Most clergy and laypeople alike would agree that Christ, not the apostle Paul, is the source of all church authority and power. So what do we find Jesus saying about women? How did He deal with them?

In the presence of the multitude, He drew from Martha the same testimony He required of His apostles, and she publicly replied, almost in Peter’s very words, “Yea, Lord: I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world” (John 11:27, KJV).

He declared His commission to the woman at the well of Samaria, with an emphasis and a particularity hardly equalled in any of His public addresses, and the testimony she gave to her fellow Samaritans bore much fruit. What pastor would not rejoice to hear what the converts said to the woman: “Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world” (4:42).

One of the most beautiful things the Bible says is that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (see Rom. 5:8). He did not wait for us to deserve His love. He loves us unconditionally. To be honest, that’s hard for many of us to comprehend because we are so accustomed to having to earn everything in life.

Because of His great, wonderful and intense love for us, God poured His life out for us freely (see Eph. 2:4). That is revolutionary love! Real, revolutionary love must give itself because it can never be satisfied doing anything less.

Just as it is God’s unconditional love that draws us to Him, so it is our unconditional love toward others in His name that draws others to Him. He wants us to love people the same way He would if He were here in bodily form.

Genuine, authentic faith must be definite and free from doubt. It is not general in character or a mere belief in the being, goodness and power of God. It is a faith that believes that the things that “he says will be done” (Mark 11:23).

As faith is specific, so the answer will also be definite. “He will have whatever he says” (v. 23). Faith and prayer select the things, and God pledges Himself to do the very things that faith and persistent prayer name and ask Him to accomplish.

We might also translate Mark 11:24 this way: “All things whatsoever you pray and ask for, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them.” Perfect faith always has in its keeping what perfect prayer asks for. How large and unqualified this area of operation is—“all things whatsoever”! How definite and specific the promise is—“you shall have them”!

God wants you to deal with your weaknesses and stop rejecting yourself because of them.

Are you tired of playing games, wearing masks, trying to be someone other than who you are? Wouldn't you like the freedom to be accepted as you are, without pressure to be someone you don't know how to be? Would you like to succeed at being yourself? Are you worn out with feeling somehow flawed and insecure? If so, I have good news for you.

God wants you to accept yourself, to like who you are and to learn to deal with your weaknesses because we all have plenty of them. He doesn't want you to reject yourself because of them.

Everyone has the right in Christ to have a healthy heart and a healthy mind. Beth Moore talks about what can happen when we start to deal with our past and go down the road to achieving a sound mind.

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Backstage at the Hillsong Europe Conference 2011, Priscilla Shirer answers questions about who inspires her, how she balances all of her responsibilities and more. Watch to find out what words of wisdom and advice she has to offer based on her own experiences.

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When Jesus was speaking to His Father just before He died, He prayed that His followers would have His joy fulfilled in themselves (see John 1:13).

This privilege, like all privileges of the Christian, has been purchased by the blood of Christ and is therefore a high and holy responsibility. That is to say, the provision on God’s part of privileges for us creates the obligation on our part to attain to their enjoyment.

But are you a joyful Christian? Have you a Christ-like experience in this regard? I do not ask you whether you have joyous emotions, but is the joy of Christ fulfilled in yourself?

The only way out of bondage is to begin seeking God's approval instead of man's approval.

An epidemic of insecurity is stealing the joy of life from many people in our society today and causing major problems in their relationships. I know the effect insecurity can have on lives because I experienced it myself. I know what it does to a person. Those who have been hurt badly as a result of abuse or severe rejection, as I have, often seek the approval of others to try to overcome their feelings of rejection and low self-esteem.

They suffer from those feelings and seek the approval of others to try to remove the pain. They are miserable if someone seems not to approve of them in any way or for any reason, and they are anxious about the disapproval until they feel they are once again accepted.

Jesus used many analogies to teach us the truths of the kingdom. One of these was the lesson of the seed-grain, in which He compared the life of the believer to the development process of a grain of wheat.

“Unless a grain of wheat falls into the gound and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain” (John 12:24, NKJV). This process is the same one we must go through if we are to bear fruit as we are called to do.

Let us turn to the seed-grain and see the picture lesson, that in these last days we may intelligently yield to the pierced hand of God and permit His fullest purposes to be fulfilled in us.

Defend yourself against disappointment by focusing on God and confessing His Word.

We all have been disappointed at one time or another. In fact, it would be surprising if we went through an entire week without encountering some kind of discouragement. Many Christians are lying along the roadside of life devastated because they have not learned how to deal with the problem.

It is not God's will for you to live a disappointed, devastated or oppressed life today—or any day. When you resist the devil at the onset of your discouragement and learn to place your hope and confidence in Jesus, you can live in His joy and peace.

Cindy Trimm asks the question, "Do you know the secret to fulfilling all of your heart’s desires?" Watch as she discusses the answers on how to obtain your God-given desires.

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