Loving Jesus Style

Scripture: Jeremiah 31:34 (ESV) 34  And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord ,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord . For I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more.” Devotion The devotion to this awe-inspiring scripture, Jeremiah 31:34, profoundly reflects the transformative and awe-inspiring nature of God's love and forgiveness. It's an invitation for each of us to internalize God's word, allowing it to guide us not out of obligation but out of a deep, personal connection with the Divine. This new covenant is not just a contract; it's a relationship that changes us from the inside out.   In a world often overwhelmed by rules and regulations, Jeremiah 31:34 offers a different perspective. It suggests that the most enduring change comes not from external pressures but from an internal realization and acceptance of God's love and command...

  Scripture: Acts 2:1-4 (ESV) 2  When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2  And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3  And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4  And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Devotion:             Today, as we gather in the church, we commemorate the significant event of the Holy Spirit's outpouring on the disciples. Just as Jesus had instructed them to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit arrived, we too are reminded of the importance of patience and readiness for the Spirit's work in our lives. On the Jewish feast of Pentecost, Jesus' words were fulfilled as the Spirit descended upon them. The full extent of their newly found power woul...

  [This creed] first appeared in southwest France sometime in the late 6th or 7th century. Its present text is found in the De singulis libris canonicis scarapsus of Priminius, which is dated between 710 and 724. [1] I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.             This creed was not developed to deal with any specific heresy. I...

            The Nicene Creed in the form used today in worship was finalized in 381 AD: I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy...

  Scripture: Luke 24:44-49 (ESV) 44  Then [Jesus] said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45  Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46  and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47  and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48  You are witnesses of these things. 49  And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” Devotion:             Jesus calms the fears and removes the misunderstandings about Himself and His mission that the first disciples and we have in this passage. It was commonly thought that t...

  Scripture: Luke 21:34-36 (ESV) 34  “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35  For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36  But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man.” Devotion:             In this brief scripture passage, Jesus warns all His followers for all time. Jesus knows how easily humans can get off track and engage in sinful behaviors. Jesus warns us here and elsewhere in the gospels that His return will come without warning or any advance notice. (A word here for all who try to set dates for His return: You are wrong!) The date and time are unknown to any human, which calls for special vigilance and urgent repentance.   ...

Scripture: John 15:26-27 (ESV) 26  “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. 27  And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning. Devotion:             When John wrote this, the Helper had already come upon the disciples. Jesus’s words had proven true again. The Helper was, of course, the Holy Spirit that fell on the disciples on Pentecost. In addition to all the more spectacular miracles the Spirit brought about on that day was this gift of remembrance. The New Testament writers all had this miraculous assistance through the Helpers ministry. This ministry gift does not get the praise it deserves. Speaking in tongues, healings, words of knowledge, etc., all tend to stand out in our minds.             As I age, I pray f...

Scripture: John 15:12-17 (ESV) 12  “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13  Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14  You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15  No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16  You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17  These things I command you so that you will love one another. Devotion:             Jesus's words in today’s text encourage believers throughout the ages to believe that we are not merely servants but friends of Jesus. Jesus explains His commandments to His follow...

  Scripture: Acts 17:24-28a (NIV) 24  “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands 25, And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 26  From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27  God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. 28  ‘For in him we live and move and have our being. Devotion:             Paul’s message to the Athenians gathered at Mars Hill continues in today’s scripture. Paul’s primary emphasis is the difference between the God he is preaching and the gods the people of Athens worshipped. First, Paul declares that...

Scripture: Acts 17:19-21 (ESV) 19  And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 20  For you bring some strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.” 21  Now, all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new. Devotion:             On day two of our visit with Paul in Athens, we find him being led to the Areopagus (Mars Hill). Mars Hill served as an open-air forum. It could be used for legal proceedings, but that was not its only function. Since we find no judicial language in the text, we assume that the Athenians brought Paul there to hear what this new teaching was. For Paul, this presented a golden opportunity to share the gospel with some of the thought leaders of Athens.        ...

