Daily Devotions by Steve Holm (Page 69)
Daily Devotions
But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.” vs. 35 Luke 6:31-36 Jesus could say radical, eye-brow raising things to his disciples because he knew God’s heart. Most people, then and now, believe that God keeps track of wrong-doing and wreaks vengeance on the ungrateful and the wicked. Somehow, we’ve gotten the…
Daily Devotions
But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” vss. 27-28 Luke 6:27-31 Those who heard Jesus preach remembered his radical words, and Luke took pains to include them in his gospel. Later followers of Jesus took these words to heart and they became the identifying mark of the kingdom. This is how Jesus expected his disciples to treat others, and…
Daily Devotions
When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’” vs. 54 1 Corinthians 15:42-56 When death comes to a person of faith, and a funeral is held, there will always be some expressions of grief. That’s to be expected when a loved one dies–they’re going to be missed, so of course there are tears. But there will also be…
Daily Devotions
‘But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” Fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.’” vss. 35-36 1 Corinthians 15:35-38 Among those who believe that there is life beyond death, there is sometimes curiosity about the nature of that new life. People wonder whether their loved ones can see them, some even consult mediums in hopes of making a connection. Often they find reassurance from the…
Daily Devotions
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 Psalm 37:7-11,39-40 It’s obvious to most of us that there are some pretty rotten people in our world, some of whom the psalmist would have called wicked. They are preoccupied with power and greed and will do anything…
Daily Devotions
Trust in the Lord, and do good; so you will live in the land, and enjoy security. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” vss. 3-4 Psalm 37:1-6 As a teacher the psalmist has a sense of how life ought to be lived now that Israel had a land of its own and was no longer known as a wandering people. They could plant vineyards and raise olives on the land and…
Daily Devotions
Then Judah said to his father Israel, ‘Send the boy with me, and let us be on our way, so that we may live and not die—you and we and also our little ones. I myself will be surety for him; you can hold me accountable for him.’” vss. 8-9a Genesis 43:3-11, 15 The ancestral stories we find recounted in the last half of Genesis are entertaining, but none of them are particularly uplifting. Each of the families portrayed…
Daily Devotions
Then he looked up at his disciples and said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled.’” vss. 20-21b Luke 6:20-26 As Luke recounts Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain we hear echoes of Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount, with one major difference. In Matthew Jesus’ words are directed to souls, e.g. blessed are the poor in spirit, while in Luke they are aimed…
Daily Devotions
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 Luke 6:17-19 According to Luke there was no great mystery about the crowds that followed Jesus throughout Galilee. He was a teacher, a healer, and an exorcist, and in an age with few doctors and no hospitals, people were desperate for relief of every kind. In this instance a huge multitude gathers in a level…
Daily Devotions
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” vs. 19 1 Corinthians 15:15-20 Some of us grew up believing that the whole point of having faith in Jesus was to insure that we would have eternal life when we die. There was great joy when, on their deathbeds, people would accept Jesus as their personal savior and receive the assurance of new life with him in heaven. When such…
Daily Devotions
Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead?” vs. 12 1 Corinthians 15:12-14 As part of his proclamation in the early congregations Paul regularly spoke of his personal encounter with the Risen Christ. In that transformative moment he was called to become an apostle and to stop persecuting Christians. So when he ran into believers who claimed that there was no resurrection of the dead…
Daily Devotions
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” vs. 5-6 Psalm 1 When the Pharisees that Jesus encountered made distinctions between the sinners and the righteous, and encouraged strict separation, they weren’t just making stuff up. Those ideas had been around for a long time and were even embedded in their holy scriptures.…