peace to live by

Jesus Presented as the Jewish Messiah, Part 1 (TMF:2950)

Friday, August 28, 2026
Peace to Live By: Jesus Presented as the Jewish Messiah, Part 1 (TMF:2950) - Daniel Litton
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       Our familiarity with the Scriptures, those which are called the Old Testament, remind us that the people written about therein, whom we know as God's original chosen people, they were waiting for a Messiah. The eyes were focused in the future toward the One who would arrive on the planet to, really, at the core essence, ultimately save them from their sins. The writings before this time had gone silent for approximately 400 years, as the last truly approved words were recorded by the prophet Malachi. We see a direct glimpse of what we are talking about in certain disciples of John the Baptist early on, in that they themselves were looking for this Person who was to come. And to step out for a moment in all of this, Jesus' disciple John, the writer of this Book we are considering, is in effect telling all who will listen, even today, in our time, that the Person he is writing about—that specific person—is indeed this Jewish Messiah. And the beautiful thing he goes on to show, is that this Jewish Messiah is actually the Messiah for the whole world.

John Focuses on Believing as Foundational (TMF:2949)

Thursday, August 27, 2026
Peace to Live By: John Focuses on Believing as Foundational (TMF:2949) - Daniel Litton
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       The first point is a common one that we are going to see as we go throughout this book. That is, “believe.” “That you may believe that Jesus is the Christ.” That’s the first thing John wants to emphasize for us. The belief being brought forth at this point constitutes the foundation to each one of our personal relationships with God. Invariably, we are aware that this then is fundamental to our salvation, and by that we mean the deliverance from all our sins cumulating throughout our lifetime. The two points lead to a third point, and it's now that John is setting it forth before us. That is the concept of having, obtaining, and actually experiencing "life," which we might think of as 'real life.' That's the journey as well as the end result of our personal relationship with God. It is a new life through God's regeneration of our spirits, through our born-again-is-ness. We don't have to stop at this point, but actually we can consider what is being discussed, at a further, or higher level. John said, “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.”

Intro to The Gospel According to John (TMF:2948)

Wednesday, August 26, 2026
Peace to Live By: Intro to The Gospel According to John (TMF:2948) - Daniel Litton
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       Considering the history of the world, there have been a few moments in time when big events happen. What we are talking about here is God's coming into the world, and the whole mission of this first coming, if you will. John will give us insight into certain, unique perspectives at times, that among the other Gospel writers, only he will bring forward. He will also give us a closer look at Jesus' relationship with his disciples. It's good for us to start with an underlying definition of what the Gospel of John is all about. Thankfully, we already have that matter answered for us by the author himself. Indeed, it is stated in John 20:31: “these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” The first point is a common one that we are going to see as we go throughout this book. That is, “believe.” “That you may believe that Jesus is the Christ.” That’s the first thing John wants to emphasize for us.

One Problem with Calvinistic Beliefs (TMF:2947)

Tuesday, August 25, 2026
Peace to Live By: One Problem with Calvinistic Beliefs (TMF:2947) - Daniel Litton
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       What has been noticed, and this point will close the message, is that Calvinism seems to work for people until bad things happen to ‘them.’ You see, Calvinism is very comfortable and makes life comfortable until something particularly bad happens to someone and they have to say it was supposed to happen. Often, people’s Calvinism gets shaken and rattled when really bad things happen. The minister will say, “Well, God has something for you to learn with your son dying.” And all one needs to ask the minister in response is, “And what did God have for the son to learn who is now dead?” Thus, the folly of such an answer presents itself. Calvinism is a well-structured and well thought-out system of theology, but people truly need to consider carefully what has been said here, and whether what they believe really, at the end of the day, lines up with what the Bible actually says.

Discussing Unanswered Prayer, Part 3 (TMF:2946)

Monday, August 24, 2026
Peace to Live By: Discussing Unanswered Prayer, Part 3 (TMF:2946) - Daniel Litton
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       It’s for the three reasons just mentioned that sometimes it looks like prayer isn’t answered, but the truth is that often there is that time delay and often we don’t make the connection that God has done this or that because of prayer, due to the time-delay. But, if we stop and think about it, if Jesus told us to keep praying and never give up, there has to be good reason for that. It’s not some vain ritual that we are doing to make God happy, but there has to be real, true beneficial things that can happen from our continual prayer, whether that’s over weeks, months, years, or even decades. And we should note that the answer provided here surely isn’t Calvinism-friendly since, under a Calvinistic approach to prayer, it really can’t change God’s mind, as then, his foreknowledge would have changed. One could say he had foreknowledge he would change his mind, but then, he really didn’t change his mind. What has been noticed, and this point will close the message, is that Calvinism seems to work for people until bad things happen to ‘them.’

