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Showing posts from January, 2022

Legion vs. the Lord: Christ’s Authority Over Unseen Evil

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by Bart Denny Whether you are a professional mechanic or a shade-tree tinkerer, you have probably met that bolt. You know the one. You start with a regular wrench. No movement. You grab a longer handle. Your knuckles get scraped, your patience wears thin, and if you are honest, your vocabulary gets “creative.” So you reach for the Liquid Wrench. Then the torch. Then the breaker bar. Still nothing. Finally, you call the neighbor with the impact wrench. Same bolt, same rust, same stuck threads. One burst from the impact, and what resisted you for an hour breaks loose in a second. The difference was not you trying harder. The difference was authority . A different kind of power was applied. A lot of life feels like that bolt. Maybe it is an addiction, anger, bitterness, lust, or unforgiveness that will not budge. Maybe your “stuck bolt” is more internal: anxiety that will not let go, depression that will not lift, bitterness that has hardened into a way of life. The Bible c...
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When Jesus Shuts Down a Church

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by Bart Denny I like to think of myself as a student of the root causes behind the death of local churches—and what it takes to breathe life back into a congregation on the brink of closure. Over the years, I’ve read dozens of books and articles exploring why churches die and how revitalization happens. And while every church that closes has its own story and unique circumstances, ultimately, there’s one overarching reason a church shuts its doors: Because Jesus does. That’s right. Surprisingly, the New Testament only mentions the closing of a church once. Just once. And it's not because of dwindling attendance, financial struggles, or changing neighborhoods. It’s because Jesus Himself threatens to remove their lampstand. We read about it in Revelation 2:1–7 (NASB 2020), where Jesus commands the Apostle John to write a sobering letter to the church in Ephesus: “I know your deeds… and that you cannot tolerate evil people... But I have this against you, that you have left your ...
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