Expressing Faith
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. [8] For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8 (ESV) As I have been reflecting and meditating this morning, I am reminded of how I generally focus on the latter parts of these promises. By this, I mean that I focus mainly on the outcome, the faithfulness of God to give, open, and reveal. This is truly important and should always be at the…
Continue reading
Inward & Outward
You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:5 (ESV) Jesus has taught that the whole of the law can be summed up in the phrase, “Love God and Love People”. This truth is continually found in the teaching of Jesus throughout the gospels and this verse is another representation of that teaching. How do we go about loving others well? We must first love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Loving God means that we are seeking…
Continue reading
Make No Provision
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. Romans 13:14 (ESV) This week I have been meditating and focusing my thoughts on this verse from Romans where Paul sums up his teaching on how love is the fulfillment of the law. I was leading a small group through the larger passage of verses 8-14 and we spent a good amount of time discussing what this verse looks like in our lives as we seek to not only put on Jesus but to make no provision to gratify our fleshly desires.…
Continue reading
Specks and Logs
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? Matthew 7:3-4 (ESV) Continuing in his teaching on our interactions and relationships with others, Jesus further explains the role of judging in the lives of believers. As with all of Jesus’ teachings, the premise is wrapped around the basic theme of love. The first step in our relationships and dealing with other people is to always come from a heart of humility with an intention to love. This is the central and key point of…
Continue reading
Judging Not
“Judge not, that you be not judged. [2] For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Matthew 7:1-2 ESV Patience, kindness, mercy, and grace are the characteristics and heart attitudes that should mark my interactions with others. Pronouncing eternal judgment on others should not be part of my thoughts and actions toward others. Oftentimes I want to make character decisions and judgments about others and pronounce a decree of God against a person. I want to not only evaluate and discern a person’s heart attitude and…
Continue reading
Love for Today
“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:34 ESV Jesus now brings this section on anxiety and worry to a close by reminding us of the freedom we have in Christ through all the many promises that he has presented beforehand. I have heard this singular verse spoken to me and others as if it is a cure-all for every person who is struggling with anxiousness. We want to take this ending point of the previous paragraph’s teaching and make it a commandment to…
Continue reading
First Priority
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Matthew 6:33 ESV All these things… the things that the Gentiles seek after and prioritize over and above God. The things that we see as daily necessities like food and clothing are often elevated to higher levels of importance in our hearts and minds than they should. All these things will be added when we are setting our hearts on the proper priority of seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. In the day-to-day movement and flow of life…
Continue readingSeeking Contentment
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. Matthew 6:31-32 ESV Jesus summarizes his teaching on anxiety in this verse with a reminder to not be anxious about our food, drink, or clothing. The anxiousness that Jesus is talking about is further clarified in the next sentence by stating that the Gentiles seek after these things. It is the fixation of our hearts and minds on material objects over…
Continue readingRich Inspiration
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Matthew 6:30 ESV Look around and see the breadth of God’s love and beauty in the world. The creation is God’s canvas to illustrate his tender care and compassion for all things. The beauty of nature is a living reminder of our loving God and his daily provision. Jesus continues to point us back to reality by opening our eyes to truly seeing the world, God’s creation,…
Continue readingLilly Lessons
And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, [29] yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Matthew 6:28-29 ESV Once again, Jesus is continuing his discourse on anxiety and worry. He started this section by confirming that life is of more importance than what we are going to eat and what we are going to wear, yet these two things still pick and pull at all of us. We become anxious about clothing and possessions to such…
Continue readingPride Prolonged
And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? Matthew 6:27 ESV A life filled with anxiousness is a life spent denying the sovereign control of God over the workings of the universe and the affairs of humanity. It may be that I give ascent to the sovereign control and right that God has in being our Creator and Lord, but my everyday thoughts and words reveal the true character and nature of my heart. It is commendary to repeat the great verses of Scripture where we recite and honor the Kingship…
Continue readingBird Watching
Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Matthew 6:26 ESV There are a multitude of reasons for my tendency to be anxious and worried. I can come up with a thousand different reasons for letting my fear overwhelm me and lead me into a state of anxiety. Yet, I think this verse hits the mark for me on a deep heart level. At the heart of my struggle with worry and anxiety is an underlying doubt…
Continue readingLoading…
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.