Abram believed the Lord…
Summary: If we look to the Bible for examples of a good father, what do we find? It turns out the answer to that question is, “Not much.”
Continue reading “Genesis 15: 6 — A Father’s Love”2 Peter 3:2a — The Deadly Pun
I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets …
Summary: What do you think of when you recall the words of the holy prophets? If we turn to Jesus, he makes it easy for us.
Continue reading “2 Peter 3:2a — The Deadly Pun”2 Peter 1:7b — Top of the Mountain
… and to mutual affection, love.
Summary: Peter has taken us up the mountain with him, and in today’s passage, he shows us the peak.
Continue reading “2 Peter 1:7b — Top of the Mountain”1 Peter 3:15 (c) — The Keys to the Heart
But do this with gentleness and respect…
Summary: When we share our story of knowing God with others, we need to do it in a way that communicates both with the mind and the heart. Gentleness and respect both speak to the heart.
Continue reading “1 Peter 3:15 (c) — The Keys to the Heart”1 Peter 3:6 (b) — Displaced Fear
You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
As a kid, one of my favorite things to do was to play in the dirt. If there was water nearby, that was even better. When I was about six years old, there was a small creek that ran through the woods at the end of the road by our house. As an adult, I wouldn’t look twice at this “creek.” It was just a trickle of ditch water that meandered away from the road under the trees. As a kid, though, it was a world unto itself.
In the mind of a six-year-old boy, the woods and the creek took on mythic dimensions. Lit only by the soft green light of the sun filtering through the trees, shadows added another dimension of mystery. Sticks, rocks, and mud all transformed from the mundane into magical building materials. Within the space of an eye blink (time did not exist in this place), the trickle of water had transformed into a lake behind a large dam. There were roads, causeways, canals, and rivers. It was a peaceful and idyllic miniature world — until disaster struck!
Continue reading “1 Peter 3:6 (b) — Displaced Fear”1 Peter 1:22 — Checklist For Love
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart.
So far in these first few words of Peter’s letter to us, he has touched on a number of points:
- We have been chosen by God (v 2)
- God’s Spirit is sanctifying us
- We are to be obedient to Jesus Christ
He continues with more insights into the Christian life:
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:22 — Checklist For Love”1 Peter 1:2 (c) — Pirate Talk
… to be obedient to Jesus Christ …
Just for the record, I don’t claim to know how all this works. Also for the record, I am suspicious of anyone who does claim to know how this works. Jude 1: 8-9 reads:
“In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you!’“
Just as Jude defers to God’s judgment in disputes with the devil, I’m prone to defer to God’s judgment if there is any mystery about something in the Scriptures. What is very clear is Peter’s understanding of why we are chosen.
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:2 (c) — Pirate Talk”A Wonderful Love – John 15: 9
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.
How has the Father loved Jesus? After all, it was the Father who arranged for Jesus to be born a human. It was the Father who sent his son as an emissary to an ungrateful nation. It was the Father who told Jesus he needed to die on the cross. Is that love?
Well… yes. It is the deepest kind of love.
We believe that God and Jesus are one. In some sense, God Himself came down and became part of His creation. That I do not fully understand how this is possible is not important. What is important is that God sees His creation for what it is: Broken and needing redemption.
Some cities have laws that regulate who owns garbage and when. For example, when the garbage goes into the bin, the garbage company technically owns it. Whatever you put in there no longer belongs to you. In a sense that is what happened to humanity. We collectively jumped into the garbage bin of sin and ownership was transferred to “Satan’s Garbage Collection Service.” (Motto – “When we burn trash it burns forever!”) To reclaim His creation from the garbage, God had to pay a terrible price. He had to die on the cross.
How did the Father love Jesus? He resurrected him from the dead. How does Jesus love us? He does the same thing his Father did for him: He resurrects us from the dead. What a wonderful love! What a wonderful place to remain.
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Continue reading “A Wonderful Love – John 15: 9”The Things We Do For Love – John 14: 15
If you love me, keep my commands.
What do you find yourself doing for love? For some that might seem like a funny question. For others, I suspect that doing things “for love” is second nature.
The kind of love Jesus is talking about is “agapaō” in Greek. It is not family love or romantic love. Agapaō is deep respect, a caring, a desire to honor and obey.
Jesus wants us to care about what He wants for us just as He cares for us.
Do we care? Then let’s keep his commands! Now, what was it he wanted us to do?
Hmmm…
Oh, yes, love one another. (John 13: 34)
Continue reading “The Things We Do For Love – John 14: 15”Agapaō – John 13: 1b
Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
The Greek word translated as “loved” in this verse is “agapaō.” Unlike English where we use the word, “love” for a variety of purposes, agapaō has a very specific meaning. The Strong’s Concordance defines this word as, “to love (in a social or moral sense).” This is not a possessive love, or a casual love, or even an emotional love. Agapaō is caring for someone who is not worth caring for. Agapaō is being patient with someone who doesn’t understand what you are trying to tell them. Agapaō is valuing a relationship in spite of the million obstacles that tend to come between people. Differences in opinions, beliefs, moods, wants, needs, and yes, even smell all conspire to frustrate love.
Continue reading “Agapaō – John 13: 1b”