'Children of God' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God…” vss. 15b-16 Romans 8:14-17 Paul was totally dependent on the Holy Spirit for the direction of his mission and for the reformation of his life. On his own, he was driven by old traditions and convictions and totally incapable of doing the things that he desired to do. His desires dominated the direction of each day. But the Holy…
Daily Devotions
And the crowds asked him, ‘What then should we do?’” vs. 10 Luke 3:7-14 When John launched into his tirade about snakes and stones, axes and fires, the crowd was pretty much terrified. They all pretty much took what he said personally and responded much like any of us would have. “What then should we do?” they wanted to know. Any number of situations can spark those words. “What do you want me to do,” we say to an angry…
Daily Devotions
If we receive human testimony, the testimony of God is greater; for this is the testimony of God that he has testified to his Son.” vs. 9 1 John 5:9-10 It is clear from the gospels that the ministry of Jesus was set in motion by his experience of baptism at the hands of John the Baptist. As he came out of the water he heard the testimony of God regarding himself, “You are my Son, the Beloved. With you…
Daily Devotions
John 1:10-14 “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.” vss. 12-13 John the Gospel writer seems to be saying here that people are not the children of God unless they have received Jesus, that only after believing in him do they truly receive the power to…
Daily Devotions
John 1:1-14 “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” vs. 14 There is a sense in which the word “Christmas” is misleading. For example, the word itself could give the impression that Christ was born on Christmas, and that just isn’t the case. John tells us clearly that the Christ brought all things into existence and has been around…
Daily Devotions
Romans 13:11-14 “Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near.” vss. 11-12a It’s hard to believe, but Advent is almost over. Christmas is on the horizon, though it’s shape may be much different than in prior years. It’s interesting how quickly the days of December have passed–even…
Daily Devotions
1 Thessalonians 5:6-11 “Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.” vs. 11 Paul loved the people of Thessalonica and encouraged them to stand firm in faith and not be discouraged by Christ’s failure to return as they had hoped. They weren’t going to miss out on salvation no matter what happened. That assurance was theirs by grace and couldn’t be taken away. Having said that, he goes on to recommend encouragement as a…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 5:6-12 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” vs. 11 As we take time on this All Saints Day to remember all the people with whom we’ve been associated through the years who now rest from their labors, we’re bound to be overwhelmed with a sense of gratefulness and deep gratitude. All of us have been touched in powerful ways by family members, friends,…
Daily Devotions
1 John 3:1-3 “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.” vs. 1 There is a lot of talk about identity in these times. We’ve learned, sometimes painfully, that it’s possible to have our identity stolen, and that we need to have many layers of protection to be safe. But after the available safeguards have been put in place, many wonder about identity in a more…
Daily Devotions: March 18, 2020
March 18, 2020 Ephesians 5:8-10 … “For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light—for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.” vss. 8-9 The writer of Ephesians knew that it was possible for people to lead good, decent lives, and always tell the truth. It was simply a matter of behaving as we are! As Jesus once put it, “You…
Daily Devotions: March 1, 2020
March 1, 2020 Matthew 4:1-11 … “The tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’” vs. 3 Jesus had just experienced an encounter with God that had exploded his mind. He’d come out of the water and seen a dove circling down from the skies—and with the dove came a voice, “You are my Son, my Beloved, with you I am well-pleased.” It was an overwhelming word of…
Daily Devotions: July 12 , 2018
July 12, 2018 Ephesians 1:3-10…“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us.” vss. 7-8a The writer to the Ephesians can scarcely contain himself as he begins his letter to his friends in Ephesus. He has come to an explosive and expansive understanding of God’s grace and love and pours out his amazing conclusions in his introductory paragraph. He believes that the people reading…