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Taking Possession of Our Own Soul "By your patience possess your souls" —Luke 21:19 When a person is born again, there is a period of time when he does not have the same vitality in his thinking or reasoning that he previously had. We must learn to express this new life within us, which comes by forming the mind of Christ (see Philippians 2:5). Luke 21:19 means that we take possession of our souls through patience. But many of us prefer to stay at the entrance to the Christian life, instead of going on to create and build our...

Out of the Wreck I Rise "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" —Romans 8:35 God does not keep His child immune from trouble; He promises, “I will be with him in trouble . . .� (Psalm 91:15). It doesn’t matter how real or intense the adversities may be; nothing can ever separate him from his relationship to God. “In all these things we are more than conquerors . . .� (Romans 8:37). Paul was not referring here to imaginary things, but to things that are dangerously real. And he said we are “super-victors� in the midst...

Living Simply— Yet Focused "Look at the birds of the air . . . . Consider the lilies of the field . . ." —Matthew 6:26, 28 Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin�— they simply are! Think of the sea, the air, the sun, the stars, and the moon— all of these simply are as well— yet what a ministry and service they render on our behalf! So often we impair God’s designed influence, which He desires to exhibit through us, because of our own conscious efforts to be consistent and...

His Ascension and Our Access "It came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven" —Luke 24:51 We have no experiences in our lives that correspond to the events in our Lord’s life after the transfiguration. From that moment forward His life was altogether substitutionary. Up to the time of the transfiguration, He had exhibited the normal, perfect life of a man. But from the transfiguration forward— Gethsemane, the Cross, the resurrection— everything is unfamiliar to us. His Cross is the door by which every member of the human race...

Milan (AsiaNews) - Some 1,700 years have passed since Emperor Constantine granted Christians the right to believe in God, yet "the persecution of Christians has not ceased;" thus, "the Church of Christ will never cease to generate martyrs" until God "enlightens everyone, so that they understand that peace, reconciliation, tolerance, meekness, and mercy can only have a positive effect on human society in general, especially in terms of deeds and words." Religious freedom and the journey of a divided Church " towards unity according to the Lord's command" are central to the thoughts Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I expressed this morning...

The Habit of Recognizing God’s Provision ". . . you may be partakers of the divine nature . . ." —2 Peter 1:4 We are made “partakers of the divine nature,� receiving and sharing God’s own nature through His promises. Then we have to work that divine nature into our human nature by developing godly habits. The first habit to develop is the habit of recognizing God’s provision for us. We say, however, “Oh, I can’t afford it.� One of the worst lies is wrapped up in that statement. We talk as if our heavenly Father has cut us...

An interview with Cardinal Kurt KochOn May 14, 1948, the British occupation of Palestine ended and the State of Israel was proclaimed. On the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the founding of that State, Oliver Maksan of the international Catholic charity “Aid to the Church in Need” (ACN) spoke with the president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, Cardinal Kurt Koch, about the current status of the Vatican dialog with Judaism. The original German-language interview was posted at the Austrian Catholic news website www.kath.net. English translation by Michael J. Miller with permission of Aid to...

Full Title: “Gay Marriage” Shows Us Why Theology Matters. Three ways Biblically sound theology will help in the same-sex marriage debate To invite homosexuals to embrace themselves so that they are no longer lonely is agreeing with those on the left that God was wrong in ordaining the family as one man and one woman together in marriage. It is agreeing with those whom God is pouring out His wrath. It is agreeing with those who have cast off any notions of holiness, purity and piety in the church. It is, as I have said, theological suicide. Over the weekend...

The Habit of Rising to the Occasion ". . . that you may know what is the hope of His calling . . ." —Ephesians 1:18 Remember that you have been saved so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in your body (see 2 Corinthians 4:10). Direct the total energy of your powers so that you may achieve everything your election as a child of God provides; rise every time to whatever occasion may come your way.You did not do anything to achieve your salvation, but you must do something to exhibit it. You must “work out...

The Habit of Enjoying Adversity ". . . that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body" —2 Corinthians 4:10 We have to develop godly habits to express what God’s grace has done in us. It is not just a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved so that “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.� And it is adversity that makes us exhibit His life in our mortal flesh. Is my life exhibiting the essence of the sweetness of the Son of God, or just the basic irritation...

