'grace' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
Philippians 3:8-14..“Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” vss. 13-14 Paul knew that no matter how much he had accomplished, he wasn’t yet what he one day would be. It wasn’t that he lacked perfection and somehow had to clean…
Daily Devotions
Philippians 3:4b-11..“Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ.” vs. 7 Paul had impressive credentials. Not only was he a proud member of the tribe of Benjamin, he had the best education possible for an up and coming religious leader. He was a member of the Pharisees, the strictest branch of Judaism, and he’d made a name for himself by hunting down and terrorizing Christians. His zeal was unmatched! But a chance…
Daily Devotions
Ezekiel 18:25-32… “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, all of you according to your ways, says the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin.” vs. 30 The prophet was speaking to the house of Israel, the nation that had come out of the wilderness and settled in the land of Canaan. What they were doing as individuals was not his primary concern. When he calls them to repentance he…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 20:10-16… “But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you.’” vss. 13-14 The laborers in the vineyard had not been treated unfairly. The owner had paid them the usual daily wage, exactly what had been agreed upon when they started working. They…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 145:1-8…“The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” vs. 8 As we read through the Hebrew scriptures it is stunning to note how often the theme of God’s grace and mercy shows up. It seems that the psalmists and prophets never tired of reminding people that the Lord was slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. And from what we read about Jesus in the gospels it’s obvious that he had absorbed…
Daily Devotions
Jonah 4:5-11…“Then the LORD said, ‘You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night.’” vs. 9 The truth came out in the end. Jonah didn’t really care about the people of Ninevah, what he got angry about was the death of the bush which had been giving him shade from the sun! And the Lord knew it! This story…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 18:28-35…“But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’” vs. 28 When we read this parable about forgiveness that Jesus told we can’t help but be appalled at the behavior of the slave who had been forgiven all of his debt. Evidently his heart had been completely untouched by this incredible act of mercy that…
Daily Devotions
Romans 11:30-32…“For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.” vs. 32 While Paul is to be cherished and admired for his remarkable apostolic ministry, we can’t help but wish that his writings were easier to understand. Sometimes we have particular difficulty as he explains his insights on God’s relationship to the Jews. He obviously cared deeply about his people, and wanted to clarify their place in salvation history. The problem is that the…
Daily Devotions
Romans 11:1-2a…“God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew…for the gifts and thecalling of God are irrevocable. Because Paul was skilled in the debating style of his time, and used arguments that can seem convoluted to us, it’s not always easy to figure out his logic. Sometimes the words spin in our brains, and we wonder about his point. It’s no wonder then that some just skip over the difficult passages in his letters, and that’s okay. Our salvation…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 67:1-3…“May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations.” vss. 1-2 In many faith communities the Aaronic Benediction from the book of Numbers is pronounced by the pastor at the close of worship. It’s a blessing for the people as they leave the sanctuary and go out into their mission field. But here, presumably as a…
Daily Devotions
Romans 9:1-2…“I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience confirms it by the Holy Spirit—I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.” vss. 1-2 After speaking of the incredible love of God in Christ Jesus, Paul’s tone shifts as he continues his letter to the Romans. He knows that large numbers of Jews are refusing to acknowledge Jesus as the messiah and their rejection is causing him extreme anguish–his heart is aching for his…
Daily Devotions
Romans 8:31-39…“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” vss. 38-39 Paul holds nothing back as he outlines the unimaginable extent of God’s power and love. We can almost hear him shouting, “Do you hear me people? There is nothing,…