Discovering the Bible – Page 2

Romans 6:1-11 💛 Your Purpose in the Kingdom

girl looking over the water with her arms up in the air as if in joy for knowing her purpose

This whole chapter in Romans talks about sin, but we’re just looking at the first 11 verses. There’s plenty of nuggets here for us to cherish. Since our theme is “Seeking the Kingdom of God,” we may be thinking that we’re looking for a place. Where is the kingdom of God exactly? For purposes of our reflections, it’s where Jesus rules as king. That should be in our lives here and now, just as well as our eternal home in heaven.

Our reading today talks about how the power of sin has been broken. That’s a good thing because our sin is what puts a wedge between us and God. Paul’s words are challenging to understand at first, aren’t they? Paul describes how our lives are changed because of what Jesus did for us. Jesus paid for our sins with his life.

Matthew 6:25-34 💗 Focus on the Right Thing

Read Matthew 6:25-34

Our final theme will be “Seeking God’s Kingdom.” Whether we have been Christ followers our whole life or just for a short time, our homing device is set inside us, inspiring us to seek God’s kingdom. Where do we look? What are we looking to find? We’ll look for clues over the rest of the readings in this series.

In this reading, we are reminded we often focus on the wrong thing. We let the worries of the day crowd our head. It’s nearly impossible to be truly seeking God’s kingdom or even his will for our lives when our minds are clouded with things that shouldn’t matter. When is the last time you truly had a worry-free day?

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 💜 Be Loveable and Love Others

Read 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

1 Corinthians 13:`13 - But the Great of these is love. Surrounded by a heart of words that say: Hope, Love, Faith over and over

Known as the “love chapter,” we see here how God desires us to live. That has been our focus over the past week. What a powerful passage to bring this theme to a conclusion. We know we are to love God and love others. But what is love? These verses beautifully showcase what love is as well as what it is not.

Paul uses actions words to describe love; it’s patient and kind. Love is not merely a feeling at all. When we love someone else, we exhibit patience and kindness towards them. If you struggle at times, it might help to think about the patience and kindness God has extended to you. It’s hard to say we love someone if we’re mean to them. Our love will be tested by circumstance, but even in the hard times love will prevail in the ways described here.

Acts 15:1-35 💚 Be Welcoming

Read Acts 15:1-35

If you’ve ever been part of a business start-up or even a new church plant, then you know the importance of setting boundaries and expectations. Our reading today is about one of those early meetings of church leaders to discuss issues facing the people. After all, anytime people gather, it’s a given that issues will arise.

We’re in the midst of themed readings focusing on “Living as God Desires.” To see how these early church leaders handle a very sensitive issue gives us clues to how we should act when leading groups we’re in charge of. The leaders sought God’s intentions. They had respectful discussion. When a decision had been reached, they were quick and diligent in communicating it with any and all parties who needed to hear it.

Matthew 5:17-48 💙 Jesus Fulfills the Law

Read Matthew 5:17-48

“Living as God Desires” can be hard for some people when they try to be legalistic about the laws laid out in the Old Testament. It helps to understand the laws were put in place to help guide and protect people while drawing them into an obedient relationship with God. Jesus tells us in this passage, near the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, that he fulfills the laws and writings of the prophets.

Can you imagine what people hearing those words the first time must have thought? That’s a bold claim. How does it work exactly? Jesus wanted us to know that God’s commandments are important, and we are not to forget them. It’s like Jesus “updates” them a bit here to make them more relevant to the people. He also spent a lot of time talking about a lot of other topics during his full sermon in Matthew Chapters 5-7.