… if …
Summary: A short little word can mean a lot, especially when used as a condition for Christ’s redemption.
Continue reading “Colossians 1:23a – IF”Colossians 1:14 – The Key to Heaven
… in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Summary: Saving us from hell turns out to be a complicated business. Some we may never understand. What we do know suggests that the cost of our salvation is very high.
Continue reading “Colossians 1:14 – The Key to Heaven”Colossians 1:5b-6a – The Devil and the Details
… and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you.
Summary: Paul has a lot to say about the Gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. Sometimes it is hard to sort out the gift from the wrapping paper.
Continue reading “Colossians 1:5b-6a – The Devil and the Details”Ephesians 4:24a – Programmed for Life
… and to put on the new self,
Summary: Using a computer for a modern metaphor for a spiritual concept is helpful. We operate in a similar way. The one major difference is that unlike the computer, we get to choose our “programming.”
Continue reading “Ephesians 4:24a – Programmed for Life”2 Peter 1:3c — The Day Everything Changed
… through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
Summary: Peter reminds us that the reason for Jesus to be born as a human here on earth was to establish a new covenant that replaced the old.
Continue reading “2 Peter 1:3c — The Day Everything Changed”1 Peter 2:24 (c) — The Back Side of the Page
…“by his wounds you have been healed.”
As we work our way through Peter’s letter, I find myself marveling at how much information Peter was able to pack into a few words. I also admire how well it correlates with the rest of the Bible. In a way, it is as if Peter has handed us a key to understanding the rest of Scripture.
In “Innocence Found” (1 Peter 2:24 (a)), we explored a thought experiment that ended with a close-up view of Jesus on the cross. To say that we have been healed by Jesus’ wounds is, at the very least, thought-provoking. How does that work? We know what kind of wounds Jesus suffered for our sake, but what kind of wound were we healed from?
Continue reading “1 Peter 2:24 (c) — The Back Side of the Page”1 Peter 1:12 (b) — Beyond Measure
Even angels long to look into these things.
Every once in awhile a verse seems to jump out of the Bible at me. This is one of those verses.
Peter is telling us about salvation. Broadly speaking “salvation” in this case refers to several things. It begins with God’s plan for redeeming His creation. Remember the story in Genesis where God says, “… you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die”? (Genesis 2: 16-17)
Interestingly, the current version of the NIV is in the minority here. Thirty-eight of fifty-two translations available at Biblegateway.com use some version of “day,” as in “… in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (ESV) As I understand the text, when Adam and Eve eat the forbidden fruit in Genesis 3, God’s word holds true. They “die” from God’s point of view.
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:12 (b) — Beyond Measure”1 Peter 1:9 — Random Thoughts
… 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.
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:9 — Random Thoughts”