Evil – Page 9 – Three Minute Bible

August 4, 2020August 5, 2020

1 Peter 2:19 — Pain Gauge

Picture: Detail of old woodcut depicting hell.

For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God.

Peter is going to talk about “unjust suffering” for a while. As he explores this theme, he segues into the topic of wives submitting to their husbands. I’m not saying that there is a connection here, but I suspect that the wives who are reading this might have some special insights on this passage. Anyway, for now, he is content to focus on the general topic of unjust suffering.

July 24, 2020July 24, 2020

1 Peter 2:12 — Smeared

Picture of brown and white and cream colors all confused.

Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

This is another challenging text. Peter is starting a section of his letter that describes how to live among unbelievers. As I think about what he is teaching us, it feels like we are sitting in on a master’s class for Christian living.

In today’s passage, we are talking about neighbors or coworkers who accuse us of doing wrong. (Peter assumes we are innocent!) Has this ever happened to you? It has for me. It can be a terrifying experience. In an instant, everything you thought was solid ground can be swept away.

July 23, 2020July 24, 2020

1 Peter 2:11 (b) — Impressions

Picture of shoe with wad of gum stuck on bottom.

Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires…

…which wage war against your soul.

Today we look at the second half of verse eleven. These six words are profoundly meaningful. As we put on the wedding garment, the righteousness of Christ, we wonder, “Do we have to wear these clothes all the time?” The answer is yes, and these six words explain why.

In this passage, Peter does not warn us against doing sinful things. He has already done that in verse two when he writes, “…be obedient to Jesus Christ ”

July 9, 2020July 9, 2020

1 Peter 2: 2 (a) — In Search of Truth

A picture of a man looking through binoculars.

Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk…

In looking over Peter’s letter, I get the impression that he is giving us a “Cliff Notes” version of the entire New Testament in a few words. I marvel at the consistency of God’s Word. Whether we look through the lens of Luke, Paul, James, or Peter, the message is consistent.

I’ve helped to raise a couple of amazing young men from when they were very tiny babies, but that doesn’t mean that I am an expert on babies. I do know, however, that there are different kinds of babies. The kind of baby that Peter is talking about is “newborn.”

July 8, 2020July 9, 2020

1 Peter 2: 1 — Good Riddance

A picture of three garbage cans and a broom in a back alley.

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.

Today we finish what we started yesterday; the first verse of the second chapter. What are we dealing with here? What is Peter asking us to do? What are malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander? Is there something that they all have in common?

Malice is the desire to do evil. Okay. We can probably agree that we should avoid that. We can also agree that malice is ungodly.

June 21, 2020June 20, 2020

1 Peter 1:11 (c) — Glory

Stained glass window showing face of Jesus in glory.

…and the glories that would follow.

Today’s passage rounds out the thought that Peter is sharing with us in this passage. The prophets of old were hungry to know about God’s plan of salvation. They understood that the Messiah would come. The question was, “When?” They understood he would suffer for our sins. The question was, “How?” They also understood something else: Glory would follow suffering.

When Jesus finally came, the whole world turned against him and cried, “Crucify him!” When the whole world seems to turn against one person, how is there any glory in that for that person? The answer depends on your point of view.

If you are standing with the devil the sight of God’s Son dying on the cross seems like a victory. The glory goes to the victor and Satan appears to have won. But Satan doesn’t win. The victory is fleeting. Like everything else about Satan, this victory is false.

The Author of Life has endured death on the cross for a very specific purpose. He is, as Isaiah prophesied, our redeemer. (Isaiah 47:4) From the perspective of God, the death of Jesus was not a loss, but a gain. Having endured the shame, accusations, torture, abuse, and crucifixion, Jesus rises above it all and draws us to him. Jesus has accomplished the will of his Father. (John 19:30) That is glory. Everyone redeemed by Jesus knows what he has done. That is glory. When Satan himself is thrown into the lake of fire, he, too, will know that Jesus is King. That is glory.

Each victory over Satan, no matter how small, brings glory to our King. The “glories that would follow” include your victory over sin and mine. Praise God!

Application: Think about how far you have come and where you would be if it were not for Jesus. Then give glory to our God.

Food for Thought: What other thoughts do you have about glory?

Please click ‘’Continue Reading” for comments.

June 17, 2020June 17, 2020

1 Peter 1:9 — Random Thoughts

Hundreds of small multi-colored cubes floating against a black background.

… for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

So what is the point of having faith in Jesus? Why would anyone want to believe in someone that they cannot see? Well, the answer it turns out has to do with something else we cannot see; the salvation of our souls.

Two days ago, in the post, “Testimony,” I shared the short version of how I came to believe in Jesus. Along the way, I had to come to believe in “all things visible and invisible” as it says in the Nicene Creed. One thing I firmly believe in is the existence of my soul. If I were no more than a stalk of celery or a blade of grass I wouldn’t care what happens to me. But I do care. I care a lot. And the fact that we care about what happens to us sets you and me apart from almost everything else in Creation.

June 11, 2020June 12, 2020

1 Peter 1: 3-4 (a) — Born Again

A newborn's feet stick out of a warm blanket.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.

It was night. We presume it was dark. The year was somewhere around 33 or 34 AD. What passed for streetlights were torches or fire-pots, and now and then stray lamp light escaping from a window.

A man of advancing age wearing the robes of a professional educator makes his way down one alley after another. Finally, he reaches his goal, a door of rough wood in a seedy part of town. He knocks and after it opens exchanges a few words. He enters. His name is Nicodemus. The person he has come to see is a man named Jesus.

May 28, 2020May 29, 2020

Jude 1: 25b — Saved

… our Savior …

As we continue with Jude’s doxology, we follow him from praising God for what he does for us (keeping us from stumbling and presenting us without fault) to describing the attributes of God. The first attribute is that He is the only God. There is no other God. He does not have any competition.

Today we turn to his most important work; the saving of his creation.

May 24, 2020May 24, 2020

Jude 1: 23c — Corrupted Clothes

A rack of shirts and jackets at a men's clothing store.

—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

As we continue to parse Jude’s closing thoughts, we run into this interesting phrase, “ — hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.” Whose clothing is Jude talking about? Yours? Mine? His?

The answer, it seems, is “all the above.” Peter references this idea in his second letter when he writes, “This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority.” (2 Peter 2: 10)