151 results for tag: God’s love

Is God Disappointed With You?

There is no doubt the "disappointed God" must be included in the Top Ten Misunderstandings of God. Here's the heavenly picture this erroneous stereotype creates: the "disappointed God" sits, slumped forward on his heavenly throne, head in hands, peering down, sighing and frowning, disillusioned and frustrated with you and me. This misconception of God presents God as dismayed and despondent because of our seemingly never-ending failures. The "disappointed God" wonders whether you and I will ever learn. Of course, dissatisfaction exists in our relationship with God, but the frustration is on our part, not that of God's. The disenchantment we feel ...

June 2021

CLICK HERE to read now (PDF Format) Brad Jersak: Papa's Love & Frightful Warnings– pg. 2 Ed Dunn: Can We Talk?– pg. 5 Rachel Ramer: "Shame On You!" Really?– pg. 6 Greg Albrecht: The Bride of Christ – pg. 7

Can we ‘make’ God love us more or less? – Brad Jersak

  "We need to let it soak in that there is nothing we can do to make God love us more…and nothing we can do to make God love us less." - Philip Yancey "We all need to know that God does not love us because we are good; God loves us because God is good. Nothing humans can do will ever decrease or increase God's eternal eagerness to love." - Richard Rohr I remember when I first heard these kind of statements and sort of cringed. I was suspicious that those who echoed Philip Yancey or Fr. Richard might employ them to imply, "So it doesn't matter what you do." I don't think I hear Jesus saying, "It doesn't matter what you do," and in fact, that's ...

How Big Is God?

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.    The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and ...

Downward Mobility

They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. "We are going up to Jerusalem," he said, "and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise." Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. "Teacher," they said, "we want you to do for us whatever we ask." "What do you want me ...

You Are Loved

Shout for joy, you heavens; rejoice, you earth; burst into song, you mountains! For the LORD comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones. But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me." "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you."—Isaiah 49:13-15 This week is Mother's Day here in North America, and we extend a huge thank-you to all mothers, as we celebrate their role in our lives. Having said that, in the midst of all our Mother's Day celebrations we should remember that the outward trappings of ...

You Ain’t Got No Easter Clothes

When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."—John 11:43-44 Welcome to the party! Easter is the annual celebration Christians around the world anticipate and long for. Once again we savor victory in Christ. As Christians we are celebrating the most triumphant and victorious day in all history. Let's begin with the words of Peter, who tells us, in 1 Peter 1:3-4: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has ...

The Ministry of Death OR The Ministry of Life

 He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? —2 Corinthians 3:6-8 He looked at me and said, "It happened while I was in church. It was the end of the service, everyone was standing, and so was I. I was doing the same religious thing that everybody else was doing, the same religious ...

It’s Good to Be Alive

It's one of two times in the year when brick-and-mortar churches have their highest attendance. It's without a doubt the most meaningful time of the year for Christians, but Easter lilies, bunny rabbits, Easter hams, painted and chocolate eggs can take our attention away from the vital life-giving significance of this spiritual victory we celebrate every spring. Easter signals new life springing from what is seemingly dead and lifeless. Gray gives way to green. Ice melts and snow is replaced by the promise of buds and sprouts. Light overcomes darkness. The light and life that comes bursting from an empty tomb triumphs over death on the cross, a ...

If You Had Only Known What Would Bring You Peace

After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' tell him, 'The Lord needs it.'" Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, "Why are you untying the colt?"  They replied, "The Lord needs it." They brought it to Jesus, threw their ...

Did Jesus’ Crucifixion Satisfy God’s Wrath?

An idyllic, beautiful setting surrounds a rambling country estate in rural England. It's 1935, and this pastoral setting provides the backdrop for the initial scene that plays out in Atonement. During the brief respite between the first and second World Wars, Cecilia Tallis, a rich young lady in her early twenties whose family owns the estate discovers she loves, and is loved by Robbie, a young man whose mother is the housekeeper at the Tallis home. As the love story begins, we are also introduced to Briony, Cecilia's younger sister. Briony is an aspiring writer who is, in her coming of age 13-year-old way, envious of the courtship enjoyed by ...

Love – No Fear

by Greg Albrecht Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.—1 Corinthians 13:4-8 1 Corinthians 13 is a chapter many have come to know as the "love chapter" of the Bible. 1 Corinthians 13 is arranged in three separate sections, two of which we will briefly examine: The first section, in verses 1-3, is about love as being indispensable. If you've ever been to ...

Lighten Up – Trust Him – Be Free!

by Greg Albrecht Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him—you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in Scripture it says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will ...

Hope in Desperate Times

By Greg Albrecht— Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. —Proverbs 13:12 People often give up on God because they feel he didn't fulfill their expectations. And where, exactly, do people receive their education about what they can expect from God? If you answered "religious institutions" you get to pass "Go"— collect $200 and receive a "get out of religion free" card. One of the major sources of discontent with God is that many people do what they think God wants them to do because they expect him to make them feel good ("bless" is often used instead of "feel good"). And of course we all want to ...

The King Who Became a Man

by Greg Albrecht The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood (John 1:14, The Message). During his reign (1910-1936) King George V of the United Kingdom and the British Empire visited Leeds, a city in the north of England. When he was informed that a school was situated next to the railway line, King George agreed to have the train slow down so that he could appear on a platform and wave to the children as the royal entourage passed. When the king came outside the train he wore no outward signs of royalty, but was dressed in a suit, like any other male subject of his kingdom. After the train glided by and the cheers of ...

How Can Jesus Be 100% God + 100% Human?

Q: You have said the Bible does not teach a mixture of divine and human natures. Could they be joined in such a manner that it would be possible for Jesus Christ to die as both God and man? It is hard for me to believe these two natures were united in such a manner as to allow only the man in Jesus Christ to die. It is said the Son of God became flesh so he could suffer death for all men. Did God fail? You have also said that Jesus was and is God. "He always was God and always will be God," you once wrote. If the man in Jesus died and the soul of man was commended to God in heaven and the body of Jesus went to the grave, where was the God ...

Don’t Forget

by Greg Albrecht Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my innermost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.—Psalm 103:1-5 Every Friday night Eddie walked down to an old broken down pier on the eastern seacoast of Florida, walking slowly, slightly stooped over while carrying a large bucket of shrimp. The sea gulls flocked to the old man because almost every Friday night he provided ...

October 2020

CLICK HERE to read now (PDF Format) Brad Jersak: Faith Beyond Factions– pg. 3 Greg Albrecht: Jesus Invites Outsiders– pg. 6 Keith Giles: Attack of the "Love Buts" – pg. 10 Brian Zahnd: War of the Lamb – pg. 12 Greg Albrecht: Loving Sinners, Hating Sins? -pg. 15

How Free is Free Will?

by Greg Albrecht How much choice does any individual human actually have? We speak of "free will"—but how much of a choice to accept God's grace does anyone have, given the brainwashing and propaganda to which they are subjected? How much of a choice to accept God's grace does a young boy in a radicalized Muslim school have? How much of a choice to accept God's grace does someone have who is ensnared by some ultra fundamentalist church, where performance-based religion rules? Being in Christ is a divine invitation to an eternal relationship, open to everyone. But being in Christ is not an automatic, divinely bestowed or imposed gift. Being in ...

The Master’s Voice

by Greg Albrecht "I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice." Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was ...