…and it has made all the difference! In John 20, the other apostles told Thomas, “We have seen the Lord!” In 2 Corinthians 3-4, Paul says that the ability to see God (through Jesus Christ) is one of the advantages of new covenant ministry. The ministry of the Spirit is a ministry of God’s unveiled …
Category Archives: Christian living
Yield [Romans 6]
“Do not render your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but render yourselves to God as those alive from the dead and your members to God as instruments of righteousness.” (Rom. 6:13). How shall we translate the little Greek word paristemi? The KJV uses yield; the NET translates present; the NIV uses offer. The …
When I Don’t Understand
The Bible is indeed Good News! The Bible is good news for the world, the Bible is good news for Christians. Every good and perfect gift is from God. This text from James says God is the giver of all good gifts. God is the giver of all we need. In Matthew 7, we find …
Noah’s Ark–Top Eleven List
With apologies to Robert Fulghrum: Everything I need to know, I learned from comtemplating Noah’s Ark. 11. When God is part of your plans, there’s always a rainbow waiting. 10. The Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals. 9. When you’re stressed, float awhile. 8. Speed isn’t everything. Both the snails and the …
Bull’s Eye
We saw an unusual sight yesterday morning. In the eastern sky, a perfect circle rainbow framing the sun. Some mornings I greet the dawn without really seeing much–I mean that not much registers. How easily one misses the beauty of God’s creation. How easily we take for granted the rising and setting of the sun–and many other aspects …
Too Conservative
I like to read sermon titles. Some are catchy, some are just plain weird. Sometimes one can tell what the sermon is about, some keep the sermon content a mystery. This sermon title caught my eye: “Too Conservative.” The text was Ecclesiastes 11:4. “Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will …
A Word In Season
“…a word in season, how good it is!” (Proverbs 15:23) “The second year I was married, my husband opened an envelope and then looked over at me. His brow was furrowed and his mouth a little awry as he said, ‘Maxine, this is April. My birthday’s in July.’ ‘I know,’ I replied, ‘but I saw this …
Before the sun set last night….
I get to spend far too much time in my car. Sometimes I listen to tapes or CDs, more often I pray and meditate. On longer trips in moments of extreme boredom, sometimes I see if I can find a Christian radio station. I heard a song a few years ago that was new to me. …
Walking in the “Faith Dimension”
We too easily, too casually, define faith. The definition slips from our lips almost unthinkingly. Who cannot quote Hebrews 11:1? But what is the nature of faith? We are not called to have faith in faith; how does one believe in/through faith? Faith is in Jesus Christ. How can we live faithfully? Faithful living is …
Accountable for What?
Peter several times mentions the problem of forgetting and the need for reminders (2 Pet. 1:9,12-15; 2:20-21; 3:1,5,8). Because we are prone to forget, we need reminders. There is too little “review” in the typical church. In the academic world, students review so they can pass a test. In many occupations, professional journals provide reviews …