Posts from 2018 (Page 10)
Daily Devotions: September 14, 2018
September 14, 2018 James 3:6-12 …“but no one can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God.” vss. 8-9 James does not have a high regard for the tongue. He calls it a restless evil and believes that it is the cause of the deep divisions that are found in the home and in the community. He…
Daily Devotions: September 13, 2018
September 13, 2018 James 3:1-5 …“So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire!” vs. 5 Most all of us at one time or another have been sabotaged by our tongues. We’re forever saying things that should have been left unsaid and then wishing that we’d kept our mouths shut or at least chosen other words. The problem is that once thoughts have been…
Daily Devotions: September 12, 2018
September 12, 2018 Psalm 116:6-9 …“The Lord protects the simple; when I was brought low, he saved me.” vs. 6 There’s an old Shaker hymn called Simple Gifts that has stood the test of time and is popular even today. The first line is “‘Tis a gift to be simple, ‘tis a gift to be free,” and it pretty well sums up the peace that comes in our life with Christ. Sometimes when we glimpse people’s amazing intellect and ingenuity,…
Daily Devotions: September 11, 2018
September 11, 2018 Psalm 116:1-5 …“The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish.” vs. 3 9/11 is one of those dates that will live in infamy. Most of us can remember what we were doing when the Twin Towers were struck. As we gathered around our TV sets, the skies emptied and our whole country went on alert. This was a tragedy beyond our experience and it shattered our…
Daily Devotions: September 10, 2018
September 10, 2018 Isaiah 50:4-9a …“The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious, I did not turn backward.” vs. 5 The prophet was grateful that God had called him to teach and he gladly used his gift to bring comfort to the weary. But he had also been gifted with humility. He knew that his wisdom was limited and if he was going to be a good teacher he had to learn to listen. Every day…
Daily Devotions: September 9, 2018
September 9, 2018 Mark 7:31-37 …“Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.” vs. 36 Mark frequently reminds his readers that Jesus often told people to keep quiet about his healing ministry, but there’s never an explanation for the secrecy. As a result, there has been enormous debate about what is known as Mark’s “messianic secret.” Some have said that Jesus was simply applying reverse psychology. He knew…
Daily Devotions: September 8, 2018
September 8, 2018 Mark 7:24-30 …“Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’” vss. 26-27 There’s no getting around it. These are harsh words from Jesus and would have brought a storm of criticism from our contemporary press. In our world, no…
Daily Devotions: September 7, 2018
September 7, 2018 James 2:14-17 …“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you?” vs. 14 Martin Luther famously lamented the presence of the book of James in the New Testament and called it an “epistle of straw.” He said this because he believed that it undermined the teachings of Paul, who wrote to the Romans that we are justified by faith apart from the works…
Daily Devotions: September 6, 2018
September 6, 2018 James 2:1-10 …“But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court?” vs. 6 James couldn’t believe what he was seeing in the early Christian community. From his perspective, the leaders were showing a definite preference for the rich. They were the ones who were welcomed effusively and given preferred seating. He had seen first-hand how the poor behaved, they didn’t have fine clothes…
Daily Devotions: September 5, 2018
September 5, 2018 Psalm 146:5-10 …“The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.” vs. 9 While we can find fragments of scripture to support whatever harebrained notions we might choose to hold, when we take the bible as a whole there are certain themes that rise to the top. The psalmist had his finger on one of those underlying principles and wasn’t afraid to let…
Daily Devotions: September 4, 2018
September 4, 2018 Psalm 146:1-4 …“Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.” vss. 3-4 Sometimes it’s interesting to see how people of faith can get caught up in the politics of our time. They will, of course, be voters, that’s one of our responsibilities as citizens. But sometimes they actually seem to believe that one of…
Daily Devotions: September 3, 2018
September 3, 2018 Isaiah 35:4-7a … “then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;” vs. 6 Isaiah hadn’t been reading the latest reports on the long-term effects of climate change–he had something else on his mind. He knew that the people of Judah were frightened and discouraged. Their enemies were very real and their country was on the…