'salvation' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
Isaiah 51:4-6…“Listen to me, my people, and give heed to me, my nation; for a teaching will go out from me, and my justice for a light to the peoples.” vs. 4 The prophet knew that, even though the people were living in captivity, Israel had a purpose that went beyond the present circumstances. Some day a teaching would go forth that would transform the world, and God’s justice would be a light to the nations. And whatever we might…
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 10:11-15…“But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him?” vs. 14 Paul knew that God made no distinctions and that the gift of salvation was for all people. No one was excluded! The problem was that not everyone knew Jesus and they’d never been told about the resurrection. If…
Daily Devotions
Romans 10:5-10…“because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” vs. 9 Paul was dealing with people who believed that righteousness came through obedience to the Law. But Paul taught that righteousness came through faith, that there were no heroic actions required to win God’s favor. Rather, he taught, righteousness came through confession of Jesus as Lord and belief in his resurrection.…
Daily Devotions
Isaiah 55:1-5…“Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” vs. 1 It’s hard to believe but our scriptures consistently teach that all the best things about life in this world are available to us free of charge. Nowhere are we told that it is a good thing to store up riches for ourselves and build our retirement portfolios. As the…
Daily Devotions
Romans 7:21-25a…“Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” vss. 24-25a Paul had concluded that there was absolutely nothing that he could do to help himself. No matter how hard he tried, no matter what kind of self-talk he used, no matter how many self-help books he read, there was no way he could escape his addiction to sin. It was impossible! And after a…
Daily Devotions
Romans 5:6-8…“But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” vs. 8 Some folks struggle with the meaning of the cross, especially as it relates to a satisfaction theory of the atonement. We can’t get our heads around the notion that the death of one person could atone for the sins of all humanity. And that’s okay! All those theories were developed by early Christians as they tried to make sense…
Daily Devotions
1 Peter 3:18-22…“He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison…” vss. 18b-19a It’s not easy to know what Peter was referring to as he wrote to the suffering exiles in Asia Minor. He was obviously familiar with the basic message of the early church, that Jesus had suffered on the cross as a sacrifice for the sins of all the…
Daily Devotions
1 Peter 2:22-25…“For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.” vs. 25 According to the gospel of John the resurrected Jesus had told Peter three times, in a touching scene of love and restoration by the Sea of Galilee, to feed and care for his sheep. And three times Peter responds with a passionate “yes.” And that’s what Peter did! As he writes he tells his readers that,…
Daily Devotions
1 Peter 1:21-23…“Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart.” vs. 22 When the Christian community was established in Jerusalem after the resurrection of Jesus they were known for the deep love that they had for one another. And when missionaries like Paul brought the good news of Jesus to distant lands, that same characteristic was observed. Peter refers to that…