Tag: response
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Red or White?
Genesis 18:16–33; Jeremiah 5:1–9; Romans 3:5–24 God hates me. God would/could never love me. God doesn’t care about me. No one can measure up to that standard. Any of those sound familiar? When we read stories such as Sodom and Gomorrah it is easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer immensity of destruction. Yet, there…
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Wicks Asmoldering
Isaiah 7:1–9; Philippians 4:4–9 Ahaz received encouraging words from God through Jeremiah. Jeremiah, often called the weeping prophet, was not exactly known for positive words. Ahaz, not altogether faithful, received a positive message. In many respects, Christians in the United States are like Ahaz. Far too many are lukewarm. They think they do “enough”. Ahaz…
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There’s Lots More
Matthew 13:1–23; 2 Corinthians 9:6–15; James 1:5–8 One of the arguments against God and the saving work of Jesus Christ is that people can’t see God. And there isn’t much to say against that. What often goes along with that is seeing the “work” of God. This is ever present, and ever available. People are…
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Time Alone
Matthew 14:1–23 Jesus’ cousin and herald was dead. He was murdered. Why was he murdered? He called the powerful to account. Herod’s marriage to Herodias had some issues. Herod had visited Herodias while she was still married to Herod’s brother, Philip. They decided they like each other, so they decided to be married. However, Herodias…
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Ready! Set!
Luke 5:1–11; Luke 6:12–16; Luke 9:1–6; Luke 9:28–36; Luke 24:44-49; Acts 2:14 (read online ⧉) What’s your 6-month plan? What’s your 12-month plan? What’s your 3-year plan? What’s your 10-year plan? Some variation of this question is often asked of high school students, college students, recent graduates, job interviewees. In this particular time of COVID-19,…
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How We Live
Galatians 3:1–9; Galatians 5:16–18; James 2:18–26 (read online ⧉) Is it faith or works? What saves you? That’s a pretty important question. From a historical Jewish perspective, it was works. The entire sacrificial system seemed to be about works. This meant that from their perspective, salvation (and the Messiah) would only come through perfectly performing…
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The Universal Call
Matthew 4:18–22; Matthew 9:35–10:1 (read online ⧉) Are you working for Jesus? Yes. As a Christian, you are called to. The real question is, how well are you working for Jesus? The calling of the fishermen to be disciples is a great example of how to respond to Jesus’ call on our lives. You, however,…