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Would you agree that most people have a rather casual concept of forgiveness?  Many tend to view it somewhat the same way as a police officer tearing up a traffic ticket or a judge saying: “Case dismissed.” And yet with Jesus, forgiveness is never shallow and inconsequential.  Calvary can be understood only in terms of Jesus’ concern for us and for what sin does to us, and the suffering and sorrow it causes in our lives and in the lives of others. It may be less painful to close our eyes and minds to our own sins, but the price […]

We often speak of self-sacrifice as an ideal for our Christian living.  We call upon ourselves and others who will listen to give up selfishness and live sacrificially.  But the moral quality of any sacrifice is determined by the cause for which it is made.   Some years ago, the world was shocked by a story of sacrifice in the city of Beirut.  A young man drove a truck loaded with explosives into a building, housing more than two hundred U.S. Marines.  Then he deliberately detonated the explosives, taking his own life and the lives of most of the men who […]

I read a story, the origin of which I do not know, that tells of a day when the Devil offered for sale all the tools of his trade.  Those who came to shop, and perhaps to buy, were surprised that the highest price tag was attached to a small, wedge shaped implement.  It did not look important at all, but the purchase price was more than all of the other implements combined.   The Devil explained that this was his most effective tool for breaking into people’s lives.  He called it discouragement. We can all understand the meaning of that […]