The words godliness and godly are found 25 times in the New Testament with 11 of those occurrences being in Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus. That’s a high concentration and out of proportion with the words’ infrequent usage in the rest of the NT. In fact, when the words are used, they tend toContinue reading “Godliness And Baseball Gloves”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
Work And The Image Of God
Of all the things that were created, Moses tells us there is nothing like man. Only man is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). I understand this phrase to be speaking about not what man is made of, but what he is made for. Notice the language of verse 26, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness,Continue reading “Work And The Image Of God”
When God Weeps
Judgment is something most people (believers and unbelievers), would rather not hear or think about. I understand that. It’s kind of like hearing about income taxes or estate planning— even though we might understand the inevitability and importance of such matters, they’re never going to be something we are eager about. And while judgment shouldn’t be something disciples major in, we’re doing no one any favorsContinue reading “When God Weeps”
This Is Where Kings Come From
As you read through the early part of the book of Ruth, you get the impression that Naomi wants nothing to do with anything or anyone connected with her life in Moab. She has lost her husband and two sons during her decade there and her thinking seems to be that going to Moab was a tragicContinue reading “This Is Where Kings Come From”
The Hope Powered Life
He was from a family of 12 other siblings along with a father and four mothers—and all of them living together under the same roof! At 17 he became the victim of human trafficking (sold into such a situation by no less than his brothers). By the grace of God he landed on his feet in aContinue reading “The Hope Powered Life”
There Is One God!
Knowing the idolatrous environment that existed in where they had been (Egypt), and in where they were going (Canaan), it’s hard to read Genesis 1 and not see it (at least at one level), as an emphatic rebuke of polytheism and its “god for everything” approach. Israel is told in no uncertain terms that the God who madeContinue reading “There Is One God!”
Starry, Starry Night
Northern California is the location of the giant sequoia trees. According to information from The Sequoia National Park website, the tallest of them tops out at somewhere around 300 feet with a base circumference of 40 feet. Their branches can be up to 8 feet in diameter and their bark is three feet thick. They weigh up to 2.7 millionContinue reading “Starry, Starry Night”
Oscar And Joseph
As much as I love movies, I haven’t been able to watch the Academy Awards for years. Actors and actresses preening on the red carpet; wearing the best clothes money can rent, with the best bodies surgery can produce, sporting some of the most decadent lifestyles and troubled relationships you could imagine — and all competingContinue reading “Oscar And Joseph”
Losing Our Religion
Morning Edition recently did a series called Losing Our Religion. Predictably, it focused on the demise of organized religion. The segment I listened to quoted the Pew Research Center’s findings that one-third of people under 30 have opted out of any religious affiliation. They are known as the nones. (To me, the more compelling storyline would have beenContinue reading “Losing Our Religion”
Limping Into The Sunrise (1)
Whatever conclusions you draw about Jacob’s character (or the lack of it), you have to grant that he had some help getting there. His grandfather and father struggled with telling the truth at times (Genesis 12:11ff, 20:1ff, 26:7ff), while his mother, Rebekah, instigated and served as his accomplice in the deception of his father, Isaac (27:5ff).Continue reading “Limping Into The Sunrise (1)”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 