151 results for tag: Front page

God Is After You – by Greg Albrecht

Moses was born into slavery. Freedom was a foreign concept to his people, the children of Israel who lived in bondage in Egypt. The Hebrews had no idea what it would be like to be free. Like many oppressed minorities throughout history, the Hebrews started to out-populate the majority power. The population explosion of the Israelite slaves was becoming such a problem that the Egyptian king, called the Pharaoh, decided that all male babies had to be killed at birth so that the Hebrews would not eventually out-number the Egyptians. In one of those unexpected turn of events in which God seems to delight, God used the very family of Pharaoh, ...

The Walking Wounded

by Greg Albrecht The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.—Psalm 34:17-18 When we think of the term "walking wounded," we usually consider warriors who served their country, whose wounds are visible and known, as well as those whose wounds are not as apparent. Most recently, we are familiar with The Walking Wounded who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan. While one of the tragic consequences of any war is The Walking Wounded left in its wake, one of the most publicized examples goes back a generation. You ...

Getting or Being Saved?

by Greg Albrecht Are you saved, brother?" the intense young man asked me. He continued, "If you're not saved, you need to get saved!" When the young evangelist cornered me, I surmised he was hoping to save another soul from the eternal torment of hell-fire. I responded, "Before I reply, may I ask you to tell me what it is you believe I need to be saved from?" The earnest young man didn't miss a beat (as I suspected, he rattled off the stock answer he'd learned in Saving Souls 101) "if you don't get saved, you're going to hell." I locked eyes with him and asked him another question: "So, let me get this straight—I need to 'get' saved so I won't ...

Attend Church Or Else!

by Greg Albrecht Editor's Note: Just what it means to "be" and "do" and "go to" church is a controversial topic within Christendom. Of course there are vested interests, so that the discussion is rarely objective. One of our readers introduced this conversation, as he reported his response to an article by a pastor (in italics) he felt to be manipulative and self-serving (our reader's response in bold type). We invite you to be the judge of that! My wife recently brought home a pastoral newsletter from the church she occasionally attends. I read the lead article and couldn't believe what I was reading. Have I just gone completely nuts, am I ...

Whose Side Is God On?

  Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?" "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord have for his servant?"— Joshua 5:13-14 Have you ever noticed how many individual Christians and incorporated religious institutions assume that God is exclusively on their side? Many seem to think that God is a member-in-good-standing of their denomination. Many seem to ...

Can We Lose Our Salvation?

Q: Do you believe we can lose our salvation once we are truly saved? My personal belief is that, yes, we can. While God will never take it away, through constant and willful sinning, we can turn our eyes away from God. This will eventually lead to a case of "Pharaoh's hardened heart," a state whereby we can reject God's offer, and create a wall between ourselves and God that even God will not cross—for to do so would be to break his promise to us of free will. A: No, I do not believe we can lose our salvation. Before explaining why, let me say that this discussion, in my view, is not a "make or break" theological perspective. Christians ...

Grace on Trial

Greg Albrecht: I'm talking with a good friend, Steve McVey of Grace Walk Ministries. Steve is the president of Grace Walk Ministries. Steve, I've got to tell you that I wish there were more people in this world who are proclaiming radical grace. Steve: When we talk about grace we're talking about Jesus, and I think folks need to have that firmly in their minds, that grace personified is Jesus Christ. So to those who say, well, that's great to talk about grace but there are other things too, I say, well, what else is there? The grace of Jesus Christ is the gospel. Radical grace—I like that. For those who may not know, let's remind them the ...

God-Given Freedom

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is ...

The Gathering Storm of Fundamentalism – by Greg Albrecht

It is one of the most explosive issues facing our world in the early years of this 21st century. Political and religious agendas around the world are bullied and coerced, reacting to a virus-like spiritual plague of religious fundamentalism. The Islamic fundamentalist reaction to Western imperialism and decadence is said to be a counter-attack on the "great Satans" of our culture (materialism, immorality, secularism, humanism, science and technology), all of which are blamed for taking our world to hell in a hand-basket. Though the eyes of the world are currently focused on Islamic fundamentalism, the seeds of radical religious fundamentalism are ...

