Daily Meditations on the Bible / We stand with Israel
[If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in] the flesh, I have more:
Summary: Understanding Paul’s language sometimes requires that we know Jesus to know what he is talking about.
Here is an interesting fact: To understand the “flesh,” you first have to be in the “spirit.”
What does that mean? Let’s use fish for an example.
Continue reading “Philippians 3:4c – The Flesh”
Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,
Summary: In this passage, Paul challenges us to see things as God sees them.
There is a theme that runs through the Bible that goes something like this:
Continue reading “Philippians 2:3b – Perspective”But when the set time had fully come,
Summary: Our concept of time is something we often take for granted. Most of the time this is a good thing, but there are times when our assumptions become obstacles to understanding.
Continue reading “Galatians 4:4a – God’s Alarm Clock”… always giving thanks to God the Father for everything,
Summary: Being thankful is both an experience and a choice. Paul wants us to learn an important life skill by choosing to be thankful all the time.
Continue reading “Ephesians 5:20a – The Path to Happiness”… if your son asks for a fish …
Summary: God’s view of our wants and needs doesn’t always match our view of our wants and needs.
Continue reading “Luke 11: 11-13 – Knees and Needs”
He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
It is hard to know how to approach the text here. We just blasted through two whole verses with a story about a shepherd who was kidnapped to be a slave four millennia ago. We could have taken a week or more to parse those same two verses. Today’s passage is similar. Today’s verse hangs in the sky as if it were a neon sign. Each word is like a beacon of light that illuminates dozens if not hundreds of passages throughout Scripture.
The “He” Peter refers to is Jesus, of course. Peter referred to the “blood of Christ” in the prior verse.
Jesus, he says, was, “…chosen…”
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:20 — Let’s Agree”