The Habit of Keeping a Clear Conscience ". . . strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men" —Acts 24:16 God’s commands to us are actually given to the life of His Son in us. Consequently, to our human nature in which God’s Son has been formed (see Galatians 4:19), His commands are difficult. But they become divinely easy once we obey.Conscience is that ability within me that attaches itself to the highest standard I know, and then continually reminds me of what that standard demands that I do. It is the eye of the soul...

The Habit of Having No Habits "If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful . . ." —2 Peter 1:8 When we first begin to form a habit, we are fully aware of it. There are times when we are aware of becoming virtuous and godly, but this awareness should only be a stage we quickly pass through as we grow spiritually. If we stop at this stage, we will develop a sense of spiritual pride. The right thing to do with godly habits is to immerse them in the life of the...

(Romereports.com) The historic visit by Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II to the Vatican was cordial and full of good will signs aimed at bettering ties between Coptic Christians and Catholics. Tawadros proposed that on May 10 be a “celebration of brotherly love” between the two churches. The visit by Tawadros II was his first outside Egypt since his election as Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Christian Church in November 2012. During his speech he also invited Pope Francis to Egypt. TAWADROS II“May this visit of love and brotherhood be the first of a long series between our two great Churches.”POPE...

“Love One Another” ". . . add to your . . . brotherly kindness love" —2 Peter 1:5, 7 Love is an indefinite thing to most of us; we don’t know what we mean when we talk about love. Love is the loftiest preference of one person for another, and spiritually Jesus demands that this sovereign preference be for Himself (see Luke 14:26). Initially, when “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit� (Romans 5:5), it is easy to put Jesus first. But then we must practice the things mentioned in 2...

CYRUS: GOD'S ANOINTED SHEPHERD Nearly 150 years before Cyrus was born, the prophet Isaiah foretold his birth, his name, and the tasks that the Creator God had predetermined for him to accomplish. The Bible records that certain people are foreordained to be born and carry out specific tasks for God during their lifetime and a few of these individuals are even named before their birth. Cyrus the Great was one of these individuals whom God had predestined to play a pivotal roll in his awesome plan for humanity.King Cyrus was an extremely important person, because God destroyed the Babylonian empire...

[1] The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by the hand of Malachias. [2] I have loved you, saith the Lord: and you have said: Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau brother to Jacob, saith the Lord, and I have loved Jacob, [3] But have hated Esau? and I have made his mountains a wilderness, and given his inheritance to the dragons of the desert. [4] But if Edom shall say: We are destroyed, but we will return and build up what hath been destroyed: thus saith the Lord of hosts: They shall build up,...

Vital Intercession ". . . praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit . . ." —Ephesians 6:18 As we continue on in our intercession for others, we may find that our obedience to God in interceding is going to cost those for whom we intercede more than we ever thought. The danger in this is that we begin to intercede in sympathy with those whom God was gradually lifting up to a totally different level in direct answer to our prayers. Whenever we step back from our close identification with God’s interest and concern for others...

An interview with Archimandrite Robert Taft, SJ, prominent Byzantine liturgical theologian and lifelong healer of Christian relations between East and WestThe April 22nd kidnapping of Syrian archbishops Mar Gregorios Ibrahim of the Syriac Orthodox Church and Paul Yazigi of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, and the killing of their driver, has reminded us once again of the vulnerability of ancient Christian peoples living in the Middle East. More than 1,000 Christians have been killed to date in the Syrian conflict and more than 80 churches have been destroyed. The majority of Christians in Syria are Greek or Syriac Orthodox...

The Patience To Wait for the Vision "Though it tarries, wait for it . . ." —Habakkuk 2:3 Patience is not the same as indifference; patience conveys the idea of someone who is tremendously strong and able to withstand all assaults. Having the vision of God is the source of patience because it gives us God’s true and proper inspiration. Moses endured, not because of his devotion to his principles of what was right, nor because of his sense of duty to God, but because he had a vision of God. “. . . he endured as seeing Him...

