In the past 10 weeks we have looked at what God would put on your bucket list. I hope that these articles have proved invaluable to you and that you will utilize all of them. Here's the entire list and the links for each article for your convenience. Series Introduction 1.) Live Faithfully unto Death 2.) Listen to Me! 3.) Take up Spiritual Arms 4.) Pray for MY Enemies 5.) Count Your Blessings 6.) Realize your Self-Worth 7.) Stop Making Excuses 8.) Don't Put me at Arm's Length 9.) Number Your Days 10.) Prepare for Death

  God’s Bucket List for You, part 10   Introduction In the final item on God’s bucket list for you, this is also the first that needs to be desired. It’s the hardest of all ten as it is a lifelong commitment. Oftentimes, when one hears what they must do to become a Christian, they hear baptism as the last step. But once you become baptized, it’s not the end, but only the beginning. Jesus said in Revelation 2:10, “…Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.”   Will You Live for Jesus? How often have you heard people, supposedly Christians, say that they would die for Jesus? If their life were threatened, if they were challenged to renounce God, etc. Over and over people boldly say that they would give up their life for Jesus. But how many of these same people would live for Jesus; day in and day out? It’s only when their freedom of religion is threatened that they suddenly “come alive” for God and Jesus. They’ll stand tall in the face of ...

    Introduction In 1 Corinthians 1:10 the apostle Paul writes, Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. The main challenge of the church in Corinth was the variety of divisions that they had. It’s a similar challenge that congregations have today. We only have the one gospel (Eph. 4:5) and, therefore, should only follow it as God’s command. The ideas of men sometime get in the way, causing great strife.   Who do You Follow? Paul continues, in his letter, in verse 12, Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” The factions, here, show that members of the congregation were gravitating towards the men who, either taught them the gospel or, perhaps, baptized them. Those who declared, “I am of Christ...

  God’s Bucket List for You, part 9     In case you missed it, to read the introduction of this series, click   here . Introduction Scripture teaches us that we talk to God through prayer. James writes, The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16). Even the disciples of Christ wanted to be taught how to pray (Lk. 11:1-4). This is where we get the model prayer. However, people despair and say things like, “No matter how many times I pray, nothing changes. I talk to God all of the time and it doesn’t help.” The question to ask, then, is, “When was the last time you listened to God?” God’s desire for His children is for them to listen to Him! We’ll bend the knee but we won’t open His book.   Faith comes by… The Calvinists of the religious community will argue and debate until they’re blue in the face that all you have to do to be saved is to believe and nothing more. “Faith alone is what saves you” is what they shout. ...

    Introduction One of the “Hot Button Topics” in religion involves the second coming of Jesus Christ. So much speculation surrounds this event. The scripture states what will happen during this event but, even then, there are those who say that the bible contradicts itself. This article will unravel this issue.   The “So-called” Contradiction There are two verses in scripture, among others, that discuss the Second Coming. These are the ones we’ll focus on in this article. In 1 Thessalonians 4:16 the apostle Paul writes, For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout , with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. (NKJV) In 2 Peter 3:10 the apostle Peter writes, But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night , in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. (NKJV)...

  God’s Bucket List for You, part 8   In case you missed it, to read the introduction of this series, click here . Introduction In the general world of religion, there’s an extreme dislike of the militant language used in the bible. Here are some examples: Phil. 2:25, Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier , but your messenger and the one who ministered to my need . 2Tim. 2:3-4, You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. If this is such a negative aspect, then why did the apostle Peter describe Satan as an adversary (1 Pet. 5:8)? Whether you want to believe it or not, we are at war with Satan and his minions, and it is up to us to arm ourselves and defend the word of God.   Arming Ourselves The apostle Paul describes the armor of God i...

    Introduction I’ve been a Christian for more than 20 years. I’ve heard hundreds of sermons preached by dozens of preachers. And it’s not just at the local congregation. I’ve had CDs and DVDs sent to me upon request, I’ve gone to other congregations, and I’ve listened to lessons on social media. I can’t say that I’ve heard every subject preached, but I’ve heard enough to get a solid understanding of what the bible teaches and what it does not. There are times when I hear a lesson that I really need to hear and, to me, that good. But for others, they think it’s a personal attack on who they are.   Topical Sermons One of my favorite type of sermons to hear, and to preach myself, are topical sermons. Where you take a general subject like: Baptism, Heaven, Judgment Day, Salvation, etc. and the lesson deals with various aspects of the subject covering a wide amount of bible. Sometimes a preacher will deal with a subject that has something that is going on in ...

  God’s Bucket List for You, part 7  Introduction to the series, click here Introduction Prayer is one of the easiest things we can do, as a Christian, and yet it is sometimes the one activity we don’t do enough of in our daily routine. For some it’s prayer before each meal and before going to bed. Speaking to God should be done more often throughout the day. In addition to praying for our food, and the things we have, we should also pray for your friends, family, loved ones, etc. However, for our bucket list, God also wants us to pray for His enemies. That’s right! And this will be one of the hardest things on the list to do.   From the Sermon on the Mount In Matthew 5:43-45 Jesus said, “ You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your F...