Posts from 2021 (Page 31)
Daily Devotions
Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.” vs. 20 Mark 1:19-20 We can’t help but smile a bit as we imagine the scene on the beach outside of Capernaum that day. Zebedee stands with a couple of hired men in the boat, and his boys, the core of the family business, wander off down the beach in pursuit of an itinerant preacher. It’s not a pretty picture!…
Daily Devotions
And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’” vs. 17 Mark 1:16-18 Jesus was on the prowl and looking for disciples as he began his ministry along the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. He had no list of qualifications; no advanced degree or seminary education was necessary. The first people that he chose made their living fishing, and he saw a link to his ministry. They’d been catching fish, now they…
Daily Devotions
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’” Mark 1:14-15 When it comes down to it, the message Jesus had for the Galileans wasn’t much different from that proclaimed by John. “Repent and believe the good news!” It really is pretty basic, and it’s essentially the same message that confronts us when…
Daily Devotions
I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none…For the present form of this world is passing away.” vss. 29, 31b 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 Paul, an unmarried man, had no shortage of advice for the Corinthians about marriage. He admits he’s giving his own opinions, and then goes on to say that it’s far better to be unmarried than married, especially if we’re…
Daily Devotions
Put no confidence in extortion, and set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart on them. vs. 10 Psalm 62:9-12 The psalmist lived under a different economic system than we do. He would not have been familiar with either capitalism or socialism, but he did know the inclinations of the human heart. From the beginning of life in community there have been some who attempted extortion and robbery to get more goods for themselves;…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 62:5-8 “For God alone my soul waits in silence, for my hope is from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.” vss. 5-6 Psalm 62:5-8 We don’t know what was going on in the psalmist’s life–we can only imagine and then guess that his journey was not that different from ours. There are times when words fail us, those moments when the things we hold dear seem to be disintegrating.…
Daily Devotions
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.” vs. 10 Jonah 3:1-5, 10 Jonah was having a tough time with God. He believed that he had been commissioned to announce to the people of Nineveh that their city was about to be destroyed. He hadn’t wanted to deliver the message–after all, who would…
Daily Devotions
“Jesus answered, ‘Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.’” vs. 50 John 1:47-51 From the tone of the text in John’s gospel, we get the impression that Jesus nearly laughed when Nathaniel called him the Son of God and the King of Israel. Granted, Nathaniel had been blown away when Jesus did his David Copperfield imitation, but Jesus tells him greater things are still to…
Daily Devotions
“Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.’” vs. 46 John 1:43-46 Philip didn’t try to argue with Nathanael. It wouldn’t have done any good. As soon as Nathanael had heard where Jesus was from, he had discounted any possibility that Jesus could be the promised messiah. We’re like that in our interactions with new people. We have our own preconceived notions of value and worth, and when people don’t…
Daily Devotions
“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?” vs. 19 1 Corinthians 6: 15-20 Paul was a champion of God’s grace, but he wasn’t the least bit permissive! There was no way that he could condone the visits to prostitutes that were evidently taking place in the congregation at Corinth. In his estimation such a practice was a sin…
Daily Devotions
‘All things are lawful for me,’ but not all things are beneficial. ‘All things are lawful for me,’ but I will not be dominated by anything. vs. 12 1 Corinthians 6:12-14 Paul had asserted that in Christ believers had been set free from the law, and naturally the folks in Corinth had misinterpreted his words. They began doing the things that had been forbidden, particularly in the area of sexuality. The new freedom felt wonderful to them–but when Paul got…
Daily Devotions
“I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well.” vs. 14 Psalm 139:13-18 Whether we’re evolutionists or creationists, when we take time to reflect on the wonders of our existence and the intricacies of our environment, we’re almost bound to join the psalmist in his hymn of praise. We are “fearfully and wonderfully made,” and our bodies have been knit together in a spectacular fashion. When a child is born,…