Building on the Foundation

  Can you imagine a world with no war and no crime? No murder, no stealing, and no kidnapping? No drugs or drunkenness? No cancer, no heart disease, no Alzheimer’s? Imagine a world with no adultery, no domestic violence, and no broken homes. Imagine a world with no lying, thieving politicians and no crooked cops or judges. Imagine a world “in which righteousness dwells” (2 Pet. 3:13). Well, I’ve got good news: this world exists, and we will all one day see it! Not everyone will ultimately live in it — more on that later — but everyone will have a chance. This wonderful world, of course, is the Kingdom of God. This is the heart of the gospel. When Jesus Christ came to earth in the flesh, we read that He “came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel’” (Mark 1:14-15). This was the purpose of His ministry: “But He said to them, ‘I must preach the kingdom of God to the ot

  Guest commentary by Richard Gray Marriage between a man and a woman is a wonderful blessing given to us by our Creator. It should be a time of love, joy, peace, and harmony, but all too often that which might begin as marital bliss becomes marital warfare, ending in a battle over money, things, and children in a divorce court. Marriage is supposed to be a lifetime commitment “till death do you part”—not just until you change your mind! Many marriages that do not end in divorce are not really the happy, harmonious marriages that they should be. Why do so many marriages fail, or are mediocre at best? What happened to the love, or maybe it was just plain lust, that brought the couple together? Real love does not fade away, but lust does. Lust is an emotional response that creates blindness to reality, and the couple never really gets to know one another before they get married, and then they end up suffering from “buyer’s remorse.” Too many are willing to discard the marriage vow