Entries by Ricky Docto

MARVELING AT UNBELIEF, MARK 6:1-6

I’m stubborn. I can admit it, even if it is difficult. My stubbornness, although, helps me when it comes to the art of argumentation, but also makes it hard for me to acknowledge when I am wrong. There have been times in my life when someone has proven me wrong, and I still can’t accept […]

5 MYTHS ABOUT BEING BLIND

He would not stop yelling! He was an elderly neighbor of mine, who wanted to teach me how to swing a golf club. However, every time he gave me a lesson, he would not use a natural voice. He assumed that because I could not see, he needed to speak extremely loud. His golf lessons […]

COMING TO CHRIST FOR CHRIST, JOHN 6:22-27

Do you know people who refuse to trust in Christ because of something negative that happened in their life. These people typically believe that God abandoned them at their deepest point of need. They think that if God truly loved them, then he would not have allowed this particular event to occur in their life. […]

THE PAY OFF OF HUMILITY, 1 PETER 5:6

The battle against pride rages within all of us. We must constantly be on guard, watching for the areas in our lives where Satan tempts us to think more of ourselves than we should. The apostle Peter informs us in his first letter that “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (1 […]

SAUL, PAUL, AND THE ADVANCEMENT OF THE GOSPEL

Something struck me this morning while reading in Acts 7-9 that I have not thought of before. God used Paul to advance the gospel while he was still Saul and persecuting the church. In Acts 7, during the story of the stoning of Steven, Luke writes, “And the witnesses laid down their garments at the […]

BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

I want to begin periodically giving some book recommendations on my blog. Each week I’ll try and give 3-4 books, and provide a brief paragraph explaining why I am recommending the book. I hope you enjoy. C. S. LEWIS – A LIFE: ECCENTRIC GENIUS, RELUCTANT PROPHET

FINDING THE GOSPEL IN GENESIS 3:21

Preparing my Sunday school lesson last week reminded me of an old truth that I have always found fascinating. In Genesis 3:21 Moses writes, “And The Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin and clothed them (ESV).”

ACTS 4:13

In Acts 4:13, Luke writes, “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and preceived that they were uneducated common men, they were astonished, and recognized that they had been with Jesus (ESV).” When we examine this verse we need to notice three things. First, The counsel saw the boldness of Peter and […]

ACTS 5:41 AND THE CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN CHURCH

This morning while reading Acts 5 I was struck by verse 41. Beginning in verse 17 we read the story of the apostles being arrested because they are continuing to preach the gospel. Eventually they come before the counsel, are rebuked and beaten, and are released. Then in verse 41 Luke tells us, “Then they […]

GALATIANS 4:30-31

This morning I have been meditating on the implications of being a son of the free woman as opposed to being a son of the slave woman. In Galatians 4:30-31 the apostle Paul writes, “but what does the Scripture say? ‘cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman […]