Letter to my pen pals, February 2019

Posted on February 5, 2019 by Steve Husting

A new year has started, and with it new possibilities. I know, that sounds like a corny Hallmark card. Like the happily-ever-after of a fairy tale. Some people have a right to be skeptical. But not Christians. With a risen Savior, a happily ever after is guaranteed. Because God is for us and His mercies are new every morning, every day that begins with faith in God’s promises is a fresh start. Continue reading →

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For to us a child is born

Posted on December 25, 2018 by Steve Husting

About 700 years before the Word was made flesh, God revealed details about the Savior of the world so we would know what He would be like. In Isaiah 9:6–7 we find these words:

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

He is given several names here to whet the Jews’ appetites for the promised Messiah. We can see these names when Jesus shone His light in the darkness during His ministry throughout Israel. Continue reading →

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Attitudes of Faith

Posted on December 18, 2018 by Steve Husting

What does faith feel like? How do you know when you have it? As I was praying about my faith, several aspects of my faith over the years came to mind. I had demonstrated faith in different ways, but they all had one thing in common: they all moved me to action or to making decisions that honored God and His word.

Faith’s definition in the Bible does not mean to believe without proof. It means to have a conviction that something is so. So make sure you don’t apply modern definitions to this book written thousands of year ago.

Why is it important to examine our faith life? Because Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. Also, the Holy Spirit in the believer teaches us that salvation is played out in a life of faith, as Roman 1:17 tells us, “the just shall live by faith.” This means that we are living unrighteously if we live according to our five senses and feelings, as though the unseen world does not exist. Living by faith means that we live our lives with the unseen God in view. Continue reading →

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How were people saved before Christ came?

Posted on December 7, 2018 by Steve Husting

When you research this question on the internet, you’ll find that most answers address the example of the Jewish population, which had prophets and the scriptures to guide them to God. Almost none of the articles talk about what happens to those outside the Jewish faith, making their answers unsatisfactory.  Continue reading →

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Put on the Whole Armor of God

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Steve Husting

After I finished reading In Christ Jesus: The Sphere of the Believer’s Life, by Arthur Tappan Pierson, I gained a greater appreciation for the salvation that Christ has accomplished for us. I highly recommend you read the free, online version of this short book here: https://www.whatsaiththescripture.com/Voice/In.Christ.Jesus.1.html The thoughts in that book gave rise to a new perspective on the Armor of God for the Christian, which follows. Continue reading →

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What benefits do we get for becoming a Christian?

Posted on May 28, 2018 by Steve Husting

Here is a short list, in no particular order:

  • When you become a Christian, it is because you have admitted the truth, that you are a sinner, and your sins have separated you from God. This opens the door to yielding to God for forgiveness, and enter into all the blessings.
  • We are forgiven all of our past sins. This means we have a new past that has been wiped clean of past wrongs.
  • We develop a confidence in God whereas before it was confidence in a church.
  • God justifies us. This means that we have been declared righteous, not just forgiven.
  • With sins forgiven, we enter into a right relationship with God. (This beats having a bad relationship with God.)
  • That nagging guilt for our wrongdoing is washed away. Our guilty conscience is eased.
  • God opens our eyes in a special way to understand the lessons in the Word of God, the Bible.
  • God reveals His will to us. We don’t have to wonder why we are here any more. We become aware of our life’s purpose.
  • God gives us a new identity. We don’t have to wonder who we are any more.
  • God saves us from the power of death, for through Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection, we will rise again from the dead. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit; we are guaranteed to be raised from the dead.
  • We lose the fear of death and look forward to eternity with God.
  • We receive the Holy Spirit of God, and He teaches us the things of God that we could not grasp with our natural understanding. We understand the spiritual things we could not understand as atheists or agnostics.
  • God imputes His own righteousness to us. We cannot improve on this righteousness by our good works.
  • God promises an eternal inheritance to His children who prove themselves faithful to Him.
  • We are put into His body on earth, and have the privilege of being used by God on earth.
  • He delivers us from the deceptions and power of our enemies, of Satan and his demons.
  • He delivers us from the power of sin in us. We find the ability to overcome the bad behavior we couldn’t control before.
  • He transforms our character into the true human beings we were meant to be. From selfish to loving. From impatient to patient. From scornful to compassionate. From religious to spiritual.
  • We develop hope in the life to come, where we had none. We develop an assurance that there is more to life than this, and we will live forever.
  • We escape Hell and the Lake of Fire.
  • We discover first-hand the working of God in our lives.
  • We are accepted in the Beloved.
  • We find prayers answered in a way they never were.
  • We start to understand that the Bible has nuances the ordinary person misses. Life is not so simple. The Bible shines light on our personal life, and through it we discover that God is guiding us.
  • We are translated into the kingdom of His Dear Son.
  • We learn to love God as our Father. A wonderful thing for those who never had a father who loved them. We learn to rest in His love.
  • We no longer liken prayer as talking to a brick wall. Prayer becomes meaningful. God becomes more substantial.
  • We learn to love the Bible and appreciate it in a way we never did before. God reveals His mysterious ways to us.
  • God shows us mercy. This is way better than having the haunting fear that God is holding a big stick over our heads for doing wrong.
  • We experience the difference between being merely culturally religious vs. being a spiritual child of God.