Faith— Not Emotion "We walk by faith, not by sight" —2 Corinthians 5:7 For a while, we are fully aware of God’s concern for us. But then, when God begins to use us in His work, we begin to take on a pitiful look and talk only of our trials and difficulties. And all the while God is trying to make us do our work as hidden people who are not in the spotlight. None of us would be hidden spiritually if we could help it. Can we do our work when it seems that God has sealed up...

Spontaneous Love "Love suffers long and is kind . . ." —1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is not premeditated—it is spontaneous; that is, it bursts forth in extraordinary ways. There is nothing of precise certainty in Paul’s description of love. We cannot predetermine our thoughts and actions by saying, “Now I will never think any evil thoughts, and I will believe everything that Jesus would have me to believe.� No, the characteristic of love is spontaneity. We don’t deliberately set the statements of Jesus before us as our standard, but when His Spirit is having His way with us, we...

"The theology of Rome, the authority of Rome—that was appealing to us," says Father Mark Lewis of St. Luke's Parish, the first US Episcopal church to join the Catholic Church under new Vatican rules.

Gracious Uncertainty ". . . it has not yet been revealed what we shall be . . ." —1 John 3:2 Our natural inclination is to be so precise—trying always to forecast accurately what will happen next—that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We think that we must reach some predetermined goal, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. Consequently, we do not put down roots. Our common sense says, “Well, what if I were in that circumstance?� We cannot...

What You Will Get "I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go" —Jeremiah 45:5 This is the firm and immovable secret of the Lord to those who trust Him— “I will give your life to you . . . .� What more does a man want than his life? It is the essential thing. “. . . your life . . . as a prize . . .� means that wherever you may go, even if it is into hell, you will come out with your life and nothing can harm...

It looked like the backlash was starting even before the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing were identified as Muslim. Hours after the explosions, a Bangladeshi man told police he was dubbed an "Arab" and beaten in New York. A veiled Muslim woman in a city near Boston said she was struck in the shoulder and called a terrorist. When the public learned days later that the FBI was pursuing two Muslim men of Chechen descent, American Muslims feared the worst. But the worst didn't happen....

What Do You Want? "Do you seek great things for yourself?" —Jeremiah 45:5 Are you seeking great things for yourself, instead of seeking to be a great person? God wants you to be in a much closer relationship with Himself than simply receiving His gifts— He wants you to get to know Him. Even some large thing we want is only incidental; it comes and it goes. But God never gives us anything incidental. There is nothing easier than getting into the right relationship with God, unless it is not God you seek, but only what He can give...

The Supreme Climb "Take now your son . . . and offer him . . . as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you" —Genesis 22:2 A person’s character determines how he interprets God’s will (see Psalm 18:25-26). Abraham interpreted God’s command to mean that he had to kill his son, and he could only leave this traditional belief behind through the pain of a tremendous ordeal. God could purify his faith in no other way. If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from...

On a bitterly cold and snowing afternoon in Aberdeen, the doors of St John's Episcopal Church are open to hundreds of Muslim worshippers, arriving for daily prayers. The familiar sounds of Christian hymns have been replaced with Islamic prayer in the chapel this Friday lunchtime and the church priest with the imam from the neighbouring mosque. Muslims from the Syed Shah Mustafa Jame Masjid mosque next door share this church with Christian worshippers up to five times a day. Church leaders believe this may be the only place in the country where Christian and Muslim worshippers pray side by side....

“Ready in Season” "Be ready in season and out of season" —2 Timothy 4:2 Many of us suffer from the unbalanced tendency to “be ready� only “out of season.� The season does not refer to time; it refers to us. This verse says, “Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season.� In other words, we should “be ready� whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would never do anything. There are some people who are totally unemployable in the spiritual realm. They are...

The Warning Against Desiring Spiritual Success "Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you . . ." —Luke 10:20 Worldliness is not the trap that most endangers us as Christian workers; nor is it sin. The trap we fall into is extravagantly desiring spiritual success; that is, success measured by, and patterned after, the form set by this religious age in which we now live. Never seek after anything other than the approval of God, and always be willing to go “outside the camp, bearing His reproach� (Hebrews 13:13). In Luke 10:20 , Jesus told...

