How can Christians live lives of purity in a world that has become so sexualized? Who sets the standard for purity: the culture, Christians, God? It doesn’t take a lot to recognize that we live in a highly sexualized culture. Billboards and store fronts use sexual messages to call us to buy their products or services. Magazines and newspapers assault us with sexual ads. Turn on the television, computer and specifically, the internet and the sexuality becomes even more blatant often crossing the line into pornography. Sexual messages showing an abundance of skin are used to sell everything from lingerie to beer. As if that wasn’t enough, there are advertisements for erectile dysfunction, penile enlargement, breast augmentation and all manner of birth control on television, radio and in print. People have become numb to the boldness of these messages and no longer blush. We are boiling in a sexual stew and like the proverbial frog in the kettle, we are being cooked as the heat rises and society’s standards are lowered. Are Christians immune from all of this? Were that it was so! Christian men, women and teens are called to be “in the world, not of it.” (Romans 12:2) Yet, by being in the world, many have become conformed to the world. Instead of serving as thermostats and changing the culture, many have become thermometers reflecting the culture in which they live. The culture uses sexuality in ways never intended by God. As the poster picturing gears, chains, sprockets and wheels all tightly strung together wistfully muses, “God made us plain and simple. My how we have complicated things.” God designed sex to be plain and simple. His original design was for sex to be for procreation and pleasure. His original design was for men and women to use sex to carry out His command to “be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth” (Genesis 1:28). Sex is to be the glue of marriage sealing the marital covenant between a husband and wife. As a veteran pastor for over thirty years, Dr. Irv "Sarge" Woolf, provides "battle-tested" practical answers as he shares God's design for sex in a sex-saturated world. Irv takes us back to that original blueprint, back to sex as God originally intended it. He describes the God of holiness and God's standard for holiness. In warning us about the enemies of purity, he describes how the world, the flesh and the devil have corkscrewed sexuality and twisted it into a self-serving distortion of what God intended it to be. Irv identifies the key weapon of the enemies arsenal: sexual immorality. Finally, Irv shows us the clear difference sexual purity makes in the life of a man, a woman, a marriage and a family. Irv is no ivory tower theologian but a man who applies the Word of God in practical fashion to the everyday world of temptations. He understands what it takes to live in purity. As a former pastor who launched Every Man’s Battle For Purity in his home church, Irv is eminently qualified to write about this topic. God’s hand is upon him and his ministry to purify the Bride of Christ. May the Lord use him. The Church desperately needs purifying.

The Power of Purity: God's Design for Sex in a Sex-saturated World

Religion & Spirituality

Woolf, Irv

Christian Books & Bibles

Christian Focus

"It’s not a dead end, Art," said the professor. "It’s the information you need to know to become who you really are." Hailed as the top teen piano virtuoso, Art Jenicks has a promising future before him when suddenly his past begins to unravel. Orphaned at a young age, his parents’ lives have always been shrouded in mystery but now a highly classified program involving genetic engineering appears to have buried the truth. With a trail that begins at the elite Hawthorne Academy and leads through the back alleys of Boston, Art’s quest uncovers an exiled scientist who holds the secrets to his past and has a plan for his future. His life in the balance, Art becomes enmeshed in a battle with the very people who made him a rising star. Welcome to the future of controlled human evolution. THE AWAKENING is Book 1 of the Jenicks Series. Book 2, THE REUNION, is also available in Amazon Books and on Kindle.

The Awakening

Warden, Cliff

Peace is perhaps the most elusive, miraculous phenomenon in the human experience. From the kindergartners arguing on the playground to the world powers storing up technologically advanced weapons, we clearly struggle to coexist peacefully with each other. Yet for all our efforts to generate peace between people, we often overlook the importance of finding peace within ourselves. Though we long for this inner peace, our world full of war, famine, bank collapses, pandemics, and day-to-day struggles has discouraged us from even trying to find it. In his new book, Finding Inner Peace During Troubled Times, author William Moss shows readers that inner peace is indeed attainable in the person and presence of Jesus. As a high-powered businessman and a key political decision-maker, Moss has faced his share of daily distractions. For over a decade, he has studied and practiced the lost art of Christian meditation. "I believe God wants us to find peace and will show us the way, if we are willing to accept it. But for many, the peace of God is elusive. They are not sure how to accept it or where to begin in their pursuit of it," says Moss. "There are many difficulties, distractions, and hardships that stand in the way of our inner peace. Sometimes these are due to our circumstances. Other times it is our sin or the attitudes of our hearts that stand between us and the inner peace we crave. Through prayer and meditation we can transcend all the distractions and difficulties of our days if we live by the Spirit and put God’s love and presence first." Many believers are wary of any form of meditation because of its association with Eastern religions. These Christians might be surprised to learn that meditation was regarded as a key spiritual discipline throughout church history. Eastern meditation focuses on emptying the mind completely. Christians find inner peace by filling their minds―with scripture and with the presence of the Holy Spirit. Another fundamental difference is the motivation behind the meditation. Peace, like life, is a gift from God that is for His glory―and it is meant to be shared. For those who are in Christ, meditation is not about practicing the kind of self-focus that precludes people from being involved in the solutions of the many problems that confront them. It is communion with God through the Holy Spirit. It is letting go of anger, worry, and fear and taking on the loving, serving character of Christ instead. Finding Inner Peace During Troubled Times uses key scriptures to demonstrate God’s gift of peace to every believer. This slender book encourages readers to be intentional about pursuing that peace, even including a simple, step-by-step example of Christian meditation. "With the constant stream of media, noise, commitments, conflicts, and other distractions, you will not likely find times of quiet, stillness, and spiritual reflection unless you plan them, unless you pursue meditation as a discipline," states Moss. "The key to inner peace and a fulfilled life is one that is grounded in Christian mediation."

