'Holy Spirit' Tagged Posts (Page 4)
Daily Devotions
So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him, saying, ‘Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?’” vss. 2-3 Acts 11:1-10 When the disciples received their commission to go with the gospel and proclaim the good news of Jesus they did not know what the Holy Spirit had in mind for them. They never dreamed that the traditions and customs of Judaism that were so dear to their hearts were going to be…
Daily Devotions
That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the lake.” vs. 7 John 21:1-8 Chapter 21 appears to be a kind of an epilogue that was added to the gospel of John sometime after it was completed. It consists of an account of another resurrection appearance by Jesus, this time in Galilee, and could have…
Daily Devotions
And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” vs. 5 Revelation 22:1-5 Occasionally people will fall into an illness which brings them to the brink of death. Doctors will advise family and friends that there is nothing more that can be done, that their loved one is in a coma from which there is likely no return. And…
Daily Devotions
Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” vss. 21-22 John 20:19-24 Each of the gospel writers chooses a different way of describing what we call the Great Commission. John tells his readers that it happened immediately after Jesus appeared to the disciples in Jerusalem after his resurrection. Two things are involved:…
Daily Devotions
Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name.” vss. 3-4 Psalm 63 In recent years the writers of praise songs have discovered the richness of the psalms and have used their lyrics in hundreds of their hymns. These two verses from Psalm 63 make up the entirety of the praise song, Thy Loving Kindness, and…
Daily Devotions
If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” vs. 1 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 Paul concluded his lesson on spiritual gifts for the Corinthians by introducing what he called “a more excellent way,” the passage we have come to know as the “Love Chapter” of the bible. He begins with a critique of the practice that had begun to divide the congregation. Some in…
Daily Devotions
And Nehemiah…and Ezra the priest and scribe,… said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.” vs. 9 Nehemiah 8:8-10 When the words of the long-forgotten law were read to the Jews of Jerusalem their initial reaction was one of deep sadness—and they began to weep. We can only guess that their sadness came with the recognition…
Daily Devotions
To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” vs. 7 1 Corinthians 11:7-11 From the beginning it has been enormously difficult for humans to recognize that life is communal, particularly when the culture has been taken captive by the curse of individualism. Some actually begin to believe that everything is up to them, and that any talk of the common good is misguided. Our spiritual ancestors would have found such notions ridiculous. For them it…
Daily Devotions
Because you are precious in my sight, and honored, and I love you, I give people in return for you, nations in exchange for your life.” vs. 4 Isaiah 43:4-7 Even though the people of Israel had regularly engaged in idolatry and their kings had been inept, in their captivity the prophet brought them words of encouragement and hope. In their brokenness he tells them they are precious in the sight of the Lord and that they are loved. That…
Daily Devotions
He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God,” vss. 11-12 John 1:10-14 Sometimes we wonder why people are reluctant to acknowledge Jesus as the Incarnate Word of God, particularly when those persons are members of our own families. Yet that’s how it is—and that’s how it’s been from the moment that Jesus began his…
Daily Devotions
In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit;” vs. 13 Ephesians 1:11-14 Paul recognized that as people came to faith in Christ there would be a two step process. First they would hear the word of truth, what he called the gospel of salvation. And then, having heard, they would respond by believing; they would trust…
Daily Devotions
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love.” vss. 3-4 Ephesians 1:3-10 Early Christians continued to use the language of election to describe their relationship to God, but now, instead of linking it to Abraham, as the Jews had done, they…