Daily Meditations on the Bible / We stand with Israel
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
Summary: Once again Paul points us to our central mission as believers: Showing God’s love to others.
Continue reading “Galatians 6:10 – Selfless Love”… since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven,
Summary: Living in a broken and sinful world seems like an insurmountable challenge. Yet, we all have to face our Maker and our Master at some point.
Continue reading “Ephesians 6:9b – The Master”Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.
Summary: Why be nice to our boss if the boss isn’t nice to us? The answer has to do with our relationship with our God.
Continue reading “Ephesians 6:6 – God and Me”So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers …
Summary: The one thing all of the people Paul mentions have in common is leadership. Leaders, regardless of their specialty, share certain traits. Our meditation today is all about leadership.
Continue reading “Ephesians 4:11 – Roadmap to Success”I became a servant of this gospel …
Summary: Being a servant is not a glorious occupation. In fact, it can be downright degrading and physically painful. Yet, being in the service of the gospel is serving the Lord, and isn’t that what we really need to be about?
Continue reading “Ephesians 3:7a (II) – Serving the Lord”Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister …?
Summary: Being forgiven is a great gift, but one that we don’t always appreciate as we should.
Continue reading “Matthew 18:21 – A Clean Slate”
“A servant…”
Summary: The word “servant” is a word that is looked down on by the worldly, and loved deeply by the godly. One word, two very different meanings.
Continue reading “2 Peter 1:1b — Icky or Loved?”
It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven.
What sets a prophet apart is being called by God to be a messenger of God’s Word. I am capitalizing “Word” because these messages are holy. Mundane or spectacular, the Word from God is special. But never forget, prophets are people, too. They are not Superman. They have feelings like you and me.
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:12 (a) — Whom do you serve?”
Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
Yesterday’s post looked at the ultimate long life: Eternity. The challenge is that to keep eternal life we must give up our love for this life in the world. Jesus follows that statement with today’s instruction: The one who serves Jesus will follow Him and be with Him. Always.
This puts me in mind of the story in Matthew 19 about the rich man. Jesus tells him that to be “perfect” he needs to sell everything, give to the poor, and follow him. The rich man goes away sad, and the disciples, knowing that we all have “riches” of some sort, ask; “Who then can be saved?” I love the answer that Jesus gives them:
“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Continue reading “Servant Possibilities – John 12: 26”