“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” —Matthew 3:2 NIV So begins the ministry of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. And this theme, repentance, occurs frequently in the early chapters of all the Synoptic Gospels. In fact, the ministry of...
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you...
Today is Ash Wednesday. Also called Day of Ashes, Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent—the 40 weekdays before Easter for Catholic, Orthodox, and some Protestant believers. Many Protestants in less liturgical churches or people outside the...
The church in Corinth had a problem. One of their own was actively engaging in sexual sin that went beyond the immorality of non-Christian Corinthians (1 Corinthians 5:1). This person was choosing to live in sin, despite being part of the body of...
The act of justification cannot happen without one coming to the realization of their sin and asking for forgiveness and repenting for that in-which their sin has offended God. Calvin writes on this matter saying, It is proper to consider what the...