The seven arrows of Bible reading is a tool to power bible studying in small groups. Rather than simply talking about the Bible, it helps to understand the Bible and know how to apply it to our lives. Read More…
Predestination
Can one drive a car without understanding the mechanics of the combustion engine or the complexities of an automatic gearbox or the intricacies of the electronic systems that control our modern vehicles? Can one be a christian without understanding the nitty gritty of justification, sanctification, predestination, consecration, incarnation and many other unbelievably complex terms? So, if you don’t want to dive in under the hood on this one, please feel free…
Grace, Faith, Works and Obedience – How Do They All Work Together?
Recently there’s been a lot of talk about God’s Grace. I’ve been finding it all somewhat confusing. I have battled to grasp the concept in isolation. This article helped me get some perspective of how “grace” relates to God’s bigger plan for us.
Grace
FOR by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Ephesians 2:8.
Now, being saved by grace is a wonderful thing isn’t it? It is a gift from God just as Ephesians 2:8 says. If we were to look up the word grace in the dictionary we would find many definitions. One definition that I especially like is, “the freely given, unmerited favor and love of God.” There are others also that I like, “mercy; clemency; pardon.” So we can see that grace is unmerited favor from God to man. We can not earn grace or mercy or pardon, it is a free gift. Praise God for that! That is why it says in the very next verse, that we would boast if we could work our way to heaven.
Not of works, lest any man should boast. Ephesians 2:9.
Works
Now that we have looked at grace,
Tugela Ferry Trip
Aury, Gary, Matt and I (Ronald) spent 6 days at a mission in Tugela Ferry during the July school holidays. I’ve been meaning to write something about the trip and the mission. There’s a lot to tell. Just to get a feel for the place have a look at their sites on the web… They are active on Facebook, see here for a description of who they are and here…
This is a story about four people :
Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realised that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when actually Nobody asked Anybody. So this is a story about four people: Everybody, Somebody, Anybody & Nobody.
July 2012 Trip – Sodwana, Witbank, Cullinan, Johannesburg, Heilbron, Klerksdorp
We spent the first week of July 2012 with Ben, Mari and family at the Sodwana Bay Lodge. Great company and a good place to chill out. There’s a lot to see and do within an hour or two’s drive of Sodwana. Sodwana Bay beach is a magnet for deep sea fishermen and scuba divers. The lodge we stayed at is just outside the national park, which meant we had to pay a daily entrance fee (R210.00 for 7 people) to get to the beach. We’re not used to paying an entrance fee to visit the beach. Mabibi beach and the Sibaya lake are just 15 kilometers north of the lodge. On a day drive to Mabibi beach, we drove past the lake and stopped at a few viewing spots…
A Peaceful Free State Farm
The peace on this farm was tangible. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 (NIV)