Today’s passage: 1 John 3:4–5 Focus verse: But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. (1 John 3:5) John reminds us that anyone who sins breaks the law. He’s talking about the law of Moses. Sin is something we all do. We’re all guilty of breaking God’s law. The Old Testament […]
Discover How We Can Best Show the Almighty How Much We Love Him The word worship occurs hundreds of times in the Bible. We know we’re supposed to worship God, but what does this mean? How can we best worship our Almighty Lord? Here are some considerations: Worship Service Many churches call their Sunday morning […]
Confusing Messaging I’m excited about visiting the last church on our list—or at least the final church we intend to visit. Our plans could change, and with God, they often do. I’m not sure if this church is charismatic or evangelical. An Independent Charismatic Fellowship Unlike last week, this church’s website provides a lot of […]
Psalm 167 from Beyond Psalm 150 Second Samuel 22 looks back at one of the times when God delivered David from King Saul’s attempt to kill him. If this scenario sounds familiar and this passage from 2 Samuel looks just like a Psalm, you are correct. This song of praise from 2 Samuel 22 is quite similar to […]
Respond with Moderation In one of the Bible’s more horrific stories, Jacob’s daughter, Dinah, is taken by force and raped by the outsider, Shechem. When Jacob hears of this he does nothing. Perhaps he fears for his life should he complain or maybe it’s because all his boys are in the fields tending their livestock […]
Today’s passage: 1 John 3:1–3 Focus verse: See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! (1 John 3:1) The Bible says that Jesus is God’s one and only Son (John 3:16–18 and 1 John 4:9). However, God also calls us his children. How can we be God’s children […]
Discover Why God Should Inspire Our Awe The word awesome is overused today, so much so that it’s almost cliché. When most people say awesome, what they mean is outstanding or really good. Yet slang aside, the primary definition of awesome is to inspire awe. Given this, in the strictest sense, only God is awesome. […]
Retired and Welcoming This church has an innocuous name, giving no clue about who they are. But this is precisely why I didn’t dismiss it or the people who go there. Besides judging churches by their affiliation—or more precisely applauding their lack of a denominational connection—I realize I’ve also begun judging churches by their websites. […]
Psalm 166 from Beyond Psalm 150 After God tells David—through Nathan—that he is not the one to build God’s temple, David collects materials for its future construction. In addition to his own resources, other leaders also give willingly toward the temple’s construction. In this the people and David rejoice. Here’s what David says. You are […]
Abraham Takes Lot with Him In the Bible, God told Abram (later called Abraham) to go to a new place. As he went, Abram was to leave behind his country, friends, and family. So Abram left, taking with him his nephew Lot. Abram obeyed the part about going but didn’t fully comply with the part […]