Mystery is a central theme in the book of Ephesians. However, our culture has minimized the value of mystery. In our present intellectual atmosphere, precise and accurate knowledge is readily available. Science produces increasingly spectacular results. The social sciences seek to quantify (often successfully) aspects...
25 I want you to understand this mystery, dear brothers and sisters, so that you will not feel proud about yourselves. Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. 26...
1 O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. 2 I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. 3 Your unfailing love...
The basis of Christianity centers on the Resurrection. The fact that Jesus was raised from the dead tells us about who God is and how powerful He is. If we have faith in Him and believe that Jesus was raised from the dead, it means...
One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts-Psalm 145:4. Below is an interview with Kathy Lewis at Grace Pelham's Senior Honor facility: The Gardes at Eastside....
1 “Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God. 2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Tell her that her sad days are gone and her sins are pardoned. Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over for all her sins.” 3 Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the...
14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, 15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his...
Gentle Jesus, be thine the wounds that heal our wounding-Frederick Buechner. Your Son taught to us to pray to you as our Father. Never do we feel more connected and indivisible as when we hurt each other, and the ripples tear at our insides, from...
1 Shout joyful praises to God, all the earth! 2 Sing about the glory of his name! Tell the world how glorious he is. 3 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! Your enemies cringe before your mighty power. 4 Everything on earth will worship you; they will sing your...
45 The Scriptures tell us, “The first man, Adam, became a living person.” But the last Adam—that is, Christ—is a life-giving Spirit. 46 What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later. 47 Adam, the first man, was made from the...
35 But someone may ask, “How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?” 36 What a foolish question! When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first. 37 And what you...
Whether you are the athlete, professor, artist, or engineer, if you are identified with Christ, you are now united as a family—brother and sister—in one body, the Church....
12 But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? 13 For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. 14...
1 Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2 It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the...
1 Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens! Praise him from the skies! 2 Praise him, all his angels! Praise him, all the armies of heaven! 3 Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you twinkling stars! 4 Praise him, skies above! Praise him, vapors high above the clouds! 5 Let...
“Truth is being killed in the streets in the name of harmony.” A few years ago, I read this quote on the state of the Church in America. At the time, it vividly expressed for me a trend that I had already begun to notice: the...
5 When Jesus returned to Capernaum, a Roman officer came and pleaded with him, 6 “Lord, my young servant lies in bed, paralyzed and in terrible pain.” 7 Jesus said, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the officer said, “Lord, I am not worthy to...
1 On the holy mountain stands the city founded by the Lord. 2 He loves the city of Jerusalem more than any other city in Israel. 3 O city of God, what glorious things are said of you! Interlude 4 I will count Egypt and Babylon among those who know me— also...
Belonging is rooting for something, while at the same time, excluding something else. This plays out in society today with an “us and them” attitude that even carries into our Christian lives; we believe we have the ability to decide who and what is included...
My ten-year-old daughter and I recently ran a 5k together. We were excited that morning as we got ready to go. It was cold, but at least the sun was shining. It was a beautiful day to run. Our whole family had been counting down...
1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where...
Ephesians 2:15 says, 'He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups.' So what bearing does Old Testament law have on Christians...
1 When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles . . . 2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. 3...
1 Dear brothers and sisters, the longing of my heart and my prayer to God is for the people of Israel to be saved. 2 I know what enthusiasm they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal. 3 For they don’t understand God’s way...
Many of us like to pretend that we have it all together, that all of our ducks are in a row. No one can know that we struggle, and we certainly hesitate to admit needing assistance of any kind. We are constantly chasing what we...