Posts by Randy Livingston
Dealing with Sexual Sin
One of the reasons that Paul wrote to the church in Corinth was to address the sexual sin that was tolerated by the fellowship. He wrote “It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. …
Read MoreA Warning Against Contentious Behavior
The Apostle Paul thanked God greatly for the evident grace in the lives of the Corinthian believers (I Corinthians 1:4). Even so, as often is the case with every Christian, they had just as evident a need for correction as well. Consequently, Paul rebuked them for the contentions that had arisen among them as reported…
Read MoreThe Wisdom of God and the Wisdom of the World
Man cannot find out God by his own wisdom. In fact, God has decreed it so for he tells us that “in the wisdom of God the world by (its) wisdom knew not God” (I Corinthians 1:21). It could not be any other way for how could the eternal God, infinite in wisdom and understanding,…
Read MoreThankful for a Life Changed by Grace
Paul wrote to the Thessalonian believers “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers” (I Thessalonians 1:2). Thanksgiving to God for his grace in the life of others was a common practice of the Apostle Paul. He related this thanksgiving in his epistles to the Romans (1:8),…
Read MoreDelivered From This Present Evil World
Paul wrote to the churches of Galatia that Christ “hath delivered us from this present evil world” (Galatians 1:4). He was not speaking to them of a future salvation, a home in heaven though that awaits every believer. Rather, the emphasis is on a deliverance that is both here and now. How are we to…
Read MoreSilence Does Not Mean We Are Alone
Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament written about 435 B.C. It would be over 400 years before God would speak again from heaven by sending his Son, Jesus, to be born of the virgin, Mary. It is not insignificant that the Old Testament closes with the word “curse.” Malachi writes, “Behold, I…
Read MoreWhat It Means to Follow Christ
Following Christ is a joyful life, but it is not an easy life. It requires personal discipline to study his word, learn his ways, and walk in them. The Lord challenged his audience on one occasion, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow…
Read MoreAnother Gospel That Is Not Another
Paul’s epistle to the churches of Galatia (Galatians 1:2) is one of (if not his most) passionate letters. The believers there were being wooed to another gospel that was not the gospel of Christ that Paul had delivered unto them. The purity and simplicity of the true gospel was being jettisoned for a gospel not…
Read MoreGod Rules in the Affairs of Nations, Men, and Me
The Bible teaches us that God owns everything. “The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods” (Psalm 24:1). He created all things; consequently, he owns all things. This right of ownership extends to…
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