Message:  I Peter 3 is a continuation of the call to submission we read yesterday. Chapter 2 began with a command to submit to government authorities and local leaders, then slaves submitting to masters, and now in chapter 3 he... Continue reading →

Message:  In 1 Peter 2 Peter was talking about suffering. Several times in this chapter he refers to the believers as temporary residents to remind them that the kingdoms of earth are not the ones we are hoping in or... Continue reading →

Message:  In 1 Peter 1 Peter is encouraging the believers in several providences of Rome because they were gentile believers foreign to the land they were in and they were enduring quite a bit of persecution. Peter is reminding them... Continue reading →

Message:  Today I noticed an interesting parallel between the story and Judges 11 and the directive in James 5. In Judges 11 we read about a man named Jephthah who had been driven out of his homeland by his brothers... Continue reading →

Message:  In chapter 4 James is addressing the fighting and wars going on within the church. According to the footnotes in my bible there was jealousy, conflict and division and there were factions within the church. As hard as it... Continue reading →

Message:  James 3 is a well-known chapter about taming the tongue. I have always read this as a warning against gossip and negativity. While I still feel like that applies, reading through it all in context gave me a different... Continue reading →

Message:  James 2 starts off by warning us not to show favoritism. The example used was treatment of a poor man versus treatment of a rich man. If we elevate the value of a rich man and devalue the poor... Continue reading →

Message: James 1 starts off with a bang when he tells us to “count it all joy when we experience various trials knowing that the testing of our faith produces endurance.” As Christians I feel like we spend a lot... Continue reading →

Message:  In the final chapter of Hebrews the author was giving the church some reminders about who they were and what kinds of behaviors should mark their lives. He was careful to point out the difference between obeying God in... Continue reading →

Message:  Hebrews 12 is very strong, and very familiar. It begins with the call to “lay aside every weight, and the sin that easily entangles us.” The analogy in this chapter is of a race. We all understand the importance... Continue reading →

Message:  Judges chapter 4 is a big deal for women. It shows that during a time and culture where women did not have equal status with men, God would use them to complete his purpose. What I love about it... Continue reading →

Message:  The past few chapters have contrasted the sacrifices made under the first covenant of the law, with the final ultimate sacrifice Jesus made under the new covenant. The author of Hebrews has shown us that while the system of... Continue reading →

Message: In Hebrews 9 the author continued the comparison between the old and new covenant by explaining how the old covenant paid for sin on a repetitious basis, but had no power to cleanse the heart. The new covenant paid... Continue reading →

Message: The theme I picked up in the reading today is not anything new, but it contrasted the unfaithfulness of man with the faithfulness of God. In Judges 1 we read about all of the tribes that failed to do... Continue reading →

Message:  This morning I noticed another pattern/theme between what we read in the final chapter of Joshua, and what we read in Hebrews 7. In Joshua 24 the people were being prepared for the death of Joshua and the end... Continue reading →

Message:  In Hebrews 6 the author had just come out of his frustration at the end of chapter over their lack of maturity. Not because they were newbies, but because they had been in the faith for a while and... Continue reading →

Message: In Joshua 22 the men who had crossed the Jordan to help their brothers take the promised land were commended, rewarded and sent back home on the other side of the Jordan. The land given to them for their... Continue reading →

Message:  Hebrews 4 is a continuance of the warning that we read in chapter 3 about staying active and aware so that we don’t wander off. The bible often compares wandering to sleeping. In the biblical sense, the word “sleep”... Continue reading →

Message: In Hebrews 3 the author reminds us of both the greatness and the obedience of Moses. Then he steps up to another level to show that as great as Moses was at laying the foundation, Jesus is even greater... Continue reading →

Message:  Today I picked up a similar theme between Joshua 19, Proverbs 27 and Hebrews 2. In Joshua we continued reading the allotments that were divided up and given as an inheritance to the tribes of Israel. We have been... Continue reading →