But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love that He had for us, made us alive with the Messiah even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace [kharis]! ~ Ephesians 2:4-5 I let a week lapse between this and my last post, and I thought about not […]
“…having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed […]
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people” ~ Luke 2:10 “And do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones […]
Remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:12-13) Welcome […]
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” ~ Ephesians 2:10 Similar to Tuesday’s post, this verse doesn’t need a lot of explanation on the surface. We get the word picture: God makes us, and He makes us for good […]
“[Odysseos] dug a pit, of about a cubit in each direction, and poured it full of drink offerings for all the dead.” Homer’s Odyssey[1] “These are my prayers. Over them I pour libations. And now it’s your task to wreathe them with the flowers of mourning, to sing praises of the dead” ~ Electra in […]
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” ~ Philippians 4:6 It’s the week of Thanksgiving, and so it would be easy to write about being thankful – which I will. Eventually. However, there is a fascinating word right before “thanksgiving” in […]
There is no one quite like Samson in the Bible. His life is one of violence, anger, and impulse. He had so much promise, only to waste it on women and pleasure. He did whatever was right in his eyes, even though God had chosen him to be a deliverer before his birth. Why? Why […]
This week, we’re back to the Greeks. I always get excited when history, myth, and the Bible come together. Today, we’ll see how they do just that during the time of the judges. Bible and History According to legend, the descendants of Heracles pushed out the Achaeans – whom we know as the Mycenaeans (a […]
The ancient Hebrews deeply revered the name of God. By Jesus’ day, they wouldn’t even utter it aloud. It was too holy to be spoken by unclean lips. We still know there’s power in the name of Jesus. We know the verses, and we sing the songs…and then we go about our lives, never stopping […]