I recently heard a sermon on Galatians 5 and 6. The pastor noted how the fruit produced by the tree isn’t for the tree, but is meant to serve others. This mirrors the heart of God, who for our sake, made him who knew no sin to be sin, so in him, we might be…
5 Now if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you. 6 For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough, 7 so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 So I beg you to reaffirm your love for…
Psalm 128 A song of ascents. 1 Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in obedience to him.2 You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house;your children will be like olive shoots around your table. NIV Study notes: 128:3 A faithful and fruitful wife. vine. Symbol…
[God] no longer looks with favor on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. 14 You ask, “Why?” It is because the Lord is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. 15 Has not the…
2 I would lead you.I would bring you into my mother’s house.(She is the one who was my teacher.)I would give you some spiced wine to drink, some juice squeezed from my pomegranates.3 His left hand is under my head.His right hand caresses me. — Song of Solomon 8
9 “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’ — Zechariah 7 CompassionZechariah
Oh Lord, I’m so amazed when I dig up in Your ScriptureFocused and trying to get You, hoping to get a pictureOf who You are, true You are, Holy hoping I miss YouWhen I get away and I miss a day spending it with YouThat’s foolish, I hope to know You and be a studentAnd…
I got something on my mind, bro some folks might not like thatFeel like it’s about that time to hit ’em with the Truth where that light’s atBut still some folks wanna fight that, ’cause hand that feeds wanna bite that‘Cause they think it’s pleasin’, it’s makin’ demons of all that He made but despite…
A Native American pastor recently announced plans to author a book with the above title. That had me considering ways my faith might have been colonized, to which I am completely oblivious. As a black African-born American Christian, with a blog that aims to revive Christian marriages by pointing couples to the Ancient Hebrew practice…
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set…
Divorce(A) 10 Jesus then left that place and went into the region of Judea and across the Jordan.(B) Again crowds of people came to him, and as was his custom, he taught them.(C) 2 Some Pharisees(D) came and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” 3 “What did Moses command you?” he replied. 4 They…
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, […], regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, […] pride, superiority, and ego. The other is good.…
If you struggle with intrusive mental images of ANRs, then “think often that Christ suffered agony for your purity. Fight image with image. Christ crying in agony.” Titus 2:14: Christ gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for…
43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. [44] [b] 45 And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter…
Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. […] Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.…
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:10 – NKJV For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am…
You must not murder. (Exodus 20:13) Q. What does this mean?A. We should fear and love God so that we may not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, but help and befriend him in every bodily need [in every need and danger of life and body.] Luther, Small Catechism. From Tim Keller Not…
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. Romans 13:14 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.13.14.ESV
If you’ve ever seen a lightning bolt, heard thunderstorms, felt the magnitude of an earthquake, smelled the potent odor of sulfur in a natural hot spring or tasted a hurricane’s wrath, you realize how completely at God’s mercy we are. But that doesn’t even scratch the surface. There is the turbulence of the Great Red…
You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you. Song 4:7
The ESV of Proverbs 5:19 on the YouVersion Bible app contains a footnote on the word “breasts” pointing to Jeremiah 31:14 which reads: “I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, declares the LORD.” A clear suggestion that breasts are meant to be sources…
6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah!For the Lord our Godthe Almighty reigns.7 Let us rejoice and exultand give him the glory,for the marriage of the Lamb has come,and his…
Erotic Music
But God (Luke 16:15)
Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14 Drinking from Jesus
But God (Luke 12:20)
Perhaps you are single by choice–you want to be on your own for a while, enjoying the freedom and benefits of adulthood. Perhaps it’s not your choice, and a divorce, death, or broken relationship has propelled you back into singleness. Or maybe the opportunity for a serious relationship has never arisen. But whatever your situation,…
Christ-centered ANR 