Discussing Unanswered Prayer, Part 2 (TMF:2945)

Friday, August 21, 2026
Peace to Live By: Discussing Unanswered Prayer, Part 2 (TMF:2945) - Daniel Litton
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       Remember in Daniel 10, when Daniel prayed, God answered it on the first asking, but it took 21 days for the answer to manifest itself. That, truth be told, isn’t a real long time. And it could be too that Jesus told us at the beginning of Luke 18 to keep praying and never give up as the circumstances may change wherein at the beginning of our praying for something, perhaps Satan has a stronghold. Then, later on, Satan no longer has as strong of a hold, and God is able to breakthrough doing whatever it is. See, if we had stopped praying after whatever amount of time, then we wouldn’t have asked at the right time where Satan was in a weak spot. That’s one way to look at it. Another thing is that by our continuing prayer, we could actually change God’s mind over time, wherein originally he didn’t want to do whatever it is for whatever the reason, and after our continual prayer, he has changed his mind and decided to go ahead and accomplish whatever it that we want.

Discussing Unanswered Prayer, Part 1 (TMF:2944)

Thursday, August 20, 2026
Peace to Live By: Discussing Unanswered Prayer, Part 1 (TMF:2944) - Daniel Litton
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       Now for the final area of discussion. In Colossians 4, prayer was talked about at length. It does seem like a lot of prayer goes unanswered. Is there anything further that can be said in regard to this? Several things can be noted here. First, it has probably been heard before, and it’s something a lot of people don’t want to hear, is that often there is a time delay from the day we ask God to do something to the day it actually happens. We, in our American mindsets, wish for everything to happen very quickly. So, oftentimes from the day we pray to the day it actually happens, we may not even see a connection because we might have stopped praying in between. Remember in Daniel 10, when Daniel prayed, God answered it on the first asking, but it took 21 days for the answer to manifest itself. That, truth be told, isn’t a real long time.

Regarding Fellowship in Attending Church (TMF:2943)

Wednesday, August 19, 2026
Peace to Live By: Regarding Fellowship in Attending Church (TMF:2943) - Daniel Litton
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       The secular author Susan Cain wrote an excellent section in her 2012 book titled ‘Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking.” She basically explains that the modern Evangelical church puts a great emphasis on one being outgoing, and the reason for this noted is that because if someone doesn’t witness, another person could end up in Hell (see pages 62 to 70). Yet, she also points out elsewhere in her book that people are designed differently, we would say created by God differently, some to be extroverts and some to be introverts. Even the Apostle Paul himself alludes to this when he talks about the different giftings from the Holy Spirit given to believers. The eagerness to witness to every person on the face of the planet regardless of natural and spiritual tendencies is truly, in reality, a fear-based doctrine, that really, at the end of the day, has no foundation in the New Testament.

What is the Church Service's Focus? (TMF:2942)

Tuesday, August 18, 2026
Peace to Live By: What is the Church Service's Focus? (TMF:2942) - Daniel Litton
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       The next area of discussion. Worship and church services were brought up, and it was spoken that a lot of churches have been visited by the speaker. Can it be described what the most Biblically accurate service looks like, or that has been attended in one’s journeying? The best way, it would seem, to answer this question is to ask another question back, and that is “What is the focus of the service? Or, is the service focused heavenward?” If we look at a church service through those eye glasses, then we come to see what is genuinely important, and what is at the heart of God. Regarding fellowship as it pertains to attending church, it will be stated that it seems like, what has been called by one author, the “Extrovert Ideal” has become the focus of the Evangelical church. This needs explanation for further clarification. The secular author Susan Cain wrote an excellent section in her 2012 book titled ‘Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking.”

Christians & The Use of Substances, Part 2 (TMF:2941)

Monday, August 17, 2026
Peace to Live By: Christians & The Use of Substances, Part 2 (TMF:2941) - Daniel Litton
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       It should also be noted that it would appear that cigarettes could be a ‘gateway drug’, if you will, to other more serious substances. That only seems likely. In that case, it may be best to avoid cigarettes altogether for that reason. Cigarettes, in and of themselves, it is understood do not really cause a change in one’s mental state, like drinking too much alcohol. Consequently, smoking a cigarette may be more like a heavy dose of caffeine or something like that versus the actual drinking of too much alcohol. Therefore, any substance, like alcohol in getting drunk, that causes a change to one’s mental state would be wrong because we are called, as Christians, to have self-control. Zoning out on some substance would be a violation of that Fruit of the Spirit, that of self-control. We don’t need an artificial peace of mind, but a real peace of mind through obedience to the Scriptures (a clear conscience), and the practice of good thinking habits and skills.