Previous article in this series: July 2025, p. 375. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind—2 Timothy 1:7 God has not given us the spirit of fear. Those were encouraging words for young Timothy. He was a young pastor who labored in the hostile city of Ephesus. Not only did he contend with the general pagan population, but he also had to confront the false teachers within the church. In the midst of all his good Christian ministry, Timothy was understandably fearful. It’s not easy...
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For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind—2 Timothy 1:7 The fear of which 2 Timothy 1:7 speaks is not the healthy reverential fear of God spoken of in Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” We want that fear. May God grant that fear and that we would live with the fear of God in our hearts whereby we love and serve and worship Him. The “fear” spoken of in 2 Timothy 1:7 refers to a spirit of a fearfulness,...
Previous article in this series: May 1, 2025, p. 287 For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more—Luke 12:48 In the previous two articles we have been considering managing money in a wise and stewardly way. The Lord has given unto us many earthly goods and with the earthly goods we have the responsibility to use them wisely and to press them all into the service of God’s name and His covenant in the midst of this world. We noted in the...
pastor of Immanuel PRC in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada …for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted—Luke 18:14 According to the parable of the Pharisee and the publican in Luke 18, there were two celebrations taking place in the temple on one particular day. The Pharisee had a grand celebration of sorts. And the publican had a very different celebration. The one was a wicked and proud celebration. The other was a good and humble celebration. Over the course of the next few weeks we commemorate God’s faithfulness to us as...
pastor of Immanuel PRC in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada Previous article in this series: December 2024, p. 127. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more—Luke 12:48 We are called to be wise stewards of all that the Lord has given us. Therefore it becomes the duty of every Christian to manage his money properly. Especially is this important in the consumer driven and affluent society in which we live. An honest evaluation of our lives reveals that the Lord has...
pastor of Immanuel PRC in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more—Luke 12:48 We live in an age of affluence. The majority of you reading this article right now reside in either the United States or Canada. Regarding material possessions and the luxuries this age has to offer, we have an abundance of things. The Christmas season now upon us always serves as a reminder that our culture is saturated with consumerism and materialism. And behind all...
Rev. Heath Bleyenberg, pastor of Immanuel PRC in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? Acts 8:30, 31 The Ethiopian eunuch was sitting in his chariot. He was reading Isaiah 53. But he did not understand what he was reading. The angel of the Lord sends Philip to help this man understand the Word of God. That’s our desire whenever we approach any passage in the Bible. We want to understand what we are reading. We want to soak in and digest that Word of God and...
Rev. Heath Bleyenberg, pastor of Immanuel Protestant Reformed Church in Lacombe, Alberta Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? Acts 8:30-31 Can you empathize with the Ethiopian eunuch of Acts 8? He was returning from Jerusalem where he had offered his sacrifices and worshiped God. Now he was sitting in his chariot. His Bible was open to Isaiah 53. He was reading the passage. He was trying to understand what it was saying and about whom it was talking. But he was having a difficult time of it. Philip...
But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ. Ephesians 4:15 Are you growing? Are you maturing? Are you developing? Even as a little boy grows and develops into a full grown man, so the Word of God calls us to grow and develop. We are to grow up into Jesus Christ, even “unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). This is what we considered last time—the call to spiritual maturity in Jesus Christ and the fervent desire that...
But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ” Ephesians 4:15 There is something terribly wrong with that child who forever remains a child. Year after year that child does not grow. The parents rightfully become very concerned. They plead with the doctor “Our child is not growing. There’s no development at all! What could possibly be wrong?” That’s a real fear for parents. Every father and mother knows that fear when they bring their child to the doctor with such a serious condition. Are you growing? Are you...
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