Tag: paul
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Text Driven Tuesday: Ephesians 2
In Ephesians 2, after glorifying Christ as the one far above all rule and authority and power and dominion–noting that Jesus has all these in the present tense, Paul shares the Gospel. If we read Ephesians 1 before we read Ephesians 2, which seems to make perfect sense as a way to read, we see…
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The Unconditional Love of God in Ephesians 2
In Ephesians 2, after glorifying Christ as the one far above all rule and authority and power and dominion–noting that Jesus has all these in the present tense, Paul shares the Gospel. If we read Ephesians 1 before we read Ephesians 2, which seems to make perfect sense as a way to read, we see…
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Text Driven Tuesday: Ephesians 1
The Apostle, Paul, wrote Ephesians from prison in AD 60-62 to the saints. While the letter certainly made it to Ephesus, it may have simply been written “to the saints,” because “at Ephesus” is missing from three important early manuscripts. The tone of Ephesians is more generic than Paul’s other letters. The letter is about…
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Ephesians 1; Text Driven Tuesday
The Apostle, Paul, wrote Ephesians from prison in AD 60-62 to the saints. While the letter certainly made it to Ephesus, it may have simply been written “to the saints,” because “at Ephesus” is missing from three important early manuscripts. The tone of Ephesians is more generic than Paul’s other letters. The letter is about…
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Fighting the Good Fight in Transitional Seasons: Notes from 1 Timothy 1:15-20
Love from a pure heart, good conscience, and sincere faith is the most important thing churches in transition should remember (1:3-7). Paul also warns about immoral men sneaking in and turning the churches toward fruitlessness and sin (1:8-11). At the end of his first chapter, Paul uses himself as an example—not because he is qualified…
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DAily Devotional: 1 Thessalonians 3:1-13
Paul spends another chapter telling the Thessalonians how thankful to God he is for them. Since he could not make it to Thessalonica, he sent Timothy. He feared that Satan tempted them and rendered his own gospel work in vain, but Timothy reported the success of the gospel in their lives. Paul was worried for…
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Living in Bad Circumstances?
Do you ever feel like you are in the worst possible situation? If you were to design your own life, what would you change? How many negative circumstances throughout your life would you have avoided? Would you want to have more money, more friends, or more influence? Would you want a different family? Would you…
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Why can’t I be more like (insert name here)? (John 21:20-25)
Why do we define success according to the accomplishments of others? The human condition is such that we ask ourselves questions like: “Why am I not as popular as (insert name here)? I know I have more talent.” “Why didn’t I think of that, or have that idea first?” “That person is not a very…
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Am I Qualified for Ministry?
No matter who we are or where we are serving, it seems that any good minister under Jesus Christ asks this question. There are those who expect too much of a minister or someone who has taken a leadership role in the church, and there are those who expect too less. I want to…