Hebrews 11:1 - Faith and Doubt

 Hebrews 11:1

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."

Faith and doubt—two forces we often struggle with—seem like polar opposites, but have you ever thought of them as companions? The tension between faith and doubt is a natural part of our Christian walk.

Faith, by its nature, requires a leap into the unknown. 

Faith asks us to believe in something we can't tangibly prove or understand, which often leaves us teetering on the edge of doubt.

1 John 4:8 - Why Does God Love Us?

1 John 4:8

"Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."

When you think about mankind, and think about how we are basically selfish, uncooperative, and disrespectful, you have to ask yourself the question, “Why does God love man?” This age-old question can be answered in several ways, but ultimately, it boils down to the nature of God Himself.

God’s love for mankind is a reflection of His own nature. The Apostle John told us in 1 John 4:8 that God is love. Everything He does is motivated by love. Think about that. It isn't because we have earned His love, or that we deserve His love. He loves us because He is love.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 - God's Memory

Jeremiah 31:31-34

31 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord.

33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 

34 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”

Isn't human memory fascinating? It's so crucial to our lives that without it, we couldn't even manage simple tasks like walking or swallowing. Yet, our memories have a funny way of working. Have you noticed how we're more likely to remember the bad stuff and forget the good? We often dwell on our failures and flaws, while our successes and talents slip our minds.

Let me ask you something. When you think of David from the Old Testament, what's the first thing that pops into your mind? Is it the scandal with Bathsheba? Or do you think of David as "the man whose heart belonged to God"?

1 Peter 5:8 - Are You Watching For Snakes?

1 Peter 5:8
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

When I was 14 years old, my cousin, my uncle and I were fishing along the bank of a remote river in California. I was walking a bit up ahead of the others, and was having a great time hopping from rock to rock.

To the side of the trail, I saw a bundle of twigs on top of some rocks. It seemed out of place somehow, so I stopped to look. And – I almost didn’t see what it was! I had almost stepped on a baby snake sunning itself on a rock. It wasn’t moving, just laying there all twisted up.

Mark 8:34 - Are You a Disciple?

Mark 8:34 (Also Matthew 16:24-27 and Luke 9:23)

34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? 37 Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

Give it some thought, then answer these two questions: 

1 Corinthians 15:33 - The Law of Entropy

1 Corinthians 15:33

Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

Have you ever thrown a rock into a pond? There are ripples for quite a while after the rock splashes. But - eventually the pond’s surface will become still again.

The second Law of Thermal Dynamics is at work here. It states that things will move toward equilibrium. This is something called entropy — an equal state of balance.

Place a cube of ice in a pot of boiling water and see what happens . . . the ice cube and the pot of water  will both change until they finally reach the temperature of the environment they are in. In fact, everything is moving toward the same temperature of the surrounding environment.

John 3:16-17 - A Loophole or Lifeline?

John 3:16-17
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

If you have ever been out on the ocean, maybe you have thought about how vulnerable you are out there. All that water — and no land in sight!

“Man overboard!” is not a cry to be taken lightly. A man left on his own, swimming in the middle of the ocean has absolutely no chance to survive. If he doesn’t exhaust himself from treading water, there are a host of other reasons he will not survive — from hypothermia to becoming dinner for a large sea creature.