Monday 1 John 5:13-21; 1 John 2:16; Matthew 22:36-40 We started Glenkirk’s 1 John teaching series about 11 weeks ago; this week completes our related study. Some Bible scholars lament the challenges of summarizing 1 John, as it can read like a rambling collection of semi-connected thoughts. John may have been approaching 90 years old...
Category: <span>Devotions</span>
November 11 – 15, 2019
Monday 1 John 5:1 “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.” (1 John 5:1) A paraphrase of 1 John 5:1 in The Living Bible says it like this: “If you believe that Jesus is the Christ—that he is God’s...
November 4 – 8, 2019
Monday 1 John 4:7, 8; 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Matthew 7:15-20 If 1 John 4:7, 8 sounds familiar, it’s because it is. John repeatedly uses the “love theme.” Love appears 27 times in 1 John 4. He makes stupendous claims which we may not fully grasp because they are so familiar and at the core of...
Oct. 28 – Nov. 1, 2019
Monday John 9; Matthew 25:31-46 Discerning Jesus We sometimes think, “If we could only see Jesus, we would recognize Him.” And yet many who saw Him in His day did not discern who He was. In John 9, the disciples were debating what caused a certain man to be born blind—the blind man’s sin or...
October 21 – 25, 2019
Monday Acts 1:7-9 Jesus’ Last Words Scripture tells us that Jesus rose from the dead. He didn’t immediately ascend to heaven after He rose from the dead. For forty days as our Resurrected Savior, He proved He was risen from the dead through physical appearances to His disciples and miracles like the miraculous catch of...
October 14 – 18, 2019
Monday 1 John 3:10, 11; Galatians 5:22, 23 Unless one is a botanist, it is difficult to distinguish a tangerine tree from an orange tree. Only when a tree bears fruit can one tell what type of tree it is. So too with Christians. The evidence that we are “walking in Truth” is the fruit...
October 7 – 11, 2019
Monday 1 John 2:28-3:2; 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 Have you ever heard this from another who self-describes as “spiritual” or “good”: “I don’t like organized religion—I have my own relationship with God.” A generally effective way of responding, unexpected while also meeting others where they are, is the sincere reply, “Neither do I. In fact, I’m...
Sept. 30 – Oct. 4, 2019
Monday 1 John 2:18-27 “From that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David.” (1 Samuel 16:13) Samuel anointed the boy David to be king. In an instant, God changed the trajectory of David’s life. The anointing—the Holy Spirit—would affect his life forever. The anointing would get him into scrapes (Saul trying...
September 23 – 27, 2019
Monday 1 John 2:12-14 We went to Alaska a few summers ago and experienced the super growth of local gardens due to the nearly endless hours of sunshine in July. Life was evident everywhere. Where there is life, there will be growth. And where there is growth, there is life. And that is true in...
September 16 – 20, 2019
Monday 1 John 2:6 “Those of us who aspire to live in Jesus are to live as He lived.” —1 John 2:6 How did Jesus live? And how can we live like that? Reading and studying the gospels helps us to understand how Jesus lived. First, Jesus lived in fellowship with and in union with...