I'll Be Honest

In the last section of Ephesians 3, we get the privilege of seeing a prayer that’s inspired of the Holy Spirit. Paul addressed God as his Father, and he asks for big and grand things, according to God’s riches, for other Christians. Is that how we pray?

Intercessors don't come from marginally spiritual people. They come from people who walk close with the Lord, and who also love other Christians. If a Christian doesn't intercede for other Christians, one of the great manifestations of sacrificial love is missing from their lives.

What can we learn from the apostle Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3? One notable thing Paul prays for is that Christ would dwell in the hearts of the Ephesians. Why is Paul praying that Christ would dwell in their hearts if Christ is already in their hearts?

In this hand I've got everything that you have, your health and strength and all your future - it's there. And in this hand, I have Jesus Christ. Which one are you going to take? Are you going to have all that this world has to offer? Is it: I want that. Or are you going to take this great, sympathetic, divine, tender, loving Savior for now and forever. Which one?

Does the biblical doctrine of disassociation from false Christians apply to only the church? Or does that principle extend to other areas of life (i.e. work, school, family, etc.)?

There is a way to be made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ. This is called justification; the most glorious promise that can be imagined. But this is only good news to those who recognize their total need for this blessing. Are you a pretty good person? Or does God's law render you cursed under His wrath, standing naked and needy of Another to justify you?

As believers, there are times that we become gripped with such a great resolve to go further and be more like Christ. Yet to our dismay, we often will look up and realize that we got distracted and did not follow through with the resolutions we made. Somehow we got sidetracked; and our appetite to grow spiritually, no matter the cost, somehow dissipated. So what should we do? We need to believe that the Lord can and will strengthen us inwardly by His power so that we persist onward with our resolve.

Why does the Bible indicate in some places that God does not punish children for the sins of the father, and then in other places indicates the opposite?

Does the Christian receive the Holy Spirit the moment they believe? If so, how should we understand the accounts in the book of Acts when believers apparently receive the Holy Spirit subsequent to their conversion?

The starting point in the Christian life is not our love for Christ, but His love for us. When we are planted in the love that Christ has for us, it will cause us to respond with love towards Him. We greatly need to be rooted in the love of Christ so that nothing in this life can move us.