Author: Phil Rehberg

faith

Learning Faith In Spite Of The Challenges

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It is common for new believers to begin with a measure of faith and then develop a moderate level of love for God. After this the believer usually begins to encounter challenges that stretch their faith. Then the questions is whether or not the believer will push ahead with deeper faith. It is not so difficult to develop a strong love for God, even if it is not yet mature. But developing deep faith is a huge challenge that many never overcome. In other words, it is easier to develop love than faith. We see this in human relationships. A mother may truly love her son with all her heart but if he is leading a destructive life she may not even trust him to stay overnight in her house. Trust is something that is earned over time as a person proves themself. We will not risk our well-being on Continue Reading →

Christ focus

Christ-focus Will Transform You

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The three desires to see Jesus, to be like him and to be united to God are the most prominent desires in the history of Christian spirituality. In fact, these three desires will be fulfilled after Jesus returns. We will experience a threefold progression. We will see Jesus which will instantly detonate an explosion of love in our hearts. Filled with love and fully opened to him, he will give us new bodies and transform us into his image. We see this two-fold progression in 1 John 3:2 which explains that “when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (ESV). Then comes the third and final change. Once we are Christformed then Christ will “present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing” (Eph. 5:27, ESV). We will be a pure bride fit for the groom and Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

God Exalts The Humble – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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“Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” Matt. 23:12 (NIV). In this verse Jesus continues to set us free from bondage to worldly success. In fact, those who exalt themselves in this world will be brought low in the next age. Instead,  Jesus teaches us to actively pursue humbling ourselves. We don’t just let it happen if it happens. Rather, we help others to succeed and we look for ways to honor others. We present ourselves as student no matter how much we know. We present ourselves as messengers for God, not the author of the messages. We think or ourselves as a child, always aware that we are still just growing up. The great encouragement is that God will exalt us in the next age, which is worth infinitely more than all the honors we could achieve in this life. Our Continue Reading →

Reaching The End Of Your Character – Part Two On The Will

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This is part two on the will; you can find part one here. How do we know when it is time to let go of activating our will in a particular area of our life? We need to learn when we have reached the limits of our character. This is an important principle for understanding how our will cooperates with God’s will. The basic idea is that when we want to correct a fault or when we try to make progress in an area there is a point at which we cannot go further because we do not yet have the character to do so. God has not yet transformed us enough. For example, we may not be patient enough, or a habit is too strong, or we don’t have enough faith. Once we reach the end of our character then we need to wait for more grace from God Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

Servants Will Be Great In The Kingdom – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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“Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave.” Matt. 20:26-27 (NIV). This may not seem like an encouragement at first but it is a tremendous encouragement. Jesus promises that those who serve will be great in his kingdom. This promise encourages us because it sets us free from status-seeking in this world. Status in this world doesn’t count for anything in the New Creation to come. Being a servant and learning how to bless others is what counts in the next age. This is another feature of God’s upside-down kingdom. You can be the weakest, smallest, least-educated and most neglected person in your city but if you adopt a servant’s heart then you will be greater than everyone in your city who does not have a servant’s heart. Thus, God has healed the broken-hearted and raised up Continue Reading →