Posts by Rev. Steve Holm (Page 17)
Daily Devotions
I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the Lord.” vs. 17 Psalm 118:17-19 The psalmist had feared that his end was near. We don’t know what kind of crisis he had been caught up in. The context points to a military victory over a longtime enemy, but it could also have been some dread illness, or just one of the many challenges that are faced in the process of aging. At any rate, the prospect…
Daily Devotions
The Lord is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation.” vs. 14 Psalm 118:14-16 It’s fitting that a psalm of praise and triumph be assigned to this week following Easter, our great festival of life and resurrection. The psalmist, writing in celebration, loudly proclaims his trust in the Lord. Because of that strong faith he has come to see the Lord as his strength and his might, the source of his salvation. Typically we become conscious of that confidence…
Daily Devotions
But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority.’” vs. 29 Acts 5:27-32 After initial disbelief, Luke reports that Peter and the other disciples, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, began to proclaim the resurrection boldly throughout Jerusalem. Unafraid of anything, they even preached in the temple precincts and incurred the wrath of those who had so recently killed Jesus. It was a difficult choice but they were compelled to obey God…
Daily Devotions
Then they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest.” vss. 8-9 Luke 24:8-12 Luke reports that when the women arrived at the tomb of Jesus with their spices for anointing his body, they found it empty, and were baffled. Then in a scene reminiscent of the transfiguration, two men in dazzling garments joined them and announced that Jesus had been raised from the dead. After a moment…
Daily Devotions
The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.’” v. 5 Luke 24:1-6 In many cultures when death occurs, it’s the women who seem to know what to do. While men lament the loss, the women take charge of the body and get things ready for burial or cremation. Such was the case when Jesus…
Daily Devotions
When Jesus had received the wine, he said, ‘It is finished.’ Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” vs. 19:30 John 18-19 New Testament scholars have examined the differences between the gospel of John and the three other gospels at length. Some of those differences are most apparent in the descriptions of Jesus’ death and resurrection. John’s account is written in a unique style and contains details not found in the other gospels. While it’s fruitless to…
Daily Devotions
So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.” vss. 14-15 John 13:1-12, 31b-35 As is typical of John’s gospel, Peter and the other disciples didn’t quite understand what Jesus was doing when he washed their feet at the Passover meal. So when he had finished he explained what he had done,…
Daily Devotions
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us…” vs. 1 Hebrews 12:1-3 The writer to the Hebrews couldn’t help but admire the faithfulness of the great company of saints who had come before him. In his book they were nothing less than remarkable and he found their courage inspiring.…
Daily Devotions
Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my strength is spent.” vs. 9 Psalm 71:1-14 We should not be surprised to see a psalm written by an old person who is not feeling particularly good about having moved into the “golden” years. After all, old people have been around for a long time and pretty much all of them have the same laments about their declining strength and loss of status.…
Daily Devotions
He will not cry or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.” vss. 2-3 Isaiah 42:1-9 While Isaiah was not speaking of Jesus, he did provide a template for his ministry. There is little doubt that as Jesus began his work in Galilee he saw himself in the description of the Servant. When he…
Daily Devotions
But all his acquaintances, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.” vs.49 Luke 24:26-49 As the afternoon drew to a close on that fateful Friday, Jesus cried out, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit,” and breathed his last. The chief priests and the scribes lifted up the hems of their robes with thanksgiving and went home rejoicing at the death of their enemy. The repentant thief wondered and waited,…
Daily Devotions
A third time he said to them, ‘Why, what evil has he done? I have found in him no ground for the sentence of death; I will therefore have him flogged and then release him.’” vs. 23 Luke 24:1-25 The gospels present the trial of Jesus as being a complete miscarriage of justice. The charges presented by the religious leaders were misrepresentations of his words and actions and some were outright lies. Neither Herod or Pilate were convinced of his…