The Real Love Story – by Greg Albrecht

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.—John 3:16-17 It's been said that love is the most powerful force in the universe because it alone can conquer the human heart. But God's love does not coerce. God's love works in our lives by our consent. Many people suffer with a warped and twisted view of God's love. They have a perverted idea of God's love because of religious deception, because of a distorted idea of God they have been given by someone who ...

He Wants You – Dead and Alive – by Greg Albrecht

What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no ...

What’s So Bad About Religion? – by Greg Albrecht

Some of our readers and listeners can't bring themselves to believe that religion is as bad as we say it is. They say things like, "you spend too much time talking about the negative things and too little about the good things." One person said, "What's so bad about religion? If you had more grace you wouldn't harp on religion so much." If you have ever visited a prison, you walk away realizing it's a horrible thing to be incarcerated. When you are locked up, you are a slave, you have no freedom. If you know anything about institutionalized incarceration you will also know that inmates learn to depend on and work the system. The system gives them ...

What Does ‘We Are Not Under the Law, but Under Grace’ Really Mean?

Many professing and church-going Christians fail to realize what "we are not under the law but under grace" means. Most agree that it's God's grace and not anything we can do that will make us right with God. Most realize and accept that Christians don't follow the rites and rituals of the Old Testament but they are often confused about the Ten Commandments. They believe that the Ten Commandments (except seventh-day Sabbath-keeping) are valid and required norms of behavior. Here's the Christ-centered perspective we need. When Jesus died on his cross, he completed all the terms of the old covenant. He had kept its terms perfectly, and on his ...

What is the Gospel? Part 1 – Greg Albrecht

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written, "The righteous will live by faith."—Romans 1:16-17 Paul 1) categorically states that he is not ashamed of the gospel, 2) defines the gospel as the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes, and 3) asserts that the gospel inherently includes a righteousness from God—a righteousness by faith—precluding any sort of righteousness which may come, or seem ...

10 Percent Grace and 90 Percent Law? – Greg Albrecht

Recently I was asked about a church pastor who preaches 10 percent grace and 90 percent law. Apparently this church has a clock counter on its website to show how fast people are getting to hell. This church believes that one of the methods of "saving" people is to expose their sins, and (by embarrassing them) guilt them into obeying God. This church is but one of many which believes that the Ten Commandments (and at times other portions of the old covenant) must be preached to sinners to prepare them to accept Christ. The idea is taught in several different ways: 1) People must be convinced that they have a problem (that they are sinners) ...

What is the Gospel? Part 2 – Greg Albrecht

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified. If, while we seek to be justified in Christ, it becomes evident that we ourselves are sinners, does ...

The Ultimate Declaration of God’s Grace

Americans are used to hearing the President of the United States make critically important announcements either from the Oval Office, simply speaking to television cameras, or to a combined, televised session of Congress. And, as they begin their term of office, Presidents give an inaugural address, during which many of them attempt to rally the nation behind their clear vision. In 1865, during the final days of the Civil War, addressing a nation tired of bloodshed, Abraham Lincoln, who would be assassinated only 41 days after this address, said, in part: "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives ...

Go to Him Outside the Camp

On what we now call Palm Sunday, almost 2,000 years ago Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a humble donkey. He was welcomed by people who had heard him preach—among whom were the poor, the diseased, the disenfranchised and outcasts, all of whom shouted "Hosanna!" to Jesus (Matthew 21:9, 15). Many Christians think "Hosanna" has always been defined as a joyful worship word. It hasn't. Hosanna means "save us now"— it was a cry of desperation, shouted at Jesus by the crowds as he entered Jerusalem. Most who greeted Jesus with "Hosanna" wanted physical relief from their physical problems and afflictions—but, in addition, there may well have been ...

Who Is It You Are Looking For?

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?" "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, "Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"—John 20:11-15 The religious lynch-mob convened an illegal trial, declared an innocent man guilty and condemned him to death. Of course, it wasn't the ...

Why Did Jesus Die?

Why did Jesus die?" may seem like an easy question, because the answer seems obvious, doesn't it? Normally, most Christians immediately answer the question something like this: "He died to atone, that is pay for, our sins. As the Lamb of God, he took away the sins of the world, redeeming us from sin through his precious blood. He died that we might die to sin, so that he might live in us, producing his righteousness within us." That answer is true—but it's not the whole story. Much of the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments, presents the cross of Christ as a forensic event. That is, God uses the language and word pictures of the ...