Women, Stop Submitting to Men

By Dr. Russell Moore

Those of us who hold to so-called “traditional gender roles” are often assumed to believe that women should submit to men. This isn’t true.

Indeed, a primary problem in our culture and in our churches isn’t that women aren’t submissive enough to men, but instead that they are far too submissive.

First of all, it just isn’t so that women are called to submit while men are...

Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation? -Should a Christian Tithe?- What Were the Real Sins of Sodom? -

Can a Christian lose salvation?"

Answer: Before this question is answered, the term “Christian” must be defined. A “Christian” is not a person who has said a prayer, or walked down an aisle, or been raised in a Christian family. While each of these things can be a part of the Christian experience, they are not what “makes” a Christian. A Christian is a person who has, by faith, received and fully trusted in Jesus Christ as the only Savior (John...

"If I am saved and all of my sins are forgiven, why not continue to sin?"

Answer: The apostle Paul answered a very similar question in Romans 6:1-2, “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?” The idea that a person could “trust in Jesus Christ” for salvation and then go on living just as he/she lived before, is absolutely foreign to the Bible. Believers in Chr...

Calming Quarrels in your Marriage

By Eric and April Motl

What’s the number one thing that stirs up a conflict in your home? Money? The Kids? Schedules? The remote control?

Disagreements are a natural part of marriage - no two people can see the world exactly the same 100% of the time. Disagreements can even be good when we go about them in a healthy way. But fighting? That is an entirely different matter.

B...

By Pastor James May

This is a controversial subject that has different theological views. While there is plenty of Scripture to support the loss of effectiveness and fruitfulness, I believe the Bible does not indicate the actual loss of gifts. . Scripture is clear that gifts are given because of grace (Romans 12:6).. nothing earned or merited.

"As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes, but as touching the election, they are beloved for the father's sakes. For t...

Is It A Sin For Women To Wear Pants?

By Rev./ Dr. James A. May

First, before I answer this question, I would like to say that this issue has been generated in Christianity for centuries. For the most part, people who believe that woman should not wear pants use Deuteronomy 22:5 as the “lynch pin” for declaring it is a sin for woman to wear pants, and women should not wear pants in church.  In short, the answer is NO, it is NOT A SIN!  In bi...

5 Reminders for Ridding Your Life of Fear

By Pastor Ron Edmondson

Most of us live our lives with some kind of fear. That’s probably uncontrollable to a great extent. We live in a very fearful world. The title of this post may be a bit misleading; fear may always be with us, but I think it should be a challenge to have less fear of this world in our lives.

What would it be like to live your life apart from fear or with less fear?

Here are some poin...

Editor's Note: The following is a report on the practical applications of Jack Watts' recent book, Recovering from Religious Abuse: 11 Steps to Spiritual Freedom, (Howard Books, 2011).

A church elder yells rude, condemning words at you. A pastor tries to manipulate you and makes you feel guilty if you don’t comply. A church leader you trust sexually molests you when the two of you are alone.

When you suffer religious abuse, you must deal with the pain of figuring out how to ...

Dr. Robert Jeffress

When Satan comes against your mind with wrong thoughts, you don’t have to concede defeat. Use these practical actions to confront loose thoughts by securing them with the belt of truth (Ephesians 6:14).

Action 1: Refuse to feel guilty for wrong thoughts

Imagine you are awakened at 3 a.m. by someone pounding on your front door. More than likely, before you open the door, you’ll look through the peephole to see who is causing the commoti...

 By Pastor Perry Noble

1. When excuses are made about the way things are instead of embracing a willingness to roll up the sleeves and fix the problem.

2. When the church becomes content with merely receiving people that come rather than actually going out and finding them…in other words, they lose their passion for evangelism!

3. The focus of the church is to build a great church (complete with the pastors picture…and his wife’s…on everything) ...

 By Pastor John S. Powers

How do myths affect the local church? Present expectations confine us, and myths will keep any church in a rut. We need to be aware of the myths churches face today:

Myth One: The church is a volunteer organization.

The average church member has been led to believe that activity within a local church is strictly voluntary, meaning members can come, give, share, and participate as they please. Church rolls have too long carried the weigh...

By Whitney Hopler

Editor's Note: The following is a report on the practical applicationsof Linda Evans Shepherd's new book, When You Can’t Find God: How to Ignite the Power of His Presence, (Revell Books, 2011).

Trouble hits everyone in this fallen world. Even Jesus suffered while He was here on Earth, and so will you – no matter how much you love God.

But the presence of trouble in your life doesn’t mean the abse...

By Dennis Rainey

If you've ever purchased a car, you've seen the owner's manual. It's the book that tells you about the "non-negotiables" for maintaining the car. These are things like changing the oil, filling the tank with gasoline, topping off the transmission fluid, and having tires with adequate tread. We spend a lot of time making sure these non-negotiables are done so that when we get in the car, it runs properly.

The same principle is true for the life of a believer. We ...

Why Churches Wither and Die

By Pastor Alan Danielson

I once served as the interim pastor for a small church. This church could seat 400, but only 40 came. They’d fired their last three pastors and had changed very little for 40 years. The church had been declining since its peak in 1965, and the average age of the congregation was over 70. They were bearing no fruit, and they were dying a slow death. Their “hope” was the money they had in the ...

by Whitney Hopler

Editor's Note: The following is a report on the practical applications of Margaret Kim Peterson and Dwight N. Peterson's book, Are You Waiting for “The One”?: Cultivating Realistic, Positive Expectations for Christian Marriage, (IVP Books, 2011).

Too often, people approach marriage expecting that God has a perfect spouse in mind for them, and if they can only find that perfect person to marry, they’ll enjoy a marriage as perfect as a romantic f...

Question: "What is the Christian view of suicide? What does the Bible say about suicide?"

Answer: The Bible mentions six specific people who committed suicide: Abimelech (Judges 9:54), Saul (1 Samuel 31:4), Saul's armor-bearer (1 Samuel 31:4-6), Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23), Zimri (1 Kings 16:18), and Judas (Matthew 27:5). Five of them were wicked, sinful men (not enough is said regarding Saul's armor-bearer to make a judgment as to his character). Some consider Samson an instance of sui...

What is a sin of omission?

Answer: James 4:17 declares, "Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins." A sin of omission is a sin that is the result of not doing something God’s Word teaches that we should do. It is generally used in contrast with the corresponding phrase “the sin of commission,” or sins that a person actively commits. Paul juxtaposes the two concepts in Romans 7:14-20. He decries his tendency toward both types of sin. He do...

By Pastor Joel Engle

Is it a sin for a Christian to have a drink of alcohol?

It is an important question for our time. Millions and millions of Americans have been brutalized and devastated by the abuse of alcohol. I have had to deal as a minister with the shattered lives that occurred through the addiction and abuse of alcohol. This is not just an American issue but I live here so I will talk about what I know.

I am going to make some preliminary remarks and then d...