To be jealous for God's name means that we have zeal to see Him honored: the kind of jealousy God commends, not the kind the world provokes.
"Therefore thus says the LORD GOD: Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob and have mercy on the whole house of Israel, and I will be jealous for my holy name."
- Ezekiel 39:25
We tend to think of jealousy in negative terms, but the truth is that God has every right to say, "I am a jealous God, and I expect the exclusivity of your worship."
"You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image ... You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God."
- Exodus 20:3–5a
Every day of your life is an investment in something. The weight of God's eternal justice is recognized in the fact that not everyone will hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
"Many seek the face of a ruler, but it is from the LORD that a man gets justice."
- Proverbs 29:26
It's hard to fathom the existence of hell, so much so that today's leading denominations want to explain it away. This week, despite its difficulty, Pastor Lutzer discusses the doctrine of hell.
"After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, 'Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just.'"
- Revelation 19:1–2a
Do you fear God's judgement? In Christ, the justice of God has already been satisfied for you. This week, Pastor Lutzer examines the grace and justice of God.
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
- 1 John 1:9
Is there an age of accountability? How does God judge children who die? What does a just God do with babies who pass away? This week, Pastor Lutzer encourages us to trust God's justice even in life's most difficult circumstances.
"The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he."
- Deuteronomy 32:4
Is general revelation enough to get a person into heaven? And what does this say about the fairness of God? This week, Pastor Lutzer begins our discussion about God's justice.
"For the LORD loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off."
- Psalm 37:28
The minute you begin to add to the Gospel, you are actually subtracting from it.This week, Pastor Lutzer speaks to us about the truth that belongs only to the Father.
"Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth."
- John 17:17–19
Error that is contrary to God's truth may work for a time—but you must ask, "What does it work for, and for how long?" Let's look at the difference between false "truth" and God's truth.
"Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth."
- Colossians 1:5b-6
The Bible has been dissected and vilified by the world and yet it endures with coherency. This week, Pastor Lutzer instructs us on God's consistent truth from James 1:18.
"Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures."
- James 1:18