John is speaking of the confidence we have in prayer in 1 John 5:14-15. Building on the theme of assurance that runs throughout the letter (note all the places where the word “know” is used), he wants us to understand that when we ask anything according to His will, it will be granted! God isn’tContinue reading “To Pray or not to Pray? (The Sin Leading to Death)”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
Blessed Are The Refreshers!
Paul’s second letter to Timothy was probably written no more than a couple of years after his first. While Timothy was still laboring away at Ephesus, Paul’s circumstances had changed quite dramatically. He was no longer in Macedonia, but in prison at Rome for a second time. And unlike his house-arrest at the end ofContinue reading “Blessed Are The Refreshers!”
This Is Love!
The Gnostic influencers John was opposing in 1 John were not known for their love. They were spiritual elitists. Anyone who was “in the know” as they were was okay, but everyone else was looked down upon in contempt. They were like some of the religious officials of Jesus’ day “who were confident of theirContinue reading “This Is Love!”
What Are You Doing?
Why is it whenever someone starts to talk about keeping God’s commands, people get uneasier than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rockers? Why when John pointedly tells us, “His commands are not burdensome” (1 John 5:13), do so many people act like they are? Well, what are you doing? 1 John Home
The Joy of Obedience
1 John is a brief but marvelously rich letter. But when you first get into it, there’s a good possibility it will overwhelm you with its repetition of a cluster of words. In its 105 verses, “know” is used 32 x’s, “love” is used 27 x’s, “sin” is used 20 x’s, “life” and “brother” areContinue reading “The Joy of Obedience”
The Spreading Flame
Fire pits are enjoying quite a bit of popularity these days. They seem to be everywhere. Aside from the aesthetics of a fire (which to me are substantial), there are also few things that are physically more pleasing than the warm comfort it provides when we are cold. Our Father created our bodies in such a way thatContinue reading “The Spreading Flame”
Living in the Light
John assures the disciples he is writing in 1:1-4 of his first letter that the message they had shared with them about Christ was rooted in historical reality. There were Gnostic influencers who were spreading the heresy that Christ had not come in the flesh (see this in 2 John v. 7). John wants themContinue reading “Living in the Light”
For the Bible Tells Me So
Back when peoplewrote letters, they did so for lots of reasons. They wanted to stay in contact with a loved one from whom they were separated (this was especially true in the days before there were phones and later when people had phones but long-distance calls were expensive). They also wrote to share news (thisContinue reading “For the Bible Tells Me So”
Getting Started in Proverbs
Our church went through the book of Proverbs this summer. I put together an acrostic as kind of a review, but I think it works equally well as an introduction to the book—if you don’t take it as any sort of final word but use it as a starting point for stepping into this wonderfulContinue reading “Getting Started in Proverbs”
Baptism And Wedding Vows
If you listen closely to the vows couples exchange during a wedding ceremony (whether they are traditional or ones they have written), they all have the same intent and purpose and say the same thing. They are promises that each will commit themselves to the attitudes and actions conducive to happy, healthy marriage. No oneContinue reading “Baptism And Wedding Vows”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 