Continue reading →

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The Our Father Prayer: Hallowed Be Thy Name

Posted on April 14, 2018 by Steve Husting

Excerpt from Life in the Kingdom, book 1
https://stevehusting.com/doubtbusters/steves-books/

Pray Like This
Matthew 6:9a Pray like this

Notice that Jesus does not say “pray these words,” but “pray in this manner.” There’s nothing wrong with praying these words; we just don’t need to pray exactly these words. We don’t need a script. We don’t need a book of prayers. We may speak to God as naturally as we speak to one another. Jesus has opened the way. When He died on the cross, the veil in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. This means God opened the way into His presence through faith in Jesus. This is the true kingdom of God: we can talk directly to Him.

Now let’s see in what manner Jesus wants us to pray. In verses 9-10 Jesus starts the prayer with God and His will. I don’t know about you, but I usually start with me and what I want! When we pray in Jesus’ manner, however, we pray for God and His will first and our needs second.

Our Father
Matthew 6:9 Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.

We don’t find “Father” used of God very much in the Old Testament. The Psalms uses it twice in reference to God being a Father to the fatherless. Isaiah calls him The Everlasting Father in 9:6, referring to Jesus, and he calls God “our Father” in 63:16 and 64:8. But when we come to the Gospel of John we find God referred to as “the Father” over a hundred times! The Gospel of John is unique in that it persistently portrays Jesus as the Son of the Father. Jesus loved to use this term when addressing God. Continue reading →

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After the Easter Story: Resurrection Power and the Christian

Posted on March 31, 2018 by Steve Husting

Edited contents taken from Living with the End in View, book 2, by Steve Husting
http://www.lulu.com/shop/steve-husting/living-with-the-end-in-view-book-2/paperback/product-753096.html

The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the defining aspect of the Christian faith. No other religion has this story of God dying for sinners. Yet the result of that resurrection — the aftermath of power available to us through the resurrection — is missing from the lives of most Christians. It’s like we heard enough of the gospel story to accept Jesus as our Savior, but not enough to live by the resurrection life and power He came to give us. When He ascended to heaven, He did not intend for us to fend for ourselves until we die and wait to be raised up to heaven. No. His death, burial and resurrection have an immediate effect on those who believe; He sends the Holy Spirit to dwell in us and make that new life a reality. Let’s look closer at the work of the resurrection in our lives. Continue reading →

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In Matthew 5:17, Doesn’t Jesus contradict the NT authors about the law continuing forever?

Posted on March 24, 2018 by Steve Husting

Here is the passage in Matthew 5:17-19:

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Yet in the gospels Jesus does not appear to be preparing us for a time when the law or any portion of it will be done away with. In apparent contradiction to Jesus, Paul teaches that the law has come to an end (Romans 10:4; Galatians 3:13; 5:1-4). How do we reconcile Jesus’ words with Paul’s? Continue reading →

Posted in The Bible | 2 Comments

Did Jesus really mean it when he said to remove the eye or hand if we can’t stop sinning?

Posted on March 7, 2018 by Steve Husting

Here is the passage: “If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off, and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life maimed or crippled, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into the eternal fire. If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out, and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the Gehenna of fire.” (Matthew 18:8-9). Continue reading →

Posted in The Bible, Uncategorized | 1 Comment