Blog (Page 199)
Daily Devotions: February 23, 2019
February 23, 2019 For full passage click: Luke 6:27-31 …“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you… Do to others as you would have them do to you.” vs. 27, 31 In Luke’s Sermon on the Plain, Jesus gives his followers their marching orders in words that we regularly quote but seldom take to heart. It’s just too hard to love enemies and practice the golden rule. It flies in the…
Daily Devotions: February 22, 2019
February 22, 2019 For full passage click: 1 Corinthians 15:42-50 …“What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.” vs. 50 Paul sums up his teaching on resurrection by saying that our physical bodies do not inherit the kingdom of God, a notion that can be disconcerting to those who believe that heaven is populated by people doing eternally the things that brought…
Daily Devotions: February 21, 2019
February 21, 2019 For full passage click: 1 Corinthians 15:35-38 …“And as for what you sow, you do not sow the body that is to be, but a bare seed, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body.” vss. 37-38 The Corinthians had many questions about resurrection for Paul, and sometimes he gets a little testy in his answers. He thinks…
Daily Devotions: February 20, 2019
February 20, 2019 For full passage click: Psalm 37:39-40 …“The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their refuge in the time of trouble.” vs. 39 The psalmist believed that the world contained both wicked and righteous people and it was pretty easy to tell the difference between the two. Most of us have made similar observations. Even though we have theological reasons for saying that all are sinners, in our hearts we agree with the…
Daily Devotions: February 19, 2019
February 19, 2019 For full passage click: Psalm 37:1-11 …“Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him; do not fret over those who prosper in their way, over those who carry out evil devices. Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret—it leads only to evil.” vss. 7-8 The psalmist speaks from experience. He’s likely had a lifetime of walking in the way of the Lord and he’s learned some things about the journey. As we overhear…
Daily Devotions: February 18, 2019
February 18, 2019 For full passage click: Genesis 43:3-11, 15 …“I myself will be surety for him; you can hold me accountable for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever.” vs. 9 Judah and his brothers had contrived to sell their father’s favorite son, Joseph, into slavery. The story of Joseph’s rise to a position of prominence in Egypt is well-known, as is…
Daily Devotions: February 17, 2019
February 17, 2019 To read full passage click: Luke 6:24-26 …“But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” vs. 24 A series of warnings immediately following a list of blessings is not unusual in the Hebrew scriptures. The prophets used that tactic regularly in delivering their oracles. But Luke is the only gospel that has Jesus using this method. In his Sermon on the Plain, Jesus follows his favorable assessment of the poor with cutting…
Daily Devotions: February 16, 2019
February 16, 2019 To read full passage click: Luke 6:20-23 …“Then he looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” vs. 20 The beatitudes that open the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew are well-known to most Christians. There’s a beautiful symmetry in his account of Jesus’ description of his followers and it’s a favorite text for All-Saint’s Day. Luke also makes reference to the beatitudes as he…
Daily Devotions: February 15, 2019
February 15, 2019 To read passage click: Luke 6:17-19 …“They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured.” vs. 18 During his ministry, Jesus functioned both as a teacher and a healer. Luke says that great multitudes of people gathered to hear him speak and to seek healing from various diseases, and he didn’t let them down. They eagerly received his words of insight and wisdom…
Daily Devotions: February 14, 2019
♥ February 14, 2019 For full passage click: 1 Corinthians 15:16-20 …“If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” vs. 17 For Paul, God’s greatest act of love was forgiveness, and he often speaks of Jesus’ death on the cross as the atoning sacrifice that removed our sins. In this passage however, he links forgiveness to resurrection and says that, if Christ had not been raised, we would still be in our…
Daily Devotions: February 13, 2019
February 13, 2019 For full passage click: 1 Corinthians 15:12-15 …“and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain.” vs. 14 Paul had had an encounter with the resurrected Christ. It was the realest thing he had ever experienced and he couldn’t believe that there were some who insisted that there was no such thing as resurrection! When he heard that some such folks were tickling the ears…