Philo of Alexandria, a contemporary of Christ, wrote, “When he mind has sinned and removed itself far from virtue, it lays the blame on divine causes. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 19:3, The foolishness of man subverts his way, and his heart rages against the Lord.” Temptation, is a concept that all of us struggle with. In the Greek The word for Temptation (peirasmos) is the same word for Trial. In other words, what could be a trial for some, is a temptation for others. Trials or tests are designed to help us manifest what we have learned and to help us as we grow and mature to understand what we still have to learn. God and Satan have two diametrically opposite ideas for the struggles that come into our lives. God’s desire is that we learn where we are in our Spiritual walk and gain strength and victory by trusting in Him. Satan’s, goal in the struggle, is to attempt to lead us into a deeper battle with sin. James 1:13-17 gives four strong proofs that God is not responsible for our temptations and even less responsible, for our giving in to them. He does so by explaining the nature … READ MORE

Paul says is Romans 7:24, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” Before God can ever give us the good news of the gospel, He must kill our pride and arrogance with the law given to Moses. The gospel is the power of the resurrection, while the law is the pow3er of condemnation. When the two are put together, they serve their proper purpose. The best way to evaluate your need of redemption is to ask yourself this question: Have you recognized your own sinfulness before God? Are you boasting of your own self-righteousness and defending yourself before God? It is only when we stand silent before HIm as sinners that He can save us. As long as we defend ourselves and commend ourselves, we cannot be saved by God’s grace. The whole world is guilty before God — That includes you and me! Paul concludes answers his question in Romans 7:25, by saying in verse 25 “I thank God – through Jesus Christ our Lord! We read in James 4:10 “Humble yourself in the sight of the LORD, and He will life you up.”… READ MORE

While many in our society proclaim the goodness of man, there is a deep theological problem with that statement, that no man can escape. The first century Roman Philosopher Seneca wrote ““Every guilty person is his own hangman. No matter how often a man tells himself he is good, he inevitably sees that he cannot help thinking, saying, and doing wrong things and feeling guilty about it. This guilt drives people to alcohol, drugs, despair, insanity, and more and more frequently to suicide.” this sounds like a quote from the 21st century! Today men feel guilty because they are guilty. The guilt feelings, however, are only the symptom to the real problem, which is sin. The guilt that we experience today has only one cause – our own sin – and unless that sin is removed, our guilt cannot be removed. That is why the first element of the gospel is confronting people with the reality of their sin. How can a person accept the “GOOD NEWS” of salvation, if they are convinced in their heart that they are not evil enough to need it. In Romans 3:9-20 Paul pictures a courtroom scene, and we are all the defendants in … READ MORE