“Water, water every where, nor any drop to drink,” or so goes a couple of lines from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. To the Mariner's fevered mind as he was there on the ocean, looking around, …
The subject of judging often seems very difficult to grasp. Some use the term "judge" in a generalized way, making assertions such as, "We shouldn't judge one another." Is this true? If we took this to an extreme, we could make no …
In Part One, we considered the apostle James' definition of "pure religion" as "to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world" (James 1:27). Our God has called and chosen us, not to become …

(12) Behold, these are the ungodly,
Who are always at ease;
They increase in riches.
(13) Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain,
And washed my hands in innocence.
(14) For all day long I have been plagued,
And chastened every morning.
Psalm 73:12-14 shows the anguished complaint of the righteous man: Look at these men of arrogance; they never have to lift a finger—theirs is a life of ease; and all the time their riches multiply. Have I been wasting my time? Why …
Tomorrow, the nation will be celebrating the 250th anniversary of its founding in 1776. It will be a day of patriotism - wearing red, white, and blue, parades, barbecues, music, fireworks, baseball, political speeches, and other traditional expressions of pride in the United States of America. Except perhaps for a firecracker accident or being hit by a foul ball, all harmless fun, right? (This essay will not deal with concerns about the Sabbath, on which July 4 falls this year.) Some Christians frown on national patriotism - “affection and vigorous support for one’s country” - because of …
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