They had been fishing all night and had nothing to show for it. That meant nothing to take to the market and no wages for their long night’s work. That’s the way it is with fishing sometimes— every fisherman knows that. Peter was a little disappointed and more than a little tired. They were washingContinue reading “Swollen Nets and Shattered Hearts”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
Living Richly
Some context for 1 Timothy 6. Paul has just presented Timothy with a profile of some of the people who will not “agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching” (1 Timothy 6:3). He tells us they possessed “an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words” (v. 4). Continue reading “Living Richly”
Standing Firm
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends! (Philippians 4:1) Firmness is a good thing! We don’t want it everywhere, but in some things it is an absolute necessity. Where in the world would we be without firmness in parenting,Continue reading “Standing Firm”
What is God Saying to Us?
We’re doing a study of Luke’s gospel at Tenth Street. Our goal is to interact with the text in a way that results in us gaining a clear sense of how God is using it to speak to us today. Of course, this should be the goal of all Bible study, but it can sometimesContinue reading “What is God Saying to Us?”
From Groaning to Glory (1)
Romans 8:18-25 is one of the lesser known passages in Paul’s letter to the disciples at Rome. But lesser known doesn’t mean lesser value and we’ll see Paul has some profound things to say in this text. Let’s start with a little background on the church at Rome. The disciples at Rome had their shareContinue reading “From Groaning to Glory (1)”
From Groaning to Glory (2)
Paul told the disciples at Rome they were headed for glory through the resurrection of their bodies. But that’s not all he had to say on the subject. There was something else that was headed for the same glory—creation! Let’s look at his words in Romans 8:18-25. Creation and humanity have the same origin andContinue reading “From Groaning to Glory (2)”
Mary Takes a Trip
Mary’s trip to see her relative, Elizabeth, is one of those episodes that’s unique to Luke’s gospel. In this early section of his gospel, Luke is showing Theophilus how God broke into the world to set up the kingdom of Jesus. Rather than tapping into existing power structures like the Roman Empire or the Jewish aristocracy,Continue reading “Mary Takes a Trip”
Scattered
The word “scattered” is used only four times in the book of Acts, but its significance is much greater than that number would suggest. By the time Luke wrote his gospel, “scattered” had a well-established meaning. It went back to the days of Babel when the people rebelled against God’s purpose for them to spreadContinue reading “Scattered”
It Seemed Good to Me
When Luke was writing the introduction to his gospel, he noted two groups of people: The first group would be the apostles, and the other would be a second generation of disciples who came after them. Luke would be part of that group. So, he began his treatise to Theophilus by acknowledging the original communicatorsContinue reading “It Seemed Good to Me”
Meditating on God’s Word
One of my favorite borrowed sayings goes something like this: “Our goal isn’t to get through the Scripture as much as it is for the Scripture to get through us.” I like that because I know from personal experience how easy it is to get distracted as you work your way through Scripture. You’re busyContinue reading “Meditating on God’s Word”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 