1 Corinthians 6:9-11
Who inherits the Kingdom of God? Not thieves, nor swindlers, slanderers nor the sexually immoral, not sinners of any kind. These shall not -indeed, cannot- enter the Kingdom of God. This is a problem, because in one way or another, according to the Bible I’m guilty, and so are you. One of the reasons these […]
Measure of Hearing
Ever feel like you’re not “getting anything” out of sermons/messages? Ever feel like you’re not being “filled” at church? “And He said to them, ‘Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you.” -Mark 4:24 I am struck that […]
Wineskins
Which is better, old or new? “Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the skins burst and the wine is spilled and the skins are destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.” -Matthew 9:17 How easy it is in our “newer-is-better” consumer culture to […]
Faithfulness
In 2 Chronicles 24, Jehoida the priest serves God faithfully, lives 130 years, and is buried with the great honor in the royal cemetery, “among the kings.” Joash the king, by contrast, starts strong but finishes poorly, abandoning his once-faithful worship of Yahweh to worship pagan gods instead. The result? He is assassinated by his […]
Scripture Notes: Psalm 27
Fear in relationships comes from a lack of trust in the other. Fear in life comes from a lack of trust in its author. “The Lord is my light and my salvation – so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?” -Psalm 27:1 […]
Justice and Love: Psalm 7
“I will thank the Lord because He is just; I will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high.” -Psalm 7:17 Meditating on this passage recently, here are a few thoughts that came to mind. – Love without choice is not love, but slavery. Choice without consequences is not choice, but an illusion. […]
Scripture Notes: Numbers 7
“Be at peace, O my soul, with the blessings the Lord HAS given you, and do not fret about the ones He hasn’t yet…”
Faith and Trust
I am struck by the way the New Living Translation renders Numbers 20:12… “Because you did not trust me enough to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel…” Somehow in the midst of crisis, Moses and Aaron’s response was to use God’s PRINCIPLES, but neglect His POWER. They took what He said, but applied […]
Just Right for You
God is not in the business of just generic, one-size-fits-all blessings. “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.” -Genesis 2:18 (NLT) What strikes me here is that God’s provision for Adam isn’t generic, it’s personal. God knows his child personally and […]
