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"Peace on earth." So say countless Christmas cards. It is ironic that what we in the USA know as "the holiday season," from Thanksgiving through New Year's, is usually the most challenging time of the year to be peaceful. You’ve no doubt heard the phrase, "hustle and bustle," and that pretty well describes what happens as families and friends do all they must do to get together, prepare food, buy and give gifts, et al. This issue of The Sower focuses on the holiday season, and in particular the biblical truth regarding peace. The Word of God shows that the only peace available until the Lord Jesus gathers us together is "the peace that passes understanding," that which we have within our hearts as we walk with him. |
God is faithful. That is, He is always with us, always fighting for us, and He always keeps His promises. Perhaps the main thing He desires in each of us who are Christians is faithfulness. That is, that we continue to live for Him no matter what happens to us or around us. This issue of The Sower is all about perseverance, which literally means "through severity." There are many factors involved in standing for the Lord, and the articles in this issue examine some of them. Each believer must be fully persuaded of God's faithfulness, his own salvation, and of God's particular calling in his life. The greater one's vision of his spiritual destiny, the greater his commitment and his faithfulness to persevere in standing for the Lord in this life. |
What could be more important or more rewarding than to tell another human being something that, if he believes it, will enable him to live forever in Paradise? That is exactly what we Christians can do each and every day as we share the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord and that God raised him from the dead. And that is what this issue is all about: why and how we spread the Gospel and help people receive the salvation that guarantees them everlasting life. Our heavenly Father desires as many children as He can possibly have, and Satan, His archenemy, does all he can to stop people from hearing the truth. |
This issue of The Sower celebrates the Day of Pentecost, the birthday of the Christian Church, as recorded in Acts 2. Second only to the resurrection of Jesus Christ in spiritual significance, what happened on that Pentecost holiday was that for the first time people were born again of incorruptible seed and spoke in tongues, thereby evidencing the indisputable proof of their salvation. On that day the Lord Jesus Christ became the Head of the Church, and began to diversify himself around the world by way of people filled with his spirit and equipped to be like him and do the works that he did. The articles in this issue of The Sower expound upon these marvelous truths. |
No doubt everyone can think of at least one well-known saying, or certainly a song title, containing the word "love." Love is a subject spoken, written, and sung about perhaps more than any other, but most honest people would have to admit that finding and/or practicing true love has been, at best, very challenging. Standing in aggressive opposition to genuine love is fear. Scripture says that "perfect love casts out fear," and the corollary is also true. This issue of The Sower examines both fear and love, with the goal of helping the reader overcome fear and practice true love. |
"How's life?" For most people, including Christians, a truthful answer to that question would include at least a measure of adversity, no matter when they were asked. Many would describe great adversity or even tragedy or trauma with which they are currently faced. Yes, that's "life" in this fallen world. So what does the Bible say about adversity and how we as Christians are to deal with it? How can we find happiness in an unhappy world? This issue addresses those questions, and more.
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