God loves us – Be Still…

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 – What is Love?

Clearly, God desires that we love others. In our world today, the word love gets shuffled around a bit carelessly. We say we love chocolate or love to stay up late and sleep in. Love is so much more than that, especially the Biblical love God intends for his people to share with Him and others. These verses give us a glimpse of what love is and is not.

How great is it that we have such great advice about love in the Bible! It shouldn’t surprise us that much because God calls us to love him and love each other. Understanding what love is all about helps us succeed at being better lovers. We also know that God loves us unconditionally. John 3:16 says, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” Continue reading “1 Corinthians 13:1-13 – What is Love?”

John 14:15-29 – What a Promise!

Read John 14:15-29

Our reading today kicks off our new theme of “The Holy Spirit & Prayer.” We hear directly from Jesus as he promises the Holy Spirit to his disciples. You can imagine those close friends were a bit perplexed about the whole notion of an Advocate like this. Little did they know as they heard these words that this would be their last meal with Jesus.

This whole passage is full of wisdom Jesus wanted to make sure he shared. We’ll be discussing this very passage as part of our Bible study with the orphanage youth group tomorrow night. I am always excited when I can encounter the same passage more than once in the same week. There is likely a very profound message for me in this text. Let’s explore it together. Continue reading “John 14:15-29 – What a Promise!”

1 John 1:5-10 – Confess It!

Read 1 John 1:5-10

Here again, we see the recurring theme of darkness versus light. Because of our sinful nature as humans, we are always going to have a toe dipped into darkness. Only God is completely light. We can’t appreciate our salvation and forgiveness of sins without acknowledging that we regularly fall short of God’s desires for us.

Have you ever noticed how people try to avoid the subject of sin altogether? Do we think that if we don’t acknowledge sin, it doesn’t exist? We assume people who don’t attend church or read the Bible don’t even know they’re sinning in the first place. But for those of us who have begun to understand the grip of sin and what that means for us, we still don’t want to talk about it or admit to our failures. But we’re called to confess our sins to God, not sweep them under the rug. Continue reading “1 John 1:5-10 – Confess It!”

Lamentations 3:22-23 – God’s Faithfulness

“The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

How timely this message is! God’s faithfulness is indeed “great,” and his mercies “never cease.” That’s all because he loves us so much. His faithful love remains no matter what terrible things we do. We can always rely on the promise of these verses no matter what is happening in our lives.

Context (Lamentations 3): The prophet Jeremiah is believed to have written Lamentations, and this chapter speaks of his hope in the Lord’s faithfulness. Jeremiah endured many hardships as a prophet of the LORD, and yet his own faith rings out in these verses as he recounts the trials of the people along with the never-ending faithfulness of God. Continue reading “Lamentations 3:22-23 – God’s Faithfulness”

John 14:21 – Intimate Relationship

“Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.” (John 14:21)

Doesn’t God love the whole world? Yes, he does! But Jesus promises us a deeper, more intimate love from the Father when we show Jesus we love him. We’re like one big happy family full of love. Sounds nice, doesn’t it?

Context (John 14:15-26): These are Jesus’ words telling his disciples and us about the promised helper, the Holy Spirit he’s going to send them. Jesus openly acknowledges that his followers are set apart and will receive special treatment from God for their obedience. The relationship between Jesus and his followers is intimate and personal. This promise from Jesus is for all who love him. Continue reading “John 14:21 – Intimate Relationship”