Devotion.al

Feed Your Soul

  • Peace and Holiness

    Ezekiel 37:24-28, Romans 12:9-18, Hebrews 12:7-15

    “I will make a of with them…”
    Ezekiel 37:26

    “Live in harmony with one another…”
    Romans 12:16

    “If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peach with everyone.”
    Romans 12:18

    “Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord.”
    Hebrews 12:14

    When God speaks to Ezekiel, the consequences of a life outside of and away from God are showing up to the Israelites, and it is not a pretty picture. Something to understand throughout Ezekiel is that while the consequences of not living life with God is bad, God promises . Especially a hope which cannot be earned. God makes the new covenant of peace.

    We, too, have a covenant with peace to live out. It is the covenant of peace with others. In Romans 12, Paul is talking specifically about the peace between members of the . However, this peace is supposed to also spill out into our relationships outside of the framily.

    The author of Hebrews, however, makes what can be chilling ties to peace with others: holiness and divine life. Mercifully, the author of Hebrews uses the “pursue.” Other translations have it as “strive for” or “chase after.” As we read yesterday, peace requires effort.

    Peace and holiness are tied together by the author of the Hebrews. This is not unreasonable, as the ultimate peace is given by God who is holy. The importance of living at peace with one another—especially, but not exclusively, in the church framily—cannot be overstated. If the Children of God are not at peace with one another, what kind of peace can they with others?

    1) What does it mean to you that “no one will see the Lord” when it comes to being at peace with one another and holiness?

    2) Is being at peace with one another important to you? Why or why not?

    KD) We all struggle with being at peace with one another. Are you pursuing peace with others? What are you willing to up to have peace?

  • Sighting Evil

    Sighting Evil

    Psalm 74; 1 Samuel 16:14–23; Revelation 20:1–6 Evil spirits or the “spirit of evil” has a presence in human culture throughout the ages. Even for those who have no deistic belief, there is an understanding that something is completely evil. There was nothing positive about the Holocaust. In fact, most people would state that the…

  • All About Me

    All About Me

    Psalm 130: Genesis 3:8–15; 2 Corinthians 4:13–5:1; Mark 3:20–35 Self-examination is probably one of the hardest Christian practices. It is probably also the one most needed today. When we do our self-examination properly, we are better equipped to recognize some issues we have that inhibit our continued transformation into the likeness of Christ. First, the…

  • Field Work

    Field Work

    Psalm 130; Genesis 2:4b–14; Luke 8:4–15 Regardless of where you are concerning the continuum of evolution to creationism, humanity is unique. Many of those who look at humanity from the evolutionary standpoint are less than impressed with the result of evolution. Many of those who look at humanity from the creationism standpoint are less than…

  • Getting Down

    Getting Down

    Psalm 130; Deuteronomy 1:34–40; 2 Corinthians 5:1–5 If you’ve ever purchased a home using a loan, you usually had to come up with some sort of down payment. At least near me, a 10% down payment may be $70K or more. Part of that, of course, is the exceedingly high price of houses (and the…