2 Corinthians 11:16-23 God knew what He was doing when He used ordinary people to write His Word. He knew that if the Bible was filled with nothing but scholarly dissertations, it would be difficult for some of us to follow along. In 2 Corinthians 11, the ordinary human is…
Psalm 112:1-10 Throughout all ages, wicked people have done wicked things in the name of security and support. The end justifies the means. Psalm 112 speaks to a different reality than our own. Ours is a time when people believe that to get ahead, one must lie, cheat, steal, and…
Philippians 4:13-23 Context matters a lot. Paul says that he can do “all this through him who gives me strength” (v. 13). Some read this to mean that Paul can do all things. What he really means is, “I have learned the secret of being content in any and every…
2 Corinthians 9:8-15 These words seem like they could come from a millionaire televangelist urging people to donate “seed-faith” so that God can richly bless them as they want. Unfortunately, many people have a health-and-wealth faith, believing that God blesses people based on their level of faith. These words seem…
2 Corinthians 9:1-7 In 2 Corinthians 9, Paul seems to have gotten in front of his skis some. He had spent considerable time with the Corinthians and thought he had a good relationship with them. They had been generous and open with him. While visiting other towns, he boasted about…
2 Corinthians 8:16-24 When it comes to money, maybe we should begin by telling one another what we make.” Stanley Hauerwas has said this, or something like this, on numerous occasions. He knew that money is an idol that can linger in churches. He argued that too many of us…
2 Corinthians 8:8-15 Paul often seems unrealistic in his writings, doesn’t he? In 2 Corinthians 8, he was writing to a church that was angry at him, and he expected them to love Jesus more than anything else. He expected them to look beyond their frustration with him, to love…
2 Corinthians 8:1-7 Churches often speak about tithing or giving as a duty or a discipline, but that is not the language Paul uses. He calls it the “grace of giving.” What Paul rightly saw was that “Life does not consist in an abundance of possessions” (Luke 12:15). In fact…
Psalm 69:4-13 There are times when it feels like the entire world is against us. We begin to worry about who is whispering behind our backs, what they are plotting and planning. It can be deeply frightening and anxiety-inducing. The enemy of our souls can take a kernel of truth…
Job 33:19-30 We started our first church board meeting of the year, taking turns as each person shared the story of their salvation. One by one, each one spoke. Do you remember when you came to faith in Jesus? Maybe it was as a child in a Sunday School class…