Rebellion, at its core, is the idea that we can do what we want, no matter the consequence or price.  This was the heart issue of Adam and Eve’s fall in the garden.  They had divine instruction not to eat of the tree, yet in the face of that holy standard they chose to feed the flesh.  They bought into the lie of liberty.  The serpent promised freedom in his deceptively-packaged proposal, but what they found was bondage. Their self-empowerment led to self-defeat.  What deadly taste was the fruit of man’s mutiny!

The Misunderstanding of Liberty

“I can do …

What makes a good drama?  What elements and components must be in place to mesmerize and capture the attention of a particular audience?  Well, if you think about it, most dramas have specific items in common:

A good drama has to have an embellished storyline.  Most movies that are “based upon a true story” are just that, “based upon.”  Directors and writers realize that most people want more than the truth, they want a particular interpretation of the truth.  And so, a drama typically has parts and parcels of reality, but is otherwise intertwined with overhyped and exaggerated views …

Chatter: Do you hear it? It’s all around.  People talking about this, voicing their opinions about that. It’s omnipresent in so many ways.  From podcasts to political pundits, we are inundated with the sound of meaningless, trivial, non-relenting noise.  What seems like mass, chaotic clamor coming from a thousand different directions, however, is actually the culmination of a much-greater and sinister ploy.

With so many voices jockeying for our attention, we have insulated ourselves within the racketing walls of nothingness.  We hear much, but the heart is deaf.  This is the strategy of our enemy.  He has so manipulated

“We cannot organize revival, but we can set our sails to catch the wind from Heaven when God chooses to blow upon His people once again.” G. Campbell Morgan

“The story of revivals throughout the ages has been the story of lone men meeting God, of going out and finding God all alone. Sometimes they went down to the church basement, sometimes to the caves, sometimes out under trees, sometimes by haystacks, but they went alone to meet God, and then the revival went out from there.”  A.W. Tozer

“If we ever impress unsaved men with a wholesome …

Years ago, a neighbor’s grandson entered into our home unannounced and uninvited.  Seeing him for the first time, we were alarmed by the grand entrance.  Little did we know that our children had befriended him and gladly offered him a refreshment from our kitchen.  When we investigated the matter, the “intruder” suddenly became a guest, then a neighbor, and finally a friend.  His boldness to enter was made possible by the invitation of my sons.

The Blood Secures Our Boldness

What grand privilege we have obtained in the offer and the offering of the Son of God.  Christ’s death on …