Dealing with the death of a loved one, whether you are prepared for it or not, can be very difficult. It’s natural to experience sadness over the separation. But be aware that Satan will try to get you to stay in a place of sadness—a place where sorrow and grief will attempt to press in on you.
Religious tradition teaches that we just can’t know what God is going to do from one situation to the next, so it’s a good idea to tack on “if it be Thy will” to every prayer, just in case. Many churches teach that we should pray this way because Jesus did, but He only prayed this way once: in Luke 22:42. In most instances, He prayed with boldness and certainty of receiving an answer. For example, when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, He didn’t pray, “Lord, if it be Thy will, bring Lazarus up.” No. He said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me” (John 11:41).
Yes! You can always count on God to heal you! He has given you His Word on it and He always keeps His Word.
James 5:15 leaves no room for doubt. It says, “...the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”
Why then do so many good Christians remain sick? Because, they somehow fail to receive God’s provision of healing.
As a child growing up in Juárez, Mexico, Sergio Alvarado watched helplessly as his alcoholic father abandoned the family and his heroin-addicted mother turned to prostitution. After she died, Sergio spent the next 20 years battling his own drug and alcohol addictions. Then he met Yvette, who introduced him to a better way of life through Jesus Christ.
You have God-ordained dreams in your life. Discover how THE BLESSING will make them reality!
Read how one woman discovered freedom from inside prison...and how it led to her freedom outside steel bars.
Dara Maclean Petty has been writing songs since she was 7. Raised in a household of faith, her parents had always encouraged her to seek God’s will for her life. At 22, when her life seemed to have stalled, she wondered where she had gone wrong. When she pressed in to her heavenly Father, He was faithful to give her the wisdom she desired and her life began to change.
With the pressures and pain that can come in this earthly life, we can sometimes think it might be better to leave this world and go home to be with the Lord. Paul shares his feelings in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better.” He goes on to say, however, “But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don’t know which is better. I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me. But for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live.” (verses 22-24).
Losing a loved one can be tough, and it usually brings various challenges with it. But as tough as those times can be, Scripture promises us a way through. No matter what challenges we face, we can overcome them because we are in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 2:14).
One thing that brings encouragement in those times is the assurance that when a loved one who knew Jesus goes to be with the Lord, the Bible offers us hope for the future. We may have a temporary sorrow, but nothing like that of those who have no hope, or who are burdened with guilt.
The difference is that faith is now; hope is always in the future. And there’s a reason for that.
Romans 8:24-25 states, “We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)”
Hope is that expectancy that keeps our faith alive until what we’re believing for comes.
Kenneth Copeland has not taught extensively on the subject of the Rapture of the Church. However, through his personal study of God’s Word, he adheres to the doctrine of Jesus coming to catch away His Church before the Great Tribulation.
God is love. The answer to where babies spend eternity when they die is not hard when you consider the nature of God. His love in relation to the innocence of young children is expressed in Deuteronomy 1:39, “Moreover, your little ones whom you said would become a prey, and your children who at this time cannot discern between good and evil, they shall enter Canaan, and to them I will give it and they shall possess it.” It is plain to see that God did not hold children responsible until they were old enough to recognize the difference between good and evil.
The Bible certainly teaches there is an unpardonable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. But fearful thoughts of whether you have committed this sin are designed by the devil to keep you out of fellowship with God. Think about it: if you’re concerned about having committed the unpardonable sin, you’re proving by your concern you have not!
But what about others? Time spent trying to judge whether another has committed the unpardonable sin removes you from the proper place of love and intercession for that person.
Living on the streets of Philadelphia, functionally illiterate, parents in and out of prison, Nashon Walker became a bitter and violent young man. Sentenced to 85 years in prison at the age of 19, he met Jesus and his future was forever changed.
The Bible does not say what happens to animals when they die. What we do know is animals have a special place not only in man’s past and present, but also in his future. God cares for them and not one dies without His noticing (Matthew 6:26, 10:29). God created animals and saw that they were good (Genesis 1:20-25), brought them to Adam to see what he would call them (Genesis 2:19-20), and assigned man the responsibility of taking care of them (Genesis 1:28).
After the crucifixion, Jesus’ body was placed in a tomb, and His Spirit went to hell. There Jesus suffered all the torments of hell that we would have suffered. Jesus’ submission to death was complete. He experienced it to the ultimate degree so mankind would never have to be punished (2 Corinthians 5:21).
A covenant of grace. That's what you and I have with Almighty God. If you could truly grasp the significance of that, you'd never be the same again.
What exactly is a covenant of grace? It's a relationship of favor that gives you access to someone else's power.
An illustration of a covenant of grace is the covenant the old Sicilian "family" members have with the "godfather" of the "family."
Fear of failure. It's haunted all of us at some time in our lives. Popular psychology tells us to adjust to it. But the Word of God tells us that there is a failure-proof way to live without it. It is the way of love.
If you want to know real success, you must learn to be moved and motivated by love. That's how Jesus was when He was on the earth.