Scripture: Acts 17:16-18 (ESV) 16  Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. 17  So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. 18  Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities”—because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. Devotion:             This week we are going to spend some time with Paul in Athens. Paul had just been run out of the cities of Thessalonica and Berea for preaching the gospel. Because of the intense opposition to the gospel, he sought refuge in Athens. Paul waited there for Timothy and Silas, his ministry partners, to join him.        ...

Scripture: John 16:31-33 (NLT) 31  Jesus asked, “Do you finally believe? 32  But the time is coming—indeed, it’s here now—when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. 33  I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth, you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart because I have overcome the world.” Devotion:             This passage of scripture highlights the disciples' reactions to Jesus’ trial and crucifixion. The disciples claim that they will all follow Jesus wherever He goes. Jesus knows His followers better than they know themselves. All of them will desert him, and one will even deny knowing Him. Courage among this group at this time does not even exist. Things have not changed much over the intervening 2,000 years.             Great ...

  Scripture: John 14:26-27 (ESV) 26  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. Devotion:             These words of Jesus to his disciples in the upper room on the night He was betrayed convey a divine approach to peace. Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to Him, did not pray for strength, courage, or any other response that we might consider more appropriate, humanly speaking. When we humans face inevitable persecution and execution, our natural response would not be peace. Yet, Jesus exemplified peace under these conditions. How did He behave in this way?             First, Jesus had...

Scripture: Romans 12:16-19a (ESV) 16  Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. 17  Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18  If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19  Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, Devotion:             Peace, what is it really? There are different definitions depending on the situation in which the word is being used. Peace can mean, in a military sense, the ceasing of combat. Peace, in a domestic sense, can mean something different. God’s peace is the reconciliation between God and humanity achieved through the cross by Jesus on our behalf. Humankind is so broken that we even resist this reconciliation and continue to fight among ourselves.          ...

  Scripture: Isaiah 1:18-20 (ESV) 18  “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord :        though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;        though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. 19      If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20      , but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”   Devotion:               In this brief selection from the beginning of Isaiah, we see God willing to reason with His people. This passage begins with a promise that no matter how bad our sins are, God plans to make them disappear. For Christians reading this passage, it seems to foreshadow the cross and resurrection. Under the old covenant, sins could never be dealt w...

  The Sign of the Fleece Scripture: Judges 6:36-40 (ESV) 36  Then Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, 37  behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said.” 38  And it was so. When he rose early next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. 39  Then Gideon said to God, “Let not your anger burn against me; let me speak just once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground, let there be dew.” 40  And God did so that night; and it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there was dew. Devotion:             The Lord told Gideon he would give him victory over the forces o...

Scripture: Judges 6:13-14 (ESV) “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14  And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” Devotion:             Today’s scripture from the Book of Judges begins the call of Gideon to deliver God’s people from the power of the people of Midian. Raiders from Midian have made life miserable for the children of Israel. God wants to end His people’s suffering. He chooses Gideon to be His person for the job. Just like Moses, Gideon complains to the Lord that he is not wealthy or powerful enough for the task. God will have none of it.         ...

Scripture: Philippians 4:8-9 (NIV) 8  Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9  Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Devotion:             What do you think about when you have some downtime? These days, our thoughts are easily hijacked by social media or other entertainment sources. We are complicit in letting our thoughts wander in ways that, while maybe not wicked or evil, are, at best, unproductive. In this passage, Paul has given us some direction on what we should think about. It is attempting to follow this advice that we find very difficult.             These days, trying to determine what...

Scripture: Philippians 3:7-11 (ESV) 7  But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9  and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10  that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11  that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Devotion:             Today’s scripture encourages us to desire the things of Christ so that we may obtain resurrection from the dead. Paul here may be relying on the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 6:26 and Mark 8:36 for ...