Loving Jesus Style

  Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (ESV) Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2  and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,   Devotion:           The term gospel or good news gets throw around quite a bit within the church these days. And with good reason because if we don’t get the gospel right, we cannot live as authentic Christians. Our lives will be out of alignment with our God, and we will fail to be present to the world as ambassadors of Christ. The selection from First Corinthians that I have chosen I believe points to the essence of the G...

  Scripture: 2 Corinthians 9:8 (NLT) 8  And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need, and plenty left over to share with others. Devotion:           Let us examine God’s providence. God has promised us to always supply our needs. You may not get everything you want, but you will always have what you truly need. God’s providence is not a topic we discuss much in church today. However, the Bible is full of examples of God moving to provide for his people.           God provided for the nation of Israel many times. The peoples deliverance from slavery in Egypt is a prime example. Take some time and review Exodus chapter 4 thru 15. Even after their escape from Egypt God provided manna and water in the desert. The nation of Israel was provided for during all their wanderings in the wilderness.        ...

  Scripture: Psalm 77:11-12 (NRSV) 11   I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord ; I will remember your wonders of old. 12   I will meditate on all your work, and muse on your mighty deeds.   Devotion:           The world today seems to be mindful only of grievances, oppression, and victimhood. We have created a modern secular worldview that has only two categories the oppressors and the oppressed. Each person claims their own victimhood and demands redress for all the wrong he or she claims to have suffered at the hands of society. While I do not deny that this world is not yet free from oppression and other forms of evil. It does seem like an error to fixate on the bad and not to see the good that also exists in the world today.           The psalmist in the verses above says that we should remember all the good our God has done for us. The writer of this ps...

  Scripture: 2 Corinthians 12:9b-10 (ESV) Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10  For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Devotion:           In today’s world we all can feel powerless in the face of a culture that has turned its back on Christianity. Paul knew what that was like. He faced a culture in the Greco-Roman world that had lots of idols and gods. From Aphrodite to Zeus the culture had plenty of gods. Even the emperors demanded the people worship them as gods. You would think that a culture that had so many gods would be ok with one more. However, the culture balked at the idea of the Christian God because it demanded that the people forsake all the other gods and follow the one true and living God.       ...

  Scripture: Romans 12:2 (NRSV) 2  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect. Devotion:           Most of us, myself included, tend to go with the flow of life. We may not always like where that flow is taking us, but we figure it is better to go with the crowd than to make waves and cause a ruckus. We Christians can be incredibly risk averse. We are afraid that we will be seen as troublemakers or worse by our peers. Who wants to lose friends and be seen as being weird or strange?           Paul here is calling us, however, to be transformed into something new. He wants us to rely on Christ to eliminate the “go along to get along” thinking that we are so comfortable with. We are to step out and declare the truth we have heard from Jesus in ways that ...

  Scripture: Deuteronomy 12:28 (NIV) 28  Be careful to obey all these regulations I [Moses] am giving you, so that it may always go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord your God. Devotion:           When parents raise their children, they set down rules for them to follow. The rules are there to protect the children from danger. Often kids will break the rules because they can’t see the danger themselves, so they suffer the natural outcome of say touching a hot stove. When we were children, we all acted foolishly and disobeyed our parents.           The rules God gives us are there for our own good. The rules show us the way to a life that is pleasing to God. However, like children we often don’t believe that the rules are really there for our good. We often disobey them and suffer the consequences. ...

  Scripture: Psalm 89:5-8 (ESV) 5  Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Lord , your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones! 6     For who in the skies can be compared to the Lord ? Who among the heavenly beings is like the Lord , 7     A God greatly to be feared in the council of the holy ones, and awesome above all who are around him? 8     O Lord God of hosts, who is mighty as you are, O Lord , with your faithfulness all around you?                   We are going to look at the reasons the psalmist praises God in this psalm. Once in a while it good to meditate on just how great and glorious our God is. God is often put down or just ignored in our culture today. We are told that our God is “dead” and there is no point in living our lives in way that would be pleasing to him. Well, I believe the rumors of his death a...

Scripture: 1 Samuel 12:23-24 (ESV)           Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way. 24  Only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. Devotion:           These words are spoken by the prophet Samuel to the people of Israel. They mark his farewell address as leader of the people a responsibility he has, under the Lord’s direction, handed over to Saul Israel’s first king.           These words are meant to comfort the people that although Samuel was no longer to be their leader, he would be with them for spiritual support. I believe that Samuel’s words still have meaning for us today. They are but a shadow of what Jesus would pray for us believers today. As we read here In John 17:20-21 (NLT):   20...

  A New Creation Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 (ESV) 16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. Devotion:           These verses may be familiar to you as they are to me. This situation can cause us to read right past them in our daily reading of Scripture. I want us to pause on this great truth from scripture right now and consider its full meaning.           Paul here wants us to stop seeing others primarily as flesh and bones, but he is, I believe, urging us to take a more spiritual view of our neighbors. The reason this is important is that because while Jesus walked this earth, we viewed him as human. We viewed him as just flesh and bones. Now, how...

  Scripture 2 Peter 1:5-7, 10 (ESV) . . . make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6  and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7  and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. . . 10  Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities, you will never fall. Devotion:           Have you ever been asked if you are a practicing Christian? How would you answer? Well, in his second letter the Apostle Peter gives us a list of helpful characteristics of what it means to be a practicing Christian. It is helpful to note that while these are meant to be a progression starting with faith and ending with love. The Christian will find himself or herself working on all 8 of these areas to one degree or another throughout their Ch...

  Scripture Galatians 6:7-10 (NLT) 7  Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. 8  Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. 9  So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. 10  Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith. Devotion:           We often hear that we are involved in a culture war and that we must be prepared to fight against our enemies. While it is true that as Paul says in Ephesians we are to put on the whole armor of God and be prepared to “quench the fiery darts of Satan.” It is also true that God fought battles on behalf of Israel in the Old...

  Do Not Fear Scripture: Psalm 91:1-6 (NLT) 1  Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2  This I declare about the Lord : He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. 3  For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease. 4  He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection. 5  Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. 6  Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday.     Devotion:                         As Covid-19 is now alive and well and has increased in number of infections some 300% above the same time last year. So, it perhaps t...

  Scripture: Psalm 13 (NIV)           Psalm 13 For the choir director: A psalm of David. 1  O Lord , how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? 2  How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day? How long will my enemy have the upper hand? 3  Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die. 4  Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!” Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall. 5  But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. 6  I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me.   Devotion:           I suffer from periodic bouts of depression. During this time of Covid-19 many of us probably have.           I have found that the P...

  Scripture: 1 Peter 1:3-5 (ESV) 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.   Devotion:           This devotion will be dedicated, as these verses are, to the praise and glory of God. Peter begins by using an exclamation of pure praise to the “Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”. The form of this exclamation might be familiar to us as it is used (without reference to Christ) frequently in the Old Testament, and occasionally is Paul’s letters. (see 2 Corinthians 1:3, and Ephesians 1:3)           Peter then quickly turns to the reason for h...