'love' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel. He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances. Praise the Lord!” vss. 19-20 Psalm 147:12-20 The psalmist believed that Israel was uniquely privileged among all the nations of the world. They were the only nation to whom God had revealed the statutes and ordinances which had given them definition. Of all the peoples on the face of the earth they were…
Daily Devotions
And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” vs. 45 Luke 1:43-45 Elizabeth not only rejoices in Mary’s visit and the leaping of the child in her womb, she pronounces a blessing upon Mary. Because, not only had Mary heard the word of the Lord, she had believed it! Luke’s point has implications for us too. Almost all have heard the good news of the gospel in…
Daily Devotions
O LORD God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers? You have fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in full measure.” vss. 4-5 Psalm 80:4-7 It’s not unusual to hear people complain about God. Many cannot understand how a good God could have created a world in which so many ugly things are going on, seemingly without end. We’ve heard those promises about a peaceable kingdom and restoration,…
Daily Devotions
But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.” vs. 2 Micah 5:2-3 Micah lived near Jerusalem during the time Judah was being threatened by the massive Assyrian Empire. Their armies had already ravaged the northern kingdom of Israel and thousands of refugees had fled south. As a prophet Micah not…
Daily Devotions
Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!” vs. 14 Zephaniah 3:14-16 It’s likely that Zephaniah was active as a prophet during the reforms of Josiah, one of the few strong and moral kings of Judah. He began his ministry by calling for an end to corruption within the priestly hierarchy and was evidently thrilled when leaders paid attention to him. As far as he was concerned the reformation was…
Daily Devotions
I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now.” vss. 3-5 Philippians 1:3-7 Because many of us have been a part of a faith community since infancy, we often don’t realize what a blessing such a membership brings. Paul had come out of a tight-knit Jewish background but when he began his spirit-directed…
Daily Devotions
He has raised up a mighty savior for us in the house of his servant David… that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.” vss. 69, 71 Luke 1:68-75 Zechariah’s song of praise, as recounted by Luke, reflects the conviction of early disciples that the ministry of John the Baptizer was no accident of history, but was indicative of God’s continued care for the descendants of Abraham. The Jews had had…
Daily Devotions
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” vss. 5b-6 Psalm 93 This psalm is known as an enthronement psalm, a hymn that was sung as part of the temple worship at one of the fall festivals to give glory to God as the Sovereign King. We know from scripture…
Daily Devotions
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” vss. 5b-6 Revelation 1:4b-8 While it’s unlikely that the writer of Revelation was the apostle John, it did come from a church leader bearing that name and living in the mid to late first century at a time of intense persecution. The…
Daily Devotions
Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the LORD, ‘You are my Lord;I have no good apart from you.’” vss. 1-2 Psalm 16:1-6 There are times in life when it’s good to just take stock of who we are, and perhaps more importantly, whose we are. The psalmist is doing just that. There doesn’t seem to be any particular crisis and he’s not pleading with the Lord to do an intervention. In fact, he’s…
Daily Devotions
He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums.” vs. 41 Mark 12:41-44 It’s fascinating to read in Mark that while he was in Jerusalem Jesus took time away from his teaching to sit down by the treasury and watch people give. He knew that there is no better way to gauge what is in a person’s heart than to observe their giving habits. That’s one of…
Daily Devotions
But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself.” vs. 26b Hebrews 9:28-29 In this section of Hebrews, the writer is taking pains to convince his Jewish readers that in Christ the old sacrificial system has been replaced. This was an important message, particularly since the temple, the place of sacrifice, had been destroyed by the Roman armies. While not all Jews were willing to…