Spiritual Growth / Godliness

  • A Narrow Gate; a Hard Way

    Matthew 7:13–14

    Matthew Henry summarizes Jesus’ teaching in today’s passage: “We must endure hardship, must wrestle and be in agony, must watch in all things, and walk with care and circumspection. We must go through much tribulation.” Christ’s way is ...Read More

  • Knowing God’s Will

    1 Thessalonians 4:1–12

    What is God’s will for my life? The simple answer is that His will for my life is that I be holy. This is easy to affirm with our lips, but it is very difficult to have it take ...Read More

  • A Parting Of Ways

    Genesis 33:12–17

    Our struggle to be sanctified can leave us discouraged at times, but we should not lose heart, for the Lord will indeed make us holy (Rev. 19:6–8). As long as we are, by faith, making use of the ...Read More

  • Imitate Good

    3 John 9–15

    Whether we are in a position of authority or not, we all must be careful lest we try to place ourselves first. All too often our criticism of other people, especially Christian leaders, arises not from legitimate concerns but instead ...Read More

  • Avoid Idols

    1 John 5:20–21

    What are those things you put in place of the living God? Are you consumed with fame and fortune? Do you pursue work to the point of neglecting private and public worship of the Lord? Perhaps you are tempted to ...Read More

  • In Deed and Truth

    1 John 3:16–18

    As our income increases it becomes easier to spend the extra money on things we really do not need instead of using it to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and extend the Gospel. While we cannot set some kind ...Read More

  • Practicing Righteousness

    1 John 3:9–10

    The distinction John makes between children of God and children of the Devil denies any naive assertion that all people have God as their Father. Only those who are in Christ by faith and therefore submit to Him as Lord ...Read More

  • As He Is Righteous

    1 John 3:7–8

    By His death and resurrection Jesus broke the power of Satan in order to destroy his evil works. Jesus has secured this victory but has not yet consummated it, and He has given us a role to play in destroying ...Read More

  • Be Diligent

    2 Peter 3:14

    Only if we are in Christ will we be spotless and therefore pure enough to enter the world to come. His righteousness imputed to us in justification will be the only thing that secures our entry into heaven. However, our ...Read More

  • Holiness and Godliness

    2 Peter 3:11–12

    We must not ever think that Peter’s call to hasten the day of the Lord through holy living means that the future is somehow unknown to the Lord or open to change for our God. However, we must also ...Read More

  • The Time That Is Past

    1 Peter 4:3–5

    As Christians, we are all too often ridiculed when we do not agree with our culture’s permissive attitude towards sexuality and substance abuse, or with the embrace of relativity and disrespect for authority figures. When people make fun of ...Read More

  • Honorable Conduct

    1 Peter 2:11–12

    What is your conduct like among non-believers? Are you a faithful witness of the God of Scripture to your neighbors or to your fellow employees? Or do you behave dishonorably before the world? Spend some time in prayer today, asking ...Read More

  • The Imitation of Christ

    Ephesians 5:1

    God has given us the spiritual disciplines so that we might fulfill the call to imitate His holiness and righteousness. Therefore we must endeavor to study His Word, pray, fellowship, and evangelize, always remembering that if we do such things ...Read More

  • Your Exile

    1 Peter 1:17–19

    That the apostle Peter applies the language of exile to a largely Gentile audience just as it applies to the faithful Jewish remnant shows us that there is only one people of God. True Israel consists of all those who ...Read More

  • Resist the Devil

    James 4:7–8

    All Christians can find at least one area in their lives in which they have sought to follow their own understanding instead of the standards of the Lord. God has promised to forgive us for this behavior if we would ...Read More