'faith' Tagged Posts (Page 18)
Daily Devotions
Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.” vs. 8 Mark 9:7-9 Most people have a variety of spiritual and religious experiences as they search for a unitary expression of faith, one that will stand the test of time and withstand the doubts that stalk them. There are days that our faith is strong, buttressed by internal certainties rising from what we perceive to be divine encounters. On those days there’s a…
Daily Devotions
Luke 2:22-40 “There was also a prophet, Anna–of a great age… She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer…At that moment she came, and began to speak about the child.” vss. 36-38 When Mary and Jesus brought the baby Jesus to the temple for the rites of purification they were accosted by two elderly prophets, Simeon and Anna, both of whom were temple regulars. Now it’s not unusual for old people to hang around places of…
Daily Devotions
Ephesians 1:15-17 “I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.” vss. 15-16 The reputation of the congregation at Ephesus had spread among the little house churches that sprang up all over the eastern Mediterranean as apostles had proclaimed the good news of Jesus. According to the writer of this letter two…
Daily Devotions
Romans 3:24-28 … “For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law.” vs. 28 Martin Luther spent decades trying to gain assurance of salvation by bringing his stubborn, subversive flesh into line with the works of the law. Since he couldn’t do it he was forever wracked with guilt, and greatly damaged his health in the process. But when in the course of studying the book of Romans he realized that justification…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 14:28-33 … “But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” vs. 30 Our liberal, literal minds are often challenged by the miracle stories in the gospels and we struggle to find satisfactory explanations. Most days we have an easier time with the healings–after all that’s one of the things Jesus did, and many people through history have been known as healers. But walking on water is a…
Daily Devotions: August 6, 2020
August 6, 2020 Romans 10:5-11 … “For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.” vs. 10 Paul contrasts the righteousness that comes from the law with the righteousness that comes from faith in his treatise to the Romans. For him it was an important distinction. He wanted the people to know that justification, being made right with God, was a gift, and not something that was earned through…
Daily Devotions: June 6, 2020
June 6, 2020 Matthew 28:16-17 … “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.” vss. 16-17 Right at the end of his Gospel, after his long account of Jesus’ teaching and ministry, having reported the resurrection and an angel visitation, Matthew says that some of the eleven had doubts. While he doesn’t mention what the doubts were, he does imply that the…
Daily Devotions: May 11, 2020
May 11, 2020 Acts. 17:22-25 … “For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.” vs.23 The people Paul encountered in Athens were proud, sophisticated, and tolerant of a variety of religious views. They had a long history of debate and philosophical conversation and loved to hear scholarly presentations…
Daily Devotions: March 31, 2020
March 31, 2020 Psalm 31:9-16 … “I am the scorn of all my adversaries, a horror to my neighbors, an object of dread to my acquaintances; those who see me in the street flee from me.” vs 11 The Psalmist didn’t know it but his words are a pretty good description of what it’s like to be infected with the Coronavirus. Thankfully that hasn’t happened for many of us but it’s certainly something that we fear. We carefully practice social…
Daily Devotions: January 14, 2020
January 14, 2020 For full passage click: Psalm 40:1-5 … “He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.” vs. 3 Sometimes we underestimate the impact of our testimony in the lives of others. We imagine that our influence is minimal and that people are unaffected by what we say about faith and our relationship to God. Actually, nothing could be further…
Daily Devotions: January 10, 2020
January 10, 2020 For full passage click: Acts 10:39-43 … “All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” vs. 43 The book of Acts gives us a sense of the early Christian message through sermonic vignettes from Peter and Paul. In this one from Peter, we learn that the chief gift available to believers was the forgiveness of sins through the name of Jesus. Most of us have no…
Daily Devotions: December 14, 2019
December 14, 2019 For full passage click: Matthew 11:2-6 … “When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’” vss. 2-3 “Are you the one who is to come?” John wanted to know. He’d heard what Jesus had been doing, and while it didn’t quite accord with what he thought the Messiah would do,…