Jesus not found outside the Church, Pope preaches :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/jesus-not-found-outside-the-church-pope-preaches/April 23, 2013 Pope Francis celebrates Mass in St. John Lateran on March 29, 2013. Credit: Stephen Driscoll/CNA. Vatican City, Apr 23, 2013 / 07:39 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis said that people cannot be fully united to Jesus outside of the Church during a Mass to commemorate Saint George, the saint he is named after. “You cannot find Jesus outside the Church,” he said April 23 in the Apostolic Palace’s Pauline Chapel.“It is the Mother Church who gives us Jesus, who gives us the identity that is...

The Vatican has reached agreement with the Lutheran World Federation on a joint statement to be released for the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s theses, the president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity has disclosed. The joint document will be released in June, Cardinal Kurt Koch told Austrian interviewers. In a candid exchange, the cardinal also spoke of some of the main obstacles to ecumenical progress. He listed the continued fragmentation of Protestant groups and the failure of Orthodox leaders to reach their own mutual understanding on the question of primacy.

Do You Worship The Work? "We are God’s fellow workers . . ." —1 Corinthians 3:9 Beware of any work for God that causes or allows you to avoid concentrating on Him. A great number of Christian workers worship their work. The only concern of Christian workers should be their concentration on God. This will mean that all the other boundaries of life, whether they are mental, moral, or spiritual limits, are completely free with the freedom God gives His child; that is, a worshiping child, not a wayward one. A worker who lacks this serious controlling emphasis of...

The Light That Never Fails "We all, with unveiled face, beholding . . . the glory of the Lord . . ." —2 Corinthians 3:18 A servant of God must stand so very much alone that he never realizes he is alone. In the early stages of the Christian life, disappointments will come— people who used to be lights will flicker out, and those who used to stand with us will turn away. We have to get so used to it that we will not even realize we are standing alone. Paul said, “. . . no one stood...

Don’t Hurt the Lord "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?" —John 14:9 Our Lord must be repeatedly astounded at us-astounded at how “un-simple� we are. It is our own opinions that make us dense and slow to understand, but when we are simple we are never dense; we have discernment all the time. Philip expected the future revelation of a tremendous mystery, but not in Jesus, the Person he thought he already knew. The mystery of God is not in what is going to be-it is now, though we look...

World religions differ greatly in their individual beliefs, practices and traditions. But the one thing that they all share is the Ethic of Reciprocity, or the Golden rule as it is commonly known. Here is a list of several religious traditions’ version of the universal rule. Bahá’í Faith: "Ascribe not to any soul that which thou wouldst not have ascribed to thee, and say not that which thou doest not." "Blessed is he who preferreth his brother before himself." Baha’u'llah "And if thine eyes be turned towards justice, choose thou for thy neighbour that which thou choosest for thyself." Epistle...

Can a Saint Falsely Accuse God? "All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen . . ." —2 Corinthians 1:20 Jesus’ parable of the talents recorded in Matthew 25:14-30 was a warning that it is possible for us to misjudge our capacities. This parable has nothing to do with natural gifts and abilities, but relates to the gift of the Holy Spirit as He was first given at Pentecost. We must never measure our spiritual capacity on the basis of our education or our intellect; our capacity in spiritual things is measured on the...

Growing to Spiritual Maturity Many people believe God will accept them just as they are. But Scripture nowhere supports this idea. God expects His true followers to grow, mature and bear fruit. What kind of fruit does God expect? And how do we produce it? "Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection" (Hebrews 6:1). Correctly understanding the scriptural truth that the Holy Spirit is God's power that can transform our lives helps us better understand His purpose and will for us. Paul wrote that "we must grow up in every way...

Beware of the Least Likely Temptation "Joab had defected to Adonijah, though he had not defected to Absalom" —1 Kings 2:28 Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis,...

Readiness "God called to him . . . . And he said, ’Here I am’" —Exodus 3:4 When God speaks, many of us are like people in a fog, and we give no answer. Moses’ reply to God revealed that he knew where he was and that he was ready. Readiness means having a right relationship to God and having the knowledge of where we are. We are so busy telling God where we would like to go. Yet the man or woman who is ready for God and His work is the one who receives the prize when...

