Righteousness is still a big deal.

God didn’t retract His requirement to live pure and holy. It’s so important to Him that He made a way for us to actually pull it off.

Jesus was never meant to be an excuse for living sloppy lives. Not even close.

He is the only man to ever live a perfectly righteous life. And He offered Himself as a sacrifice so we could trade our sinful selves for His righteousness.

This divine trade makes us the very righteousness of God. We are completely forgiven, and the power of sin is broken.

If sin is still a burden in your life, you need to awaken to the fact that it no longer has power over you.

Sure, it will still try to woo you into its trap. But you should just chuckle every time it tries and say, “No way. Your power no longer has an effect on me. I’m the righteousness of God in Christ. And for every temptation, He provides a way out. This is me, taking my way out.”

Jesus didn't tell you to weather the storm.

When opposition comes as a great storm, you are not to crouch down and bear it. Don't even hide from it.

Our instruction from God in Ephesians 6 is to be strong in the Lord. As the storm rages, we are to stand firm in His protection.

And when we do, we'll still be standing when the storm is over. Not storm-battered and worn out, but full of joy and peace.

If the battle is wearing you out, it's time to stop fighting. The instruction is not to fight, but to stand firm.

Immoveable. Unshakeable. Unbothered. Confident in God's victorious outcome.

Let the storm rage and keep your eyes on Jesus. Just think of all the energy the enemy is wasting on his defeat.

Our level of commitment to the body of Christ is directly related to our progress as believers.

Every tactic trying to pull you away from the gathering is the realm of darkness trying to stunt your progress.

Jesus said, "If you love me, feed my sheep."

Genuine love of Jesus Christ results in doing your part within the church. It's when we all take our place that believers are properly fed spiritually.

If you say you love Jesus but are not committed to caring for His body, you are deceiving yourself.

It's time for believers to value and love the church like Jesus does.

Yes, it’s imperfect. But not for long. Jesus is using the gifts He gave—the apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher—to transform us into a glorious church without spot or wrinkle.

Obeying for recognition is not truly obedience.

We live in a culture that expects to be noticed. If we don’t get the proper recognition for our hard work, we use it as an excuse to go satisfy our ego elsewhere.

It sounds like this, “If I’m not appreciated, then I am not participating.” And there are plenty of people to cheer you on.

We even have professionals to tell us how this is a human need that must be met.

It all makes sense for the world, but not the people of God.

Our obedience comes from a heart of willing submission. It is our reasonable service, no recognition needed.

Many God-assignments have been abandoned in pursuit of being noticed more.

If that’s you, I encourage you to get back to what God has called you to. This time, without the need for your obedience to be recognized by others.

Persecution generates great benefits for the body of Christ.

In the book of Acts, we find that the greater the persecution, the greater the growth of the church.

The more they were persecuted, the more they were filled with boldness from the Holy Spirit.

Persecution brought them great joy, even when in prison. Persecution worked like a bonding agent, bringing them together as one.

A church that avoids persecution sacrifices all these benefits. It becomes weak and pathetic as it works hard to appease people.

A church that embraces persecution is the most powerful, joyous bunch you'll ever see. The more you try to stop them, the stronger they become.

It's time to divorce people pleasing and embrace whatever persecution comes as a result of faithfully following Jesus Christ.

Only those who are submitted to the master gain the authority to use the master’s name.

A king does not give a rebellious servant the right to say, “I’ve come in the king’s name.”

This is a privilege reserved for those who are fully submitted.

If you want to use the name of Jesus against the kingdom of darkness, you must be fully submitted.

For the scriptures say, “Submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee.”

The devil doesn’t flee from rebellious people because those are his people under his command.

But when you are submitted to God, you have authority over all the power of the devil.