True Christianity is a religion of constant vigilance in a conscious endeavor—striving, struggling, and making choices—to do what is right to please God.

Some theologians see law and grace at the opposite ends of a continuum. They cannot imagine how God's sovereignty and man's free moral agency can co-exist.

Honoring our free choice and understanding our weaknesses, God alters time and chance for us, using our mistakes as tools to enhance our godly character.

We must make choices over our entire lifetime. God does the heavy lifting in terms of giving the choices and the solutions for us, but He will not choose for us.

Gideon began his life as a coward, became a conqueror, and ended a compromiser, all the while needing assurances from God to bolster his flagging faith.

The Bible is dogmatic about certain core doctrines, but we are left to decide how to understand other issues with principles we glean from His Word.

God demonstrated to Gideon, through His systematically whittling his army from 30,000 to 300, that His providence, and not Gideon's might, would bring victory.

What does Scripture say about free-moral agency? Are we human puppets on a string, manipulated from above? How does free will relate to God's sovereignty?

Just as the captain of a ship wants decision-makers, not just order takers, God expects us to make decisions in accordance with His will.

Human will is not sovereign in the body, but is just another servant, functioning according to the information it receives. We choose according to desires.

Wisdom is not a trait valued or acquired by youth, but takes second place to strength, beauty, or fun. We get too soon old and too late smart.

Though fasting deprives the physical body of nutrition and strength, a proper, biblical fast adds conviction and depth to the inner, spiritual man.

Studying examples of God's hand both favoring and putting down, we must reach out to Him daily for His Divine Providence to be at work in their lives.

There is a vital linkage between wisdom and understanding, understanding comes only through hard work and experience. Wisdom is skill in living.

Habit formation is another synonym for character development. The time to begin developing habits that lead to success lies as early in life as possible.

The free-will God has allowed mankind has led to some tragic consequences or disruptions, but none of these are outside of His control.

In terms of salvation, works cannot save, but good works are the fruit of God's involvement. Grace frees one; works prove that one has been freed.

Why are we satisfied with what we are when we know we could be doing much better? Many believe God will be satisfied with just about anything.

This earth is a prison, and Satan is its jailer. The inmates—mankind—do not realize that there is no free will! A prison takes away freedom.

Until Christ returns, the world's problems will not be solved. Using godly wisdom helps us to deal with our circumstances, but it won't change the world.

After standing still, waiting for God's decision for us, we must diligently move forward as God draws us, taking the opportunity of acquiring more of God's Spirit.

God wants us to use wisdom to change ourselves, humbly replacing our perspective with His perspective. God gives wisdom as a component of His grace.

Ecclesiastes is full of frustration, bluntness, and even a little hopeless. However, its themes are realistic and necessary for us to grasp.

Ecclesiastes provides a testimony to the conundrum of life, showing the result of both bad and good choices, enabling us to effectively use time.

Regardless of whether one submits to God, government, or community, self-government is the best means to having a safe, smooth course toward an objective.

Even though we have the free moral agency to run counter to God's purposes, we court disaster if we presumptuously plan against these purposes.

The term 'grace' describes a generous, thoughtful action of God, accompanied by love, which accomplishes His will, equipping us with everything we need.

Ecclesiastes 7 contains a paradox: wickedness appears to be rewarded and righteousness seems to bring trouble. We must be careful in how we respond to this.

The disappointment in the vanity of life is good for our spiritual preparation, making us disillusioned with all the world's glamorous but false choices.

Time must not be wasted walking into blind alleys and labyrinths, but must be spent walking the paths God has set before us, developing character through our choices.

Most professing Christians agree that God is sovereign, but there is a wide range of beliefs with regard to just how involved God is in their lives.

While Greek culture rendered wisdom mostly mental and contemplative, it is not truly biblical wisdom unless it follows through with a specific behavior.

God is the consummate artist, incorporating in His saints what seems to be a random jumble of dot and dashes, consisting of moments spread out on a canvas.

God is sovereign over time; nothing happens without His superintending. Birth and death are divine events which God alone controls.

The Feast of Trumpets is a day of decision, a time to determine whether we are on the Lord's side. We must loyally fulfill the role to which God called us.

One aspect of sovereignty that causes some confusion is predestination. God's sovereignty does not remove a person's free moral agency — we must still choose.

In the example of a child summoned by a parent to clean up his room, the child's dawdling and complaining are not predestined nor are they part of God's will.

If God is sovereign and promises salvation to believers, why does it matter how believers live? How significant are our choices in the grand scheme of life?

Our worldview influences every decision we make. If we do not give God the prominent position in our worldview, we will make self-destructive choices.

Ecclesiastes is perhaps the most practical book in the Old Testament, providing overviews of life-guiding advice, essentially a roadmap through the maze.

God, following a pattern, routinely calls the lowly and weak to guard against pride. God will transform the weak of this world through His Holy Spirit.

All people will be judged according to the quality of their works after they make the covenant with God. Works are required and rewarded.

The way leading to eternal life is narrow and difficult and few find it. The road to the Kingdom may not be a highway, but neither is it concealed or secret.

One of the most marvelous gifts God has given humanity is water—having both physical and spiritual dimensions, serving as the symbol of God's Spirit.

Ecclesiastes teaches that life has meaning and purpose only when lived by faith for God's Kingdom, not just for earthly, 'under the sun' pursuits.

The urgency to live righteously, striving for godly character is a continuous, ongoing, and vital pursuit not concluded until our death and resurrection.

Progressives tend to believe that human nature is perfectible and evolving. Conservatives tend to believe that human nature is evil and must be controlled.

Those who believe in the "once saved always saved" doctrine fail to see that God has a more extensive and creative plan for mankind than merely saving him.

God's hand was definitely involved in the scattering of the church. We should respond by growing and preparing ourselves for His Kingdom.

Justification does not 'do away' with the law; it brings us into alignment with it, imputing the righteousness of Christ and giving access to God for sanctification.

The fleeting time of youth is a time of strength, exploration, and boundless opportunities, offering the freedom to try new things as well as make mistakes.

God proclaims a cause-effect relationship between sin and madness, blindness, and confusion of heart. Sin causes blindness, and blindness begets more sin.

We are not individually sovereign, but we are taught to give ourselves over completely to God's sovereignty. If we do, we will reap unfathomable blessings.

The activities that Solomon put to the test and found wanting are exactly those things the world emphasizes: hedonism, silliness, mirth, and foolishness.

Because of sin prompted, God has deliberately subjected creation to futility. Solomon has accurately taught us that without God, life is meaningless.

Misguided theologians have tried to create a false dichotomy between grace and works. We do works of obedience to build character, not to earn salvation.

Each member has been gifted by Christ. We must not go beyond the gifts that have been given to us, but must use them humbly, employing them to edify.

We are continually in danger of being deceived by our carnal nature, a nature which distracts us from following God, even though we go through the motions.

We accept most of our opinions, prejudices, and beliefs unconsciously. We must scrutinize our own beliefs through the principles of God's Holy Scriptures.

God's faithfulness is the foundation of our faith. We cannot live by faith unless we believe we have a God who is faithful in everything He does.

If we learn to fear and love God, loyalty, faithfulness and commandment-keeping will naturally follow, and we will instinctively hasten to depart from evil.

The signs that accompanied Peter's Pentecost sermon attracted attention, confirmed God's Word, and provided meaning to the effects of the Holy Spirit.

It can be encouraging to us that our patriarchs and the prophets had serious doubts, but God overrode all their fears in accomplishing His purpose.