Opening the Bible – Page 5 – A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green

Trust God and Put Your Name On It

If you think about the time you spent in school, nearly everyone would agree that they didn’t look forward to test day. Even if you were good at tests, it wasn’t a day you circled on your calendar and anticipated with eagerness and enthusiasm. Even though the nicest of teachers would try to calm ourContinue reading “Trust God and Put Your Name On It”

Too Wonderful for Words

When Peter wrote to the Jewish disciples dispersed in the five Roman provinces of Asia Minor (present day Turkey), he told them that even though they hadn’t seen Jesus (as he had), they loved and believed in Him. As a result, they were filled with an “inexpressible and glorious joy” (1:8). It’s that word “inexpressible”Continue reading “Too Wonderful for Words”

Thinking about Reverence

There’s something about Jesus’ cleansing of the temple that is startling. It seems out of character with Him, but it’s not. It’s simply out of character with the Jesus we have created—the One who accepts everybody and everything and makes no demands on anyone. Let me suggest if Jesus was really like that no oneContinue reading “Thinking about Reverence”

Living as Exiles

Peter wrote to “exiles scattered throughout” five Roman provinces that served as a land bridge between Europe and Asia known to us today as Turkey. They were Jewish communities who had been displaced from their homeland of Israel and were referred to as the diaspora (lit., “scattered”). The Assyrians, Babylonians, and Romans all had a part inContinue reading “Living as Exiles”

Preparing for PRAYER

1 Peter is packed with practical instruction for living out the story of Jesus. One thing he gives quite a bit of attention to is our mindset and attitude. In 1:13 we are told to have “minds that are alert and fully sober.” In 5:8 it is “Be alert and of sober mind.” And inContinue reading “Preparing for PRAYER”

Making Sense of 1 Peter

There are a lot of moving parts in 1 Peter; so that as you make your way through the letter it can seem like a hodgepodge of loosely related discussions rather than a single, cohesive message. After all, he moves from “inexpressible and glorious joy” (1:8), to submitting to the civil authorities (2:13), to ChristContinue reading “Making Sense of 1 Peter”

Dinner for 13

With less than twenty-four hours remaining in His life, Jesus holds a meeting with His twelve apostles in an upper room. Luke tells us He “eagerly desired” to do this (22:15). Though He has next to nothing in terms of worldly possessions, He very much wants to leave them with something to mark the moment—somethingContinue reading “Dinner for 13”

We Have Seen His Glory

After Israel had completed construction of the tabernacle, “the glory of the Lord” filled it (Ex. 40:34), providing the nation the occasion to once again witness the greatness of God. So majestic was the Lord’s glory that Moses was unable to enter the tabernacle (v. 35)! Wherever Israel went, God’s glory went with them (v.Continue reading “We Have Seen His Glory”

They Missed It!

John offers more to us about the “funeral” of Lazarus than just his resurrection (though who would wish to minimize the significance of that?). He tells us about two different responses people had to this great miracle of Jesus. One reaction is not surprising; but the other is as disappointing as it is difficult to comprehend. TheContinue reading “They Missed It!”

What Sets Us Free

“Truth” is a big word in the Scripture (and life), so it’s no surprise that we find John employing the word a number of times in his gospel (23). Fittingly, he initially uses it to tell us that Jesus is “full of grace and truth” (1:14). There was veracity in the covenant that God brought through Moses, but theContinue reading “What Sets Us Free”