This is an excerpt from the third chapter of By Water and the Word: God’s Gift of Baptism for You by Brian Thomas (1517 Publishing, 2026), pgs 52-60.
Even when the bitter places sink down deep into our bones, the Restorer never relinquishes his grip on you.
To Live Well is therefore not a general advice book, but a message suffused with the gospel.

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To Live Well is therefore not a general advice book, but a message suffused with the gospel.
In spite of the pain, Sasse exudes a peace from above that is quite literally impossible to explain apart from the assurance he has in Christ.
The resurrection means your ultimate problem is no longer ahead of you. The grave is not waiting for you. It is behind you.
“Save us!” or “Deliver us!” That’s what “Hosanna” means. And that is exactly what Jesus did in the ER that dark Thanksgiving Day and every day for me.
The gospel isn’t for the strong but people who know they aren’t.
The Church’s unity is not uniformity in every matter of her well-being. It is faithfulness in what constitutes her being.
The reasoning was always the same. The gods were angry. The gods were hungry. The gods required payment.
Living by faith has never been about what we bring to the table. It has always been, and always will be, about what God does for us when we can’t do anything for ourselves.
The story of your life stretches beyond the dash on the tombstone.
Lewis once pointed out that Christianity does not begin by telling us how to behave, but by telling us what is wrong.
To know the cure is not to become immune to sorrow.
Christ did not merely urge humanity to be kind. He embodied perfect kindness by giving his life for those who neither earned nor expected such a gift.