Scripture Applied

Scripture: Romans 8:28 One of the greatest hardships of the human soul is dissatisfaction. It’s easy to get down about the state of your finances, your house, your spouse, your church, a child that you lost, a family feud, or a physical sickness such as cancer. None of these challenges are easy, yet God promises that “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those wh...

  Have you ever had a Romans 8:26 moment when you didn’t know what to pray? It’s that moment in life when you need help, but you don’t know what to do—whether you should quit that job or take that job; if you should ask that girl to marry you or not. You don’t know what to pray about your cancer diagnosis—whether you should be crying out to God for patience...

As Christians, our role in the church amounts to more than just “follow your heart.” We have gospel duties to fulfill, and in Romans 1:8-17, the Apostle Paul gives us a powerful template to follow. First, he was thankful, despite the church in Rome being immature and imperfect. Second, he was prayerfully scheming of ways to minister to them more. Third, he was desirous to impart a spir...

Justification by faith is not merely a judicial act, but it is a gift of God which brings great assurances and blessings: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Rom. 5:1-2). Peace with God. Access. Grace. Stand...

Suffering is the normal experience for all mankind, yet Christians can become shaken, disheartened, and angry—and even slip into apathy and hedonism—when suffering strikes. But rather than respond in self-pity, as believers, we must understand that we’re heirs of the sufferings of Christ. Even as we’re part of a creation that was subjected to futility by God, we should groan in hope as we wait for...

  Is your spirit flagging? Do you feel dull and unmotivated when it comes to the things of God? Here's the reality. You are always limited by what you think and meditate on. If you’re neglecting an earnest pursuit of God’s Word and are, instead, feeding your flesh with Hollywood movies, political podcasts, and other worldly pursuits, your soul will become impoverished. To turn the...

In Romans 8:14, Paul writes, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God.” But what does it mean to be led by the Spirit? It means that God persuades you to seek what is good because He’s given you a new heart. He doesn’t force you; he gives you the desire. You’ve been born again, and now He leads you by His word. Philippians 4:8-9 gives an...

Even for Christians, the temptation to sin remains an ever-present danger. Mortifying our sin is thus a battle we must earnestly wage, as John Owen wisely said, “Be killing sin, or it will be killing you!” But how do we engage this mortal enemy? The Apostle Paul gives four points of wisdom in Romans 8:13-14: First, stop paying the flesh, because you owe it nothing. Second, if you&rsquo...

In Romans 1 the Apostle Paul delights, repeatedly, in the wonder-working power of the Gospel. He rejoices in the transforming call and power of the Gospel that compelled him to be separated unto a new life and become a bondservant of Jesus Christ. He describes the continuity of the everlasting Gospel, as Jesus Christ, the Son of God was born in the flesh as the seed of David—as promised by t...

There’s a difference between real and fake Christianity. And this litmus test, given by the Apostle Paul in Romans 8, shows where you stand. Your mind is either: (1) set on the spirit or the flesh; (2) set on life or death; and (3) subject to the law of God or in hatred to it. That’s why there’s no such thing as a “gay” or “thieving” Christian. If you&rsqu...

  Today on social media, you can be accused, tried, condemned, and sentenced all in one day. Yet this is light compared to the devastating condemnation of Almighty God. The good news is this: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). Redeemed sinners are freed from God’s wrath and eternally secure in Him. So, if you’re a beli...

God created everything from top to bottom in our lives that Jesus Christ would be preeminent (Col. 1:17-18). This includes marriage. Put simply, the preeminence of Jesus Christ is the greatest secret of a happy marriage and a happy home life. But what does it look like to make Jesus Christ the center of your marriage? First of all, devote yourself to his preeminence. Second, count all things as lo...

In this life, the Christian will always be dealing with sin. This side of heaven, there’s no sinless perfection. God’s good and holy law is a tool that reminds us of this reality. It is a searchlight that shows us who we really are, as we deal with remaining sin that still wars within us. This rightly frustrates the believer, as we battle wrong impulses that persist. Yet we need not de...

