Although the church in Smyrna may not have looked like much on the surface, Jesus’ evaluation of it was wholly positive. He did not tone down his description of what the believers were about to suffer, but he pointed to the way to face all the challenges of life and death without fear and full of faith. Although we may never have to face what those early Christians faced, we all have to live, and we all have to die, so Jesus’ words to the church in Smyrna in Revelation 2:8-11 are words for us today as well.
In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul reminds us that life is full of transitions from one state to another, for example, from unmarried to married...
Through a series of mistakes by the disciples, Jesus taught them and us what following him is not.
When were the glory days of the church: perhaps when it was being persecuted, or maybe when it held sway over the culture? In...