Continuing in Galatians Chapter 3, Paul was providing these believing Gentiles with a hard-hitting explanation of why they do not want to pursue works of the law—which they were never under—in order to perfect themselves. They began in the Spirit and were being coerced into thinking they needed Jesus plus works in order to be justified. This was a …

Continuing in Galatians Chapter 3, Paul was providing these believing Gentiles with a hard-hitting explanation of why they do not want to pursue works of the law — which they were never under — in order to perfect themselves. They began in the Spirit and were being coerced into thinking they needed Jesus plus works in order to be justified. This wa…

Paul appears frustrated as he addresses "you foolish Galatians" in the beginning of Chapter 3. Why? They had started out receiving the Spirit of God by faith but were being lured by a more popular persuasion from men who came from James—and had started to convince these Gentiles to adhere to the old Jewish law in combination with faith in Christ. T…

Paul appears frustrated as he addresses "you foolish Galatians" in the beginning of Chapter 3. Why? They had started out receiving the Spirit of God by faith but were being lured by a more popular persuasion from men who came from James - and had started to convince these Gentiles to adhere to the old Jewish law in combination with faith in Christ.…

We're wrapping up our recent series about some things found in the letter from James to believers in Jesus from the twelve tribes of Israel ... and the contrasts found with Paul's writings. One example we'll look at is in James 4, where an old covenant mindset is communicated about telling believers to draw near to God which will result in Him draw…

We're wrapping up our series about some things found in the letter from James to believers in Jesus from the twelve tribes of Israel ... and the contrasts found with Paul's writings. One example we'll look at is in James 4, where an old covenant mindset is communicated as James tells believers to draw near to God, to cleanse their hands and purify …

Throughout the pages of the New Testament, we see numerous examples of Jewish people coming to believe in Jesus, but understandably also believed the law of Moses was still in place for them. The Apostle Paul came along a short while later with a gospel message he claimed was taught directly to him by divine revelation ... to declare the former law…

Throughout the pages of the New Testament, we see numerous examples of how there were Jewish people coming to believe in Jesus, but understandably also believed the law of Moses was still in place for them. The Apostle Paul came along a short while later with a gospel message he claimed was taught directly to him by divine revelation ... to declare…

Continuing with Program 3 of our series on being a "doer of the word" and what this was meant to be about. The "law of liberty" is seen twice in the New Testament, both times used by James in the first two chapters of his letter written to the twelve tribes of Israel which had been scattered to different regions. In context, he encourages his audie…

Continuing with program #3 of our series on being a "doer of the word" and what this was meant to be about... The "law of liberty" is seen twice in the New Testament, both times used by James in the first two chapters of his letter written to the twelve tribes of Israel which had been scattered to different regions. If doing an online search to fin…

James made a statement in his letter to the twelve Jewish tribes ... believed by most historians to be the earliest writing in the pages known as The New Testament. "Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (James 1:22). This passage, along with what follows has a consistent but curious theme of externals, doing and works -…

James made a statement in his letter to the twelve Jewish tribes ... believed by most historians to be the earliest writing in the pages known as The New Testament. "Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (James 1:22). This passage, along with what follows has a consistent but curious theme of externals, doing and works—a…

The popular phrase from the Old Testament known as "The Ten Commandments" is more rightfully interpreted as "The Ten Words." Is it a big deal? Perhaps not, but we wanted to point out a few things about this to lay some groundwork before getting into something that James wrote to his believing Jewish brothers and sisters from the twelve tribes. Jame…

The popular phrase from the Old Testament known as, "The Ten Commandments" is more rightfully interpreted as "The Ten Words." Is it a big deal? Perhaps not, but we wanted to point out a few things about this to lay some groundwork before getting into something that James wrote to his believing Jewish brothers and sisters from the twelve tribes. Jam…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

When we shrink the message of the good news down to a few Bible verses which have been yanked out of context, it can turn into a scary place to hang out. For example, Jesus spoke about some people who would one day be told to depart from Him ... and that He never knew them. Believers can misunderstand such a passage and make it their life's goal to…

Never mind the millions of opinions, interpretations, and thousands of church corporations and denominations about what is inside the pages of the Bible ... there is also an immeasurable number of thoughts and assumptions just about the Bible itself and what it is or isn't. Some of us were instructed to make it required reading on a daily basis. Ot…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

This week, we take a look back at some of the things we were coaxed into thinking and doing as it was being fed to us through our legalistic religious surroundings and misunderstandings ... as we strived to do whatever we thought was necessary to make sure we were in "God's good graces." After all, we were told of the risks of potentially losing fe…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

Try harder, do more, read the Bible more, be extra dedicated to church, pray more (and sometimes pay more). Someone wrote to us to share their background of feeling obligated to spend as much time as possible working to do everything they could "to connect with God." Many of us can relate to chasing the imaginary spiritual golden carrot that seemed…

God desires to reveal Himself to us. It is not something that is comprehended with the mind or intellect but is spiritually discerned. While our knowledge may grow and our minds become renewed when it comes to understanding the truth of the gospel, the revelation comes from God's Spirit to our spirit in the heart of our innermost being. It opens th…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" After they answered, He then asked, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter spoke up and said that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus declared that Peter was blessed because flesh and blood had not revealed this to him, but it came from the Father in heaven. Pe…

Love may be the most talked about thing in every corner of the world while also being at the forefront of what people think about throughout their daily life. After all, we're pretty much bombarded with it everywhere we turn—at least in various forms—in our songs, books, entertainment, relationships, etc. Certainly, our churches focus much on love,…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

Stop and think about the emphasis that is placed on the topic of faith within our churches and even within multiple religions. Those who believe in a supreme being may often identify themselves as "people of faith." The Apostle Paul stated that the commandments contained within the Mosaic law are not of faith—and yet we find a tremendous emphasis b…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

In Matthew 22, Jesus had just silenced the Sadducees at one of His press conferences. After seeing this, and after a quick huddle with his co-workers, a reporter for the Pharisees couldn't resist a follow-up question in the attempt to test Jesus when it came to the subject of something near and dear to their hearts. "What is the great commandment i…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke

If repentance is based upon changes in behavior or if it specifically means to turn from sin, how can someone know they have truly reached a place where they can be defined as one who has attained the required plateau of having repented? Turning from sinful behavior is good advice, but when religion includes it in the context of repenting, things g…

By Mike Kapler & Joel Brueseke