are we to understand His will well enough to make decisions that won’t fall outside of it?

All these questions stem from a misunderstanding of God’s will. There are actually three aspects of the will of God: His sovereign will, His moral will, and His personal will.

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In Blog, Feelings, Theology on
August 16, 2021

My Feelings are Valid, or Are They?

My feelings are valid!

If you’ve followed any female influencer who prioritizes self-love and self-care for any length of time, you’ve probably heard this phrase before. Or perhaps you’ve even used it yourself. We live in a culture that highly prizes, validates, and affirms one’s feelings, whether they be good or bad. And this culture is even trying to train us to always speak in a way that will never leave anyone out, offend anyone, or hurt anyone’s feelings. Rene Descartes, a French philosopher who lived in the seventeenth century, once said, “I think, therefore I am.”[1] But is appears our culture has changed this to, “I feel, therefore I am.”

Many people today find their identity in how they feel, so they want their feelings to be validated because that then validates their identity – who they are as a person. But the problem with this phrase is that not all feelings are valid. Therefore, as believers, we cannot and should not affirm those feelings which are in fact invalid.

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In Attributes of God, Blog, Theology on
August 2, 2021

He is Righteous

Nobody likes a self-righteous person. Nobody likes those people who always think they’re better than everybody else. Nobody likes those people who always try to one-up others. But, if you think about it, you’ve probably acted in a self-righteous way at some point in your life. There’s probably been a time when you’ve believed you were better, smarter, or stronger compared to someone else, whether you verbalized that thought or not. There’s likely been an instance where you did something to one-up another person. We don’t like self-righteous people (and the self-righteous side of ourselves!) because we know that nobody is altogether righteous and nobody is really more righteous than somebody else. Everybody sins! There’s only one Person who truly is more righteous than anybody else, but He never puts us down because of it-

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In Blog, Reformed Theology, Theology on
June 21, 2021

The Calvinist’s Favorite Flower

What is a Calvinist’s favorite flower? A TULIP.

If you understood this joke, you’re probably a fellow theology nerd. Welcome to the club! If you didn’t get the joke, no worries. Today we’re going to talk about Calvinism and TULIP, so hopefully you’ll understand the joke by the end.

Let’s start with what Calvinism is. Calvinism, or Reformed Theology, is a branch of Protestantism whose beliefs are based on the teachings of John Calvin and other reformers. Calvinists emphasize things like the grace and sovereignty of God, predestination, and justification through faith. I learned about Calvinism for the first time a few years ago. After doing some research about their beliefs, I discovered that I, myself, was a Calvinist, and I developed a deeper affection for God and His Word and a thankfulness for His merciful salvation. Their main teachings are summarized by the acronym, TULIP, and we’re going to look at each letter of this acronym and how each teaching is supported by Scripture.

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