Reflections on the Bible, and Other Writings, from a Christian Perspective.
It’s now been a month and a half since my last post about Naaman the leper. I didn’t intend to have such long delays between posts after my return to this website in November 2024. Unfortunately, these periods of inactively have now become common. Consequently, I don’t plan on posting further articles on this site for the foreseeable future.
What do you want in your life? Do you want power, esteem, or something else? What if you have all those things, and yet, there is one problem you can’t defeat?
Over the last last few articles we've looked at multiple aspects of shining the light to the world. One final piece I want to discuss is its connection with doing good works through Christ Jesus. Relating the two together may be surprising to hear about, but it is part of what He desires from us.
As I've been sharing in the last few posts, thanks to Jesus Christ, we are no longer in darkness and can walk as children of light. However, what if we are tempted to go back to our old ways? What will happen then? That is what I'd like to discuss now.
Jesus Christ fulfilled many prophecies of the Old Testament, one of which was that people who sat in darkness saw a great light (Matt. 4:15-16). It is because of His light that Jesus can say that we are the light of the world.
One common belief about living apart from God is that doing so gives one a sense of freedom. It has the illusion of being able to do whatever one wants in life without having to bother with religious teachings getting in the way. Through this mindset, selfish desires can be temporarily gratified. However, that isn't the whole story.
Although it's no surprise, I'm sad to officially announce that I've given up on continuing my Audio New Testament project. It's something that I really felt compelled to attempt a few years ago. However, as the work progressed, I came to the realization that I couldn't continue it to completion.
There are many famous letters in the New Testament. Some are rather short and addressed to a small group of people. Others are written to those in a province or city. Among these, Paul's epistle to the Romans is among the most well known. Even non-Christians know some of its teachings, such as all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord, and we know that all things work together for good to them who love God.
In the New Testament we are blessed with four gospel accounts of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. Through them, we can understand how God wants us to come to the Father through Him. Furthermore, in the Gospel of Luke, we learn that God will welcome us if we approach Him humbly and with a contrite heart.
In the first century of Christianity, one of the common areas of confusion was how believers should respond to the Law of Moses. Issues related to this were not simple, and serious arguments are often recorded for us in the New Testament in regards to these matters. As many of us know, more than one of the apostle Paul's letters makes reference to them. Some of these include the epistles of Romans and Galatians. For us today, one of the best books for helping us to properly understand these concerns is the Letter to the Hebrews.
James L. Hutton 