Longing for the Word and putting away sin ~ 1 Peter 2:1-3

“So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation – if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.” 1 Peter 2:1-3 Our sinful ways will always hound us and be ready and waiting at the door if we wander away from the study of God’s Word. His Word is meant to teach us what is true; about God and about ourselves, it is meant to warn and restrain us, to encourage and ultimately change us. Being able to put away our sinful impulses towards hostility, deceitfulness, hypocrisy, envy and gossip depends on a steady diet of pure spiritual milk, which is God’s Word. These two verses go together by no mistake, the teaching in God’s Word will guide us in putting our sin away so that we […]

Sincere Love ~ 1 Peter 1:22

“Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart,” 1 Peter 1:22 Can you really love someone that you don’t really like? Let me create a fake scenario based on this premise and then we’ll go from there…. Church Person A doesn’t like Church Person B. Church Person B really rubs Church Person A the wrong way, for example; Church Person B always shows up late to church yet still finds their way to their seat in the front row (this seems rude to Church Person A and they are bugged by it every week), secondly Church Person B has no qualms about interrupting a conversation to say hello and begin a story of their own (this particularly irks Church Person A), and finally, Church Person B NEVER signs up to work in the Church nursery […]

Before the Foundation of the World ~ 1 Peter 1:20-21

“He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.” 1 Peter 1: 20-21 Before God gave the earth its shape, before He laid the oceans in their place, or hung a star in the sky He had a plan….He knew what He was going to do to rescue the people He was about to create from the futile lives we all would choose over Him. Our sinful passions were not unknown to Him before a single stone was set on the earth, our preference for possessions and earthly things over Him who made all things wasn’t a shock or surprise…. He knew about it before the foundation of the world and […]

Identity Crisis & the Not So Good Man. Luke 18:18-30

Luke 18:18-30 ESV: “And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to […]

The Idol of Liberty ~ 1 Peter 1:17-19

“And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” 1 Peter 1:17-19 In 2008 we visited New York City, and while we were there we took a mini cruise around Liberty Island and got to see some amazing views of the Statue of Liberty. It is an incredible sight and a powerful monument to honour the independence and freedom that is enjoyed in America. I did some minimal research and discovered that Lady Liberty is actually fashioned after Libertas, the Roman goddess of freedom, who was widely worshipped in ancient Rome. Now I realize that no […]

When Will Christ Return? Luke 17:20-37

The Return Of Christ And What We Need To Know Luke 17:20-37 ESV … Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by […]

How Do I Lead My Kids To Jesus? ~ Luke 18:15-17

Luke 18:15-17 ESV: Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” Bringing Their Infants To Jesus: There are so many questions people have in regard to the salvation of children. Should they be baptized? Should they be dedicated? Should they receive communion? How early can they understand the redemptive story of the gospel in regard to self application? When can they have genuine saving faith? The Bible is not totally clear on the subject, but one thing is sure, we as parents are instructed to train our children in the […]

Don’t Go Back to the Pen ~ 1 Peter 1:14-16

“As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.””. 1 Peter 1: 14-16 I can so relate, and at the same time am so convicted, with the opening of verse 14 in this chapter. If I had a nickel for every time I used the word “obedient” in a day while interacting with my three children I would be the wealthiest woman in the world! I am constantly expecting obedience from my children (who are 7, 3.5, and 2 by the way) and yet as a grown adult I sometimes catch myself acting like a spiritual three year old. God is speaking to me to get up and go do something and I just continue on scrubbing […]

First Things First ~ 1 Peter 1:13

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action (girding up the loins of your mind, KJV), and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:13 (ESV) God the Father held nothing back to save us. He walked on our earth, felt temptation to sin through our flesh, suffered the poverty of going from riches to rags, and gave up his life into the hands of the ones He gave life to. Jesus won us a glorious salvation through sacrifice greater than we can even comprehend. How should I respond? With devotion. Devotion is described in the dictionary as “profound dedication“. I have gotten in the habit of calling the time I spend reading my Bible and in prayer, my devotions, as I’m sure many contemporary Christians also would. I can honestly and sadly say, however; that […]

The Ultimate Fool!

THE ULTIMATE FOOL! (a conversation I just had with someone) The God who created you and the God that you will one day stand before, He is GOOD, JUST & TRUE. The Bible calls it a foolish thing to look at the creation of the world and to declare that there is no God. The evidence stares us in the face & yet so many of us refuse to acknowledge Him or His wonderful works. The Bible also says that the reason we refuse to acknowledge Him, is that we love our sin. I don’t care to win a debate about God, because it’s not up for debate, not for you and not for me. We have all broken His commands. We know in our hearts that lying is wrong, stealing, adultery, using God’s name in vain. Yet we have all done it knowing it was wrong. Jesus said that hating […]