Richard Ellis Talks

The Bible talks a lot about submission to authority -- in marriage, parenting, and throughout life. But the ultimate authority we've got to be willing to submit to is God's authority. As our Father, He wants to direct us to the things that are not only pleasing to Him, but that are best for us.

Is it my truth, your truth, or God's Truth that we follow? False doctrine and false teachers are everywhere, saying things that are designed to "scratch the ear" of the listener. And what they say can sound good -- until it isn't. It's important to always run what we hear through the filter of Scripture and ask whether it aligns with God's Word.

Scripture describes Christ as the Shepherd, and His followers as the sheep. And although He promises to come after His sheep when they stray, it's better for the sheep to listen to His voice and obey Him from the start. When we hear God's voice telling us what to do, let's remember this life is short -- and we're better off not wasting it in disobedience!

The Bible is perfectly clear: There's only one way to the Father, and it's through the Son. In a world where live-and-let-live mentalities prevail, countless religions profess to hold the secrets to happiness, and we're all encouraged to seek our own "truth", it can be difficult for us to focus on what's actually true. But Jesus Christ alone died, was buried and raised from the dead for our sins, and the only road to eternal life is through accepting Him as Lord and Savior.

Sometimes we bring suffering on ourselves. Other times, God allows it to come -- not to hurt us, but to grow and strengthen us. In times of struggle it's important to lean into His goodness and trust in His love for us. He's promised to meet all of our needs, and He's faithful to keep that promise.

We're Christ's representatives on earth -- which means we're the candles that He left behind in this spiritually dark world in order to light the way to Him. Instead of hiding our light because we're ashamed or fearful of what people will think, we need to go out into the darkness and "contaminate" others (in a good way!) with the light that leads them to the Lord.

Often, we sacrifice rest in favor of work. But if we come to Jesus and do things His way, it's possible to do both at the same time. When we surrender and seek Him first, He lifts from our shoulders the heavy burdens that weigh us down and exhaust us.

Sometimes fighting a battle looks like picking up a sword. But other times, it simply looks like standing up against the enemy. We face a spiritual battle each and every day, and we've got to put on our spiritual armor and take a stand. Prayer is a powerful weapon: it keeps our focus on the Lord and what He's doing in and around us, even as we're fighting on the battlefield.

Ever find yourself disagreeing with a law or a political issue? We're entitled to our opinions, but we're not entitled to use those opinions as a basis to break the law. Whether we agree with the legality of an issue or not, and whether we like who's in office or not, Scripture tells us that God placed those specific people in charge -- and we're called to submit to their authority. In the same way that we obey God when we obey the law, we disobey God when we disobey the law.

God gave us the Law through Moses to show us that we're incapable of adhering to it perfectly and completely without Him. We're not meant to simply follow a set of rules; we're meant to be in a relationship with God Himself.