All or Nothing? "When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment . . . and plunged into the sea" —John 21:7 Have you ever had a crisis in your life in which you deliberately, earnestly, and recklessly abandoned everything? It is a crisis of the will. You may come to that point many times externally, but it will amount to nothing. The true deep crisis of abandonment, or total surrender, is reached internally, not externally. The giving up of only external things may actually be an indication of your being in total...

Can You Come Down From the Mountain? "While you have the light, believe in the light . . ." —John 12:36 We all have moments when we feel better than ever before, and we say, “I feel fit for anything; if only I could always be like this!� We are not meant to be. Those moments are moments of insight which we have to live up to even when we do not feel like it. Many of us are no good for the everyday world when we are not on the mountaintop. Yet we must bring our everyday life...

A striking 71% of Russia's people hope for a visit by Pope Francis to their country, according to a new poll by the Lavada Center in Moscow. Only 9% of those surveyed voiced opposition to a papal visit. Pope John Paul II had long hoped to make a visit to Moscow, but faced steady resistance from the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church. While tensions between Rome and Moscow eased during the pontificate of Benedict XVI, the Moscow Patriarchate continued to insist that further ecumenical progress was needed before a papal visit could take place. The surprising popularity of Pope...

The Failure To Pay Close Attention "The high places were not removed from Israel. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was loyal all his days" —2 Chronicles 15:17 Asa was not completely obedient in the outward, visible areas of his life. He was obedient in what he considered the most important areas, but he was not entirely right. Beware of ever thinking, “Oh, that thing in my life doesn’t matter much.� The fact that it doesn’t matter much to you may mean that it matters a great deal to God. Nothing should be considered a trivial matter by a child...

Clement of Rome __________________________________________________________________ Introductory Note to the First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians __________________________________________________________________ [a.d. 30-100.] Clement was probably a Gentile and a Roman. He seems to have been at Philippi with St. Paul (a.d. 57) when that first-born of the Western churches was passing through great trials of faith. There, with holy women and others, he ministered to the apostle and to the saints. As this city was a Roman colony, we need not inquire how a Roman happened to be there. He was possibly in some public service, and it is not improbable that he had...

Inner Invincibility "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me . . ." —Matthew 11:29 Whom the Lord loves He chastens . . .� (Hebrews 12:6). How petty our complaining is! Our Lord begins to bring us to the point where we can have fellowship with Him, only to hear us moan and groan, saying, “Oh Lord, just let me be like other people!� Jesus is asking us to get beside Him and take one end of the yoke, so that we can pull together. That’s why Jesus says to us, “My yoke is easy and My burden...

What To Do When Your Burden Is Overwhelming "Cast your burden on the Lord . . ." —Psalm 55:22 We must recognize the difference between burdens that are right for us to bear and burdens that are wrong. We should never bear the burdens of sin or doubt, but there are some burdens placed on us by God which He does not intend to lift off. God wants us to roll them back on Him— to literally “cast your burden,� which He has given you, “on the Lord . . . .� If we set out to serve God...

Complete and Effective Dominion "Death no longer has dominion over Him. . . . the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God . . ." —Romans 6:9-11 Co-Eternal Life. Eternal life is the life which Jesus Christ exhibited on the human level. And it is this same life, not simply a copy of it, which is made evident in our mortal flesh when we are born again. Eternal life is not a gift from God; eternal life is the gift of God. The...

Complete and Effective Divinity "If we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection . . ." —Romans 6:5 Co-Resurrection. The proof that I have experienced crucifixion with Jesus is that I have a definite likeness to Him. The Spirit of Jesus entering me rearranges my personal life before God. The resurrection of Jesus has given Him the authority to give the life of God to me, and the experiences of my life must now be built on the foundation of His life. I can have...

Complete and Effective Decision About Sin ". . . our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" —Romans 6:6 Co-Crucifixion. Have you made the following decision about sin—that it must be completely killed in you? It takes a long time to come to the point of making this complete and effective decision about sin. It is, however, the greatest moment in your life once you decide that sin must die in you-not simply be restrained, suppressed, or counteracted, but crucified—just as...