abandoned to Christ.

“God knows my heart.” is a common phrase that both Christians and non-Christians use. And sadly, it’s carelessly thrown about to excuse or approve of the faithless, opinionated, and self-righteous way many of us choose to live. Rarely is this phrase used by a truly penitent and humble heart that worships the LORD Almighty in the splendor of holiness—in spirit and in truth (1 Chron 16:29 and Jn 4:23-24). So how can we know for certain if our hearts are the penitent or proud ones when we say, “God knows my heart.” ? We know by how God Almighty says we can know. We test our hearts by what comes out of our mouths (Mt 12:34-37, Lk 6:43-46), with God’s perfect and infallible Word of truth. This God—His way is perfect;   the word of the LORD proves true; He is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him. ~2 Samuel 22:31 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God ma...

In a world where #IamEnough is the mantra of the day, I am inexplicably happy and relieved to affirm that #IamNotEnough because, thanks be to God, Jesus Christ IS. I can't imagine the heavy weight and burden; the amount of daily self-cajoling it takes to justify to self and others, that who I am and all that I possess and am capable of, with my finite knowledge and capabilities, is enough for me and all those around me. I am truly and deeply grieved for all who are deceived by this devilish lie. The same lie from the Garden: "God is not enough. You are just as good or better than God. That’s why He’s keeping things from you. You can and should be your own god to insure you receive all that you deserve." If Adam and Eve had just taken a moment to prudently consider what God named the only thing (a singular tree) in all of the Garden of Eden, that they were forbidden from touching, taking, and eating was called; they perhaps, would have not been so easily deceived. And ther...

A dangerous yet well-received and popularly-taught practice within Christianity is, "It's okay to be angry with God. He can handle it." This is not biblical (Ecc 5:1-3; Job 32:2-3, 34:9-10, 40:1-2; Rom 9:19-20). This is megalomaniacal blasphemy. It is not a matter of whether or not God can "handle" our anger against Him. What an utterly foolish assessment. It is a matter of whether or not God Almighty, the LORD of hosts, will tolerate such arrogant "Jesus is my pal" , disrespectful attitude before His most holy presence. As William Gurnall once said,    (1.) Faith spies mercy in the greatest affliction—an eye of white in the saddest mixture of providence; so that when the devil provokes to blasphemy from the evil that the creature receives from God, faith shows more good received than evil.    Thus Job quenched this dart which Satan shot at him from his wife’s tongue. ‘Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall not we receive evil?’ Shall a f...

In Acts 11:26, it's recorded that this is the first time disciples of Christ were called "Christians". The entire New Testament books are replete with what it truly means to be a disciple of Christ—a Christian. In those days, "Christian" was not a complimentary or even as a neutral term for a group of people, but rather, they were called "Christians" as a derogatory term. We know this because we read account after account about the many who suffered for being named a Christian. "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet ...

The holy Bible is authored by God Almighty, and He has unequivocally denied anyone "artistic license" concerning His Word. In the holy Scriptures, God reveals Himself as—Savior to those He graciously and mercifully grants the gift of eternal life through  faith in Jesus Christ alone , and the Righteous Judge who will forever cast into Hell, all those who disobey and deny Him. In the holy Bible, God reveals that only those who've been granted new life in Christ can actually understand the Bible, and alone are empowered by Christ to do what it says (Phil 2:13, Heb 11:6). "Now we have received not the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. "The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and h...

Many of my readers have either written or asked me on social media, whether or not I've read or watched the movie based on the popular book, "Heaven Is For Real" by Todd Burpo. I have neither read nor watched it in full, but I am familiar with the contents of the book and movie. I completely disagree with Todd's assertion that his then 4-year-old son Colton (who is now 15), did in fact go to Heaven and return with an accurate depiction of the Almighty's glorious throne (Is 66:1).  Rather than reinvent the wheel and write an entire article/review about why I disagree with the book and movie based on its unbiblical content, let me share with you this video (below) from David Platt and a couple of links to articles written by Dr. John MacArthur and Phil Johnson. They all did a splendidly thorough job explaining the unbiblical nature of "Heaven Is For Real", and other books with similar content. Please be sure to read ALL the Scriptur...

All three women have succumbed to the wiles of our enemy, the devil—leading masses away from sound doctrine and luring them to follow and practice panentheism , western mystiscm (e.g., lectio divina ), extra-biblical revelations and viewing our holy relationship with God Almighty in a sexual manner. Though I will speak clearly and firmly as I ought about all three women and the dangerous effects of their writing, speaking and teaching of God's holy Word, I will refrain from making any unnecessary personal attacks about these desperately deceived souls. The purpose of this article is not to demonize any of these women, but to carefully and lovingly warn and exhort them and other women to be more diligent in studying the Word, seeking wisdom and biblical teaching from their husbands (if they're Christians), submit to their husbands' headships whether or not they are Christians (1 Cor 7:13-16, 2 Peter 3:1-2) and imitate the faith of those who are singularly faithful to...

About a decade ago, I followed John Piper and his ministry "Desiring God", with great joy. I listened to sermon after sermon; purchased books for me, my darling husband, sons and sent them as gifts for friends and family. I shared links to their blog articles, retweeted their tweets, shared their materials over every social media platform I participated in, just to soak up and share what I thought at the time, was  entirely, soundly biblical wisdom. Having decided to no longer be a Jonah or Moses when they were first called by God, I was hungry for the truth as I was coming to terms with the spiritual gifts God has given me (Faith, Exhortation, and Teaching). With this hunger and resolve to have a heart more like Abraham and Isaiah, I wanted to obey God immediately —with joy, and use the gifts He so graciously bestowed upon me, for the purpose in which He gave them: For the encouragement and edification of those within the Body of Christ (Eph 4:11-16) without ...

I will be interviewed tonight (March 25, 2013) on KKLA, 99.5 from 5:00-6:00 p.m. PST by Frank Sontag, a guest-host for the former Frank Pastore show  "The Intersection of Faith and Reason"  in Los Angeles, California. The interview will begin with my review on the heretical "The Bible" mini-series, but will mainly focus on God's goodness, His sovereignty and grace to all creation, and especially to the elect. I'd be so grateful for your  fervent prayers for tonight's interview. Please pray for me and our brother Frank: that God would protect our interview; give us both hearts and ears that are sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading; and that God will prepare the hearts of all the listeners so they may hear His truth, have their faith strengthened and exhorted to live abandoned to Christ with every breath they have. You can listen to the interview live by clicking this link: The Intersection of Faith and Reason  or you can go to the...

About a week ago, I was contacted by the History Channel’s media group asking me to help promote “The Bible”, a new mini-series that was created and produced by Roma Downey, ( Touched By An Angel ) with her husband Mark Burnett (producer:  The Voice ,  Survivor ,  Shark Tank ,  Celebrity Apprentice ). After prayerfully reviewing the materials and consulting with my wise husband, I stated that I was unable to participate in promoting this endeavor due to its highly unbiblical content, as well as their portrayal of championing the virility of man while palliating the glory, righteousness and holiness of God. God our Father revealed Himself through His holy word (the real Bible) to proclaim: God's righteousness; Man's depravity; Humanity's desperate need for a Savior—the Gospel of Jesus Christ. From the words of the creators and producers of not - "The Bible" mini-series, their purpose is to portray God: As an angry God who punishes the "bad...