stephen-on-bible

“And now I will show you the most excellent way” (1 Cor. 12:31). Ever since I became a Christian, I often heard five important steps on how to grow in spiritual life. It has been emphasized that this is how one can excel towards spiritual maturity. The five steps are – prayer, bible study, church fellowship, tithing and witnessing. However, it was later I happened to learn that one could practice all these things and yet live an unspiritual and immature life. As important as they are, nowhere in the Holy Scripture do we find that these are the signs of spiritual maturity. What then is the sign of spiritual maturity? The Important Ingredient These days the Lord has been drawing my attention to ponder over the most significant ingredient of my life and ministry. It is something without which I cannot become spiritually mature. He has shown me how greatly I am missing and neglecting it in my life. I was convicted that my Christian life is shallow, my spirituality is a sham, my preaching i...

“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy” (Hebrews 12:14). No one is immune from conflicts in relationships. Virtually all of us have experienced the hurt that often causes intense pain within interpersonal relationships. Needless to say, living in unity with others is not an easy issue. Remember, there is a price to be paid to live at peace with others. Healthy relationships are not built automatically but with great effort. The Lord once taught me a wonderful lesson regarding the price I have to pay for preserving peace in relationships. When my wife was pregnant with our first child, one day, I hurriedly got on the bed to sleep. Before going further, I must say that my wife is known for cleanliness. She usually surprises the guests with her neatest house. Because my wife was carrying the child, she could not do much of the house work as she was physically weak. That was the time I was disciplined to become a family man. So when I got on the bed, my wife reques...

"Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God." (Rom. 15:7) I am grateful to God for constantly changing a worst person like me to be conformed into the likeness of Christ. I am glad to have Christ as my Lord who is patient enough to deal with my failings. One of the worst weaknesses of mine is to give up a person or dissolve from a relationship when I'm confronted with interpersonal conflicts. Not so long ago I was annoyed with a person whom I constantly sought to encourage and eventually resolved to give him up due to his lame excuses to evade responsibilities. As I was reflecting on a passage in the book of Romans, I was led to a Scripture which captivated my attention and convicted my heart. The Lord clearly spoke to me from Romans 15:7, "Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God." In the first verse of the chapter it is written, "We who are strong ought to bear with ...