Category: Morning Musings

Morning Musing: Romans 8:33-34

1 Comment

“Who can bring an accusation against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies. Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the one who died, but even more, has been raised; he also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever been accused of something? Were you guilty of the thing you were accused of? If not, how did you defend yourself? If so, what did you do about it? Trying to defend or otherwise clear our name when it has been soiled somehow is no small task. It is made all the more difficult when we are trying to do it on our own. Well, as followers of Jesus, Paul says, we are not alone. Today, let’s take a look with Paul at another of the incredible blessings of the Gospel.

Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Romans 8:31-32

Leave a comment

“What, then, are we to say about these things?  If God is for us, who is against us? He did not even spare his own Son but gave him up for us all. How will he not also with him grant us everything?” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Over the last few weeks, we have walked with Paul as he has laid out some of the glories of the Gospel. He has talked about our freedom from condemnation in Christ. He has celebrated the presence of the Spirit in us. He has boasted of our adoption as children into God’s family. He has marveled at the access through prayer we have of God—with His help, no less. Most recently he has declared with wonder God’s ability to bring good to our lives regardless of the circumstances we face. Here at the end, through a series of three key questions, Paul ponders some of the implications of all these wonderful truths. Let’s take a look at each of them in turn.

Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Mark 10:17-18

Leave a comment

“As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, ‘Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ ‘Why do you call me good?’ Jesus asked him. ‘No one is good except God alone.’” (CSB – Read the chapter)

What good is God? That’s a question that doesn’t often get asked in church, but it probably should. A good, clear answer to it can give someone a world more confidence in the reasonableness of their faith. On the other hand, a bad answer can wipe someone’s faith out of existence. Even better than a good or bad answer, though, is a philosophically sound one. So then, what good is God? Let’s think on that for a few minutes together today.

Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Romans 8:23

Leave a comment

“Not only that, but we ourselves who have the Spirit as the firstfruits—we also groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

As a pastor, I’ve done a lot of funerals. Now, by virtue of pastoring churches with a number of young families that aren’t mostly gray-haired, aging congregations, I haven’t done as many as some guys who have been in ministry as long as I have, but I’ve done my fair share. There is a kind of groaning that comes with age. Some of it is, of course, physical and audible. But a bigger part is existential. We know we are slowly dying (or perhaps quickly dying depending on circumstances), and we long for relief from it. Not the relief of death, but something entirely more substantial than that. We long for restoration. Well, this is part of the Gospel’s good news. Let’s explore it some today.

Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Hebrews 10:13

1 Comment

“These all died in faith, although they had not received the things that were promised. But they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

It’s hard to work at one thing for a long time. It’s especially hard to do that nowadays when our attention spans have been shortened so much by television and smart phones and a digital media culture that gives preference to the quick glance over long engagement. It’s almost impossibly hard to do when we don’t ever see the end result of our efforts. Achieving that sort of thing takes vision; powerful vision. I’ve just finally finished watching the latest Star Wars property on Disney+. The second and final season of Andor is all about having just such a vision. Let’s talk about why you should watch it.

Continue reading “Morning Musing: Hebrews 10:13” →