Finding Inner Peace During Troubled Times: Living in the Presence of God Through Prayer and Meditation

Moss, William

My children loved to hear stories and that is one reason I love to tell them. I observe that the students in my classrooms pay closer attention when I’ve illustrated academic truths with stories from life’s experiences. I have also noticed that when I amplify points in my messages given in churches with a well told story that a few more people wake up from their naps. When asked to comment on a lecture or a message I am aware that the supporting stories stand out in my memory more than the factual points themselves. As I read the gospel accounts I am impressed that some of the greatest truths of Jesus are contained in stories. For these reasons the format of this book is story telling and I believe the stories will draw interest because they are true. The mentors that God has placed in my life helped give me interpersonal peace and greater appreciation for others by removing misunderstandings that came from cultural stereotypes. Having served in the US Navy in World War II it was inevitable that I should be exposed to ugly, negative images about the Japanese. Because God called me to serve as a missionary in Japan I also became aware over the years of the beauty and sensitivity latent in Japanese hearts even prior to their introduction to Christianity. The true stories that I am recording do not gloss over human error, either ours or others, but they do reveal the socio-historical circumstances that compelled behavior that was later regretted. In addition to bringing understanding about historical and cultural contexts I want to recount the stories of changes in the hearts of people who have encountered the grace of God. As well as going to bat for the beleaguered missionaries in Japan by relating accounts of their patience and faithfulness, I look forward to sharing many stories of dedicated national church leaders. In the process, honesty dictates that we reveal the tensions that arise at times between missionaries and their Japanese coworkers. Thankfully we can also tell of the healing and blessings that God brings when we mutually lay our problems before Him. It has been fun to retell stories of living in Japan to my five offspring, three of whom were born there. Without discounting Catholic strengths in the focus on celibate workers, I want to affirm the testimony of the Protestant missionary family as one of the most effective witnesses in missions. My wife and children opened doors that would have remained closed to me. Our bonding experiences with Japanese families led to mutual understanding that would not have come as easily by the verbal teaching of an adult male alone. The age spread in our family prevented a generation gap in our witness. Our visible love for our growing children convinced others of our ability to love them also. Above all I am glad that I can share true stories of the providential love of God. At times when our own efforts fell far short in communicating His message God provided bridges of understanding that closed the gaps. We were privileged to see Him change the hearts of others through circumstances of which we were unaware and did not fully understand even when we heard about them. We learned through experience that “all things work together for good to those who love God.” (Rom 8:28). The structure of the book is chronological. Early stories are about our Japan experiences while living there from 1954 to 1970. Later accounts are about periodic re-visits as a missions professor introducing students to the field. These short term experiences extend from 1974 to 2001. Further updating has been done through correspondence to missionaries and nationals on the field and through research sources. The account of Japan’s dramatic change through the years is a fascinating story in itself. Since the larger portion of my life has been directed by God to pass on mission insights to others, either on the printed page or in the classroom, I have an ongoing drive to share these perspectives gained over 50 years, inclusive of time in Japan and mission teaching. I have reached the age where I realize all the more that the task of bringing the gospel to the remaining unreached peoples must be passed on to the next generation. It is my prayer that our positive approach to the missionary calling to the so-called “resistant fields” will encourage others to take up the challenge. At the same time we who have reached advanced years need the reassurance of true stories that strengthen our hope for the final victory.

Stories from Japan, Past to Present

Hammond, Alvin D.

Women As Christ's Disciples: Models in the New Testament Church for Courageous Women Today

Unknown, Author

What does the Bible REALLY say about Jesus? A comprehensive source for all the evidence in the Bible concerning the divinity of Jesus by a scholar of international reputation. An updated and combined volume of Robert Reymond's two previous books on the subject

Jesus, Divine Messiah: The New Testament Witness

Reymond, Robert L.

Old edition replaced by 9781845502539

Exposition of the Westminster Confession of Faith (Christian Heritage Series)

Shaw, R

Scripture thoughts for the Christian Road.

Walking in the Way

Biographies & Memoirs

Tallach, John

Leaders & Notable People

Every churchgoer knows about Martin Luther, the rumbustuous leader of the Reformation, but few realise the influence that his wife had on his ministry.Early in his personal reformation Luther became convinced that there was no reason why parish priests should not marry, if they preferred it, but he did not feel inclined to break his clerical oath himself.That was until he met Catherine von Bora. Catherine was the leader of a daring breakout from a convent reserved for nuns of noble birth. At first Luther was a little afraid of her but they married two years later on the 13th June 1525.She prolonged Luther's life by protecting him from the reckless overwork to which he subjected himself. She made the garden of the unfinished Augustine Convent that was her home, profitable - keeping pigs, cows and chickens. She took over three other gardens and planted fruit trees and started small scale farming.She made her home a haven of rest for the storm tossed man that was her husband. Luther once said, 'Next to God's Word, the world has no more precious treasure than holy matrimony. God's best gift is a pious, cheerful, God-fearing, wife, with whom you may live peaceefully, to whom you may entrust your goods, your body, and your life.'

Luther And His Katie (Biography)

MacCuish, Dolina

John the Baptist (Bibletime Books Series)

MacKenzie, Carine

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