  What does it mean to make Christ the center of your marriage? Husbands and wives cannot write their own lines. They have a role to play. Marriage was designed by God to paint a picture of Christ’s love for the church, and the respect of the church for her Savior. A husband’s role is to be like Christ, and a wife’s role is to be like an adoring church who loves her husband....

How should Christian’s engage with God’s law? The truth is, the believer’s relationship to the law of God will have massive consequences in your life. It will either make you a legalist, or it will make you one of the blessed of the earth. For the Christian, the condemning nature of the law has ceased. But the commanding power of the law continues, and the Bible makes it clear th...

Every word in the Bible is the word of Christ. This includes the 6 13 Old Testament laws and the 1050 laws and commands found in the New Testament . But how are we as Christians to interpret them? It starts by understanding God’s four central purposes for the law: (1) To disclose His character and righteousness; (2) To reveal and convict us of sin; (3) To constrain evil in the personal and c...

How can Christians be “dead to the law” if the law is “holy, just and good” (Rom. 7:4, 12)? Scott Brown answers this thorny question, putting Romans 7 in proper context. The Apostle Paul uses the metaphor of a woman whose husband dies, who then is free to remarry, being no longer bound by the law of her first husband. Being married to Christ is akin to this. When He regener...

The Bible says that everyone’s a slave—either a slave to sin or a slave to righteousness. The question is: Whose slave are you? In this podcast Scott Brown explains that, without Christ, we are slaves to sin, and the wages of this sin is death. Yet, with Christ, we get a gift we don’t deserve—a grace that delivers us from the condemnation of sin and enables us to present ou...

God has given our tongues as a good gift—not for death, but for life. Yet it’s easy for all of us to fall prey to bad speech habits that hurt others. In this podcast, Scott Brown gives harmful patterns of communication to avoid, such as name-calling and giving the cold shoulder, followed by good behaviors to sweeten conversations such as carefully listening, monitoring your tone, askin...

The tongue is a good gift from God—but it also can be a destructive troublemaker. In this podcast, Scott Brown discusses how the tongue can poison and devour, but also how it can be tamed to encourage others through singing, hearty counsel, thoughtful admonishment, and more. Not only can our tongue be used to bring praise to God, but it can give “ b eautiful words, wonderful words, won...

The number one objective of a real Christian is to become more holy. So, how do you accelerate your sanctification? Romans 6:11-14 gives five ways: (1) You reckon yourselves as dead; (2) you dethrone the tyrant; (3) You withhold the members of your body from sin; (4) You consecrate your whole body to the Lord; (5) and you stand in grace. The good news is this—you don’t have to stay tra...

Marriage is sacred space. It is consecrated ground. When you wed, you enter “The LORD’S holy institution which He loves” (Mal. 2:11). It's like going to the White House. You are on someone else’s property. You don’t get to do what you want. Similarly, when you dine with the Queen of England, you’re not free to eat any way you please. In this podcast, Scott Brown...

“God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7), but is this our heart when we bring our tithes and offerings to Him? In this podcast, Scott Brown explores the witness of Scriptures on giving , discussing various examples and principles. He shows that honoring God with our firstfruits is an act of worship that should be joyfully rendered , even as we use our abundance to help others in need....

Do you struggle over assurance of your salvation? The truth is, m any people go through periods where they doubt their standing with Christ . They ask, “Am I good enough to be a child of God? What if my desire, at times, to read the Bible is weak?” In this podcast, Scott Brown explains that our salvation is not based on our inner-therapist . It is based on the objective work of Christ,...

Man’s greatest problem is original sin , passed down genetically through the human race since Adam’s fall. This genetic defect can’t be fixed by “ self-improvement ,” for it goes to the core of our being. This sobering truth is one parents should impress to their children, while also giving them the good news of salvation : Christ, the Second Adam, made a righteous sa...