Month: April 2026

By Dalton Key

God seeks rule over more than just our bodies; He desires our hearts and minds as well. “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1-2).

We offer to God our bodies as living sacrifices, conjoined with, or perhaps more accurately, resulting from, the renewing of our minds. This inward affection for God is referred to by Christ as “the first and greatest commandment” (Matthew 22:38). Heaven’s message has ever sought to operate on the heart of man. Peter’s inspired message on Pentecost “cut to the heart” of those who heard it (Acts 2:37). The word of God, “sharper than any two-edged sword,” pierces “even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul” (Psalm 19:7). Without a sincere change of heart, outward expressions of obedience are both hollow and ineffective. We are “set free from sin” and become “servants of righteousness” after obeying God’s teaching “from the heart” (Romans 6:17-18).


A new birth results in a new life, but the new birth itself concerns the spirit. “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:6). We “have purified our souls in obeying the truth” (1 Peter 1:22). Conversion, to be genuine, must include the whole man. While our behavior must manifest fruits of repentance, while we must live right and do right, we must first freely offer to the Lord our hearts, souls, and minds. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). Ours is more than merely a regimented religion of doing; it is one of being and becoming. “These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone” (Matthew 23:23). The only way God makes a Christian is from the inside out.

By Joe Slater

“He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he
who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the
wrath of God abides on him” (John 3:35, NASB).

Note carefully that “believe” and “obey” are treated
here as equals. Peter uses the same two words in 1
Peter 2:6 – “Therefore to you who believe, He (Jesus)
is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The
stone which the builders rejected has become the chief
cornerstone.’ The faith that pleases God is the faith
that obeys.

Also note that John did not say God’s wrath will abide
on the disobedient at some future point. He said it
“abides” on him (present tense, now). Of course
eternal destruction will be the final manifestation of
God’s wrath; but unless we are following Jesus, God is
highly displeased with us right now. We must remedy
that situation without delay!

If there were but one good reason to follow Jesus, that
would be enough. John the Immerse. however, gave
his disciples at least seven reasons in John 3:27- 36.
Those reasons are still valid. Are you following Jesus?

By Joe Slater

As John the immerser sought to calm his fretful
disciples, he told them, “He whom God has sent (i.e.
Jesus) speaks the words of God, for God does not give
the Spirit by measure” (John 3:34). What better reason
would anyone need for following Jesus?


Our Lord Himself stressed that He spoke God’s words:
“My doctrine is not mine, but His who sent Me” (John
7:16). Later He reaffirmed, “…all things that I heard
from My Father I have made known to you” (John
15:15).

Many prophets preceding Jesus spoke the words of
God; but Jesus was superior to them all. He out-ranked
them. He spoke not only what He was told by
inspiration, but what He had seen and heard. And He
possessed the Spirit without measure.

Beyond any shadow of doubt, the old prophets were
inspired by the Holy Spirit. Ezekiel, for example, says
over and over, “The word of the Lord came to me,
saying…” This shows that Ezekiel’s inspiration was
not continuous; from day to day and time to time, as the
need arose, God gave Ezekiel His words

Jesus, however, received the Holy Spirit at His baptism, as
witnessed by John who saw the Spirit descending like a
dove. Jesus had the Spirit to the fullest extent, like no other
before or since. We can know and be assured that Jesus
spoke the words of God, and that we are safe in following
Him.

By Joe Slater

John the immerser told his disciples, “He who has
received His (Jesus’) testimony has certified that God is
true” (John 3:33). John may well have been referring to
himself as one who had received Jesus’ testimony,
thereby certifying that God is true. But the general
principle remains that when we follow Jesus, believing
what He said and obeying what He taught, we certify
that God is true.

“Certify” literally means to set one’s seal upon
something to verify that it is authentic. Today we use a
Notary Public to insure that the signatures on a
document are valid rather than forgeries.

Of course God is true (authentic, correct) whether we
respond to Him in the right way or not. But when we
believe and obey Jesus we are, in effect, casting our
vote for God.

The apostle John wrote, “he who does not believe God
has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the
testimony that God has given of His Son” (1 John 5:10).
Now obviously, God is not a liar! But see the
implication of John’s words. To “make” God a liar is to
consider Him so, or to imply that He is such.

Those who reject the teaching of Jesus are, in effect,
calling God a liar! Who would want to be guilty of such a
thing?

Yet multitudes, by reason of their failure to believe and
obey Christ, are implying that God is a liar, whether they
mean to do so or not.
Are you certifying that God is true by your faith and
obedience?