Christian Living

by Michael Osborne

by Beth Murschell

or Why I Am a Christian

by Michael Osborne

On the one hand, we are continually expressing our instinctive desire for justice; on the other, we are expressing our instinctive desire for mercy. Why both? Is this blowing hot and cold with the same breath?

Reward-based motivational methods have been around for a long time. Whether patches and bars for children who learn verses or plaques and certificates for hard-working adults, we line people up and applaud them. But some believers are uncomfortable with these traditions. Shouldn’t we serve the Lord out of love? Doesn’t the applause of men rob God of His glory and encourage pride?

The White House security guard thought he had seen it all. But there they were: a young couple, clothing strewn about, making passionate love on the White House lawn. As he and another guard hustled out to confront them, he only hoped the couple wouldn’t become another D.C. tourist attraction, but tourists gathered at the fence surely had a full view.

“Leave us alone,” the young man told the guards. “We’re both consenting adults. What business is this of yours?”

Yesterday, I preached at the funeral of a very dear friend. Over the last 10 years, Cindy had become “family” to me, my wife, and our four daughters. For six of those years, she battled cancer valiantly and selflessly. On Sunday afternoon, Cindy finally won: the cancer is dead, and Cindy is in the presence of the Lord whom she loved, proclaimed, and served. She enjoyed gazing on Christ from afar, but now she is doing so face-to-face. Victory!

See Part 1.

About every other year, I attempt a full or partial decent into the Grand Canyon. “The Hike” is amazing. While many would immediately recognize the physical challenge of such a trek (the round trip is an approximate 18-mile quest), they might miss the fact that the experience can be spiritually invigorating. My dad, Dr. Jerry Tetreau, has been leading groups for nearly two decades. One of the things Dad does each year is to send out a list of items needed.

As the crowd watched, she was dragged into the center court of the temple. The scribes and Pharisees had the stones in their hands, and they were prepared to kill her. They told Jesus her crime. “She was caught in the act of adultery.” Then they tried to trap Him into an answer by saying that Moses had commanded them to stone an adulterer and by asking Jesus what He would do. Jesus, “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14), gave a beautiful and wise statement.

The Great Gain of Godliness: Practical Notes on Malachi 3:16-18 by Thomas Watson. Puritan Paperbacks. Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2006. 166 pp. $10.00/paperback.