Celebrate Jesus Today’s passage: Luke 2:1–38 Focus verse:“I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.” (Luke 2:10) Joseph and his pregnant fiancée travel to Bethlehem for a mandatory census. Unable to find a place to stay, they hunker down in a barn. There, among the stench and filth of […]
A Time-Tested Statement of Faith A creed is a formal statement of faith that concisely summarizes core beliefs. A common Christian creed is the Apostles’ Creed. Another one is the Nicene Creed. The Nicene Creed stands as a doctoral standard for Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and most Protestant churches, which encompasses the vast majority of Christians. […]
Thief and Idol Maker Though Micah appears in the book of Judges, we’d be wrong to consider him a judge. He never judged or led the people. In fact, the Bible doesn’t record a single good thing he does. Here’s an overview: Micah steals eleven hundred shekels of silver from his mother. Not knowing who […]
Jesus Gathers Us Under His Wings A third word picture for God is found in a not too well know verse, where Jesus says that he wants to collect his people and protect them as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings (Matthew 23:37, Luke 13:34, Psalm 91:4, Psalm 57:1). With God (specifically Jesus) […]
In “Adam was a Vegetarian,” we looked at Genesis 9:2-3 were God added meat to mankind’s diet. There is another interesting item in that passage. In verse two, God says that from then on, all the animals would be afraid of people. We can infer that prior to that time, the animals were not afraid […]
The Messiah is Coming Today’s passage: Luke 1:26–80 Focus verse:“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.” (Luke 1:31) Six months later the angel, Gabriel, makes a return visit to earth. This time it’s to see Mary, a young girl, a virgin. Luke makes sure we don’t […]
A Careless Word or a Faith Reflection? The word just pops up often when it comes to prayers. Is it an idle word we say because we’ve heard others say it? Or does it reveal insight about how we view God? Regardless, we must be careful when we just pray. We Need to Just Pray […]
A Speculative Fiction Novella In her new role as High Priestess, Emma wants to bring about the release of the people arrested for heresy and sent for retraining. It’s her biggest challenge yet. But she doesn’t have a clue what to do. Well, she has ideas, but they’re nothing more than fanciful imagination. Each is […]
A Victorious Judge Who Makes a Foolish Vow Jephthah is the son of Gilead and a prostitute. Gilead and his wife have other sons, who drive Jephthah away, lest they must share their inheritance with him. Jephthah forms a gang of troublemakers. Some time later, the Ammonites fight Israel. In desperation, the elders of Gilead […]
Word Picture: Vine Another word picture to help us better understand God is that he is the vine and we are the branches. We can view God as a vine, as our vine. In this, God is revealed as the source of nourishment, the giver of life, and the means of support, sustenance, and existence. […]