We will examine Jesus’ guidance to the disciples regarding the gift of The Spirit. For the disciple, a purposeful life is a Spirit-filled life. We will consider the role of The Spirit in our lives and ways this passage can serve as a guide for reflection on our discipleship. (Scripture: John 14:15-17)

Scripture: 1 Peter 4:7-11

Religious people with wealth and power have often fallen into the trap of believing they could exploit the poor and vulnerable for their own profit, while keeping God happy through religious rituals. This was the situation during the days of Micah. The people of Israel were warned to repent and told that God was coming […]

Scripture: Titus 1:5-16

In the book of Ruth, we get to see justice and righteousness in the flesh. This is not a book of dry teachings about caring for widows, immigrants, and the poor in the abstract. This is the story of actual righteous people who leveraged their own wealth and well-being to do justice. Ruth acted with […]

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:1-5

The word “Deuteronomy” literally means, “Second Law.” The second generation after the Exodus from Egypt was about to enter into the Promised Land, but they needed to be reminded of the Law. They needed to be reminded who they were supposed to be and how they were supposed to live. They were reminded several times, […]

Scripture: Ephesians 2:1-10

Leading up to the destruction of Sodom, God reflected on his promises to, and partnership with, Abraham. God chose Abraham to, “Command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice.” God went on to allow Abraham not only to know his plans for Sodom, […]

Scripture: Titus 2:11-14

Sometimes it is confusing to hear, we are “saved by grace,” “saved through faith,” or saved by “believing,” but also told baptism saves us. The biblical authors were very clear that we are saved because Jesus died on the cross, because God is merciful and loves us, but they are also clear that we are […]

Scripture: Matthew 21:33-46

It is not uncommon for people to say they are Christians, love Jesus, read their Bibles, and pray daily, but not want any part of church or organized religion. Sometimes this is because the church has disappointed them, hurt them, or just failed to excite and motivate them. In spite of our many shortcomings, the […]

Scripture: Leviticus 25:13-28

It is popular to think every nice, kind, and decent human being will spend eternity in heaven. However, that is not the Christian message. The Christian message is that only those who follow Jesus will be saved. Many wonder how that could be “Good News”? It sounds to some people like God is vindictive and […]

Scripture: Genesis 3, 6, & 11

We cannot expect people to believe the story the Bible tells unless the Bible is a credible witness. Our Bibles are a translation based on thousands of Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic manuscripts. Those manuscripts are not the original texts written by the author, but were copied by countless scribes. This process the Bible has undergone […]

Scripture: Genesis 2

Paul throughly understood the thinking of both the weak and the strong. Paul began his letter promoting peace by telling the Torah-observant Jews, who judged the Gentile world as wicked and sinful, they were essentially correct in their judgment. However, in condemning the Gentiles for their unrighteousness, they were also condemning themselves. The weak judged […]

Scripture: Acts 27