Posts by Jonathan Hagar
BAPTISM (Part 1: Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation?)
The act of baptism may be the most disputed step in the plan of salvation. Some hold to the concept that baptism is not necessary to be saved, others defend that God requires baptism to be saved, and some denominations will teach that multiple baptisms throughout one’s life is necessary to be saved. Some preachers…
Read MoreHEART DISEASES AND CURES (Part 5: Overcoming Impatience)
King Solomon, the wisest of all the inspired writers of the Bible, wrote, “the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit” (Ecc. 7:8b). Chrysostom called patience “The Queen of the Virtues.” The author of an old Dutch proverb wrote, “A handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains.” Shakespeare…
Read MoreHEART DISEASES AND CURES (Part 4: Overcoming Prejudice)
“It is the lock of the door of the closed mind. It is the ignorance we usually mistake for reason. It is the first enemy of information and progress. It is intellectual astigmatism. It is a perfect combination of conceit and ignorance…It is the defense of the devil, shell of a petrified mind, and the…
Read MoreHEART DISEASES AND CURES (Part 3: Overcoming Ungodly Worry)
Many believe that life cannot be lived without worry and concern. Our generation calls itself the “Age of Anxiety.” It would appear that Martha has many brothers and sisters in our day who are “careful and troubled about many things” (Luke 10:4). People worry and stress about jobs, family, money, possessions, loss, or sometimes all…
Read MoreHEART DISEASES AND CURES (Part 2: Overcoming Ungodly Judgment)
How is it possible that the same God who writes, “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again” (Matt. 7:1,2), also writes, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment” (John…
Read MoreHEART DISEASES AND CURES (Part 1: Overcoming Unforgiveness)
There exist three spirits of giving in the human heart: giving, forgiving, and thanksgiving. Where one dwells, the others usually reside as well. Behind a loving heart, no guile or bitterness may be found toward their brothers or sisters in Christ (1 Cor. 13:4-7). If one closes off the heart to forgiving another person, then…
Read MoreUNDERSTANDING GOD (Part 4: Why Did God Create So Much Division?)
The Law of Christ indisputably condemns division. Paul writes to the church in Corinth, “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in…
Read MoreUNDERSTANDING GOD (Part 3: Did God Create Sin Just to Condemn Humanity With It?)
Some see God as a mean kid on an ant hill with a magnifying glass, a tyrant that demands praise and love. If God created all things (Eph. 3:9), then did He create sin? If He created sin, does this mean that God condemns mankind for accepting what he created for them? If sinfulness generates…
Read MoreUNDERSTANDING GOD (Part 2: Can God Create A Rock So Big That Even He Cannot Lift It?)
Humanity, drunk with pride and wise in foolishness (Rom. 1:22), claiming to be spiritual leaders, spew forth mindless theories, viewed as facts, about the nature of God that are antagonistic to God’s own revelation of Himself (2 Tim. 4:3). Pompous speeches about what God would do and what God would not do while interpreting the…
Read MoreUNDERSTANDING GOD (Part 1: Why Create a Condemned World?)
Why man? The mysteries of human creation and purpose have been answered by insurmountable imaginings of theorists. As a result, God often becomes the target of criticism and ridicule in such discussions. Despite the vain philosophies and mythologies of man that have polluted the original design of human beings, God communicated the duty and purpose…
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