Category: Morning Musings

Morning Musing: Philippians 1:9-11

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“And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

It is popular nowadays to talk about the all-encompassing power and importance of love.  We are sometimes led to believe that if we do nothing other than love each other, our lives will be perfectly harmonious and the world will have all of its problems resolved.  But, while love is certainly the chief of the virtues–there’s no question on that fact in the Scriptures–contrary to popular theology and the Beatles popular song, love is not all we need. Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Revelation 22:12 Part 1

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“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

There are two ideas in Jesus’ words here that are absolutely essential to understand if we are going to do life well during our time on earth.  The first reminds us that how we live now matters.  The second reminds us of our desperate need for grace.  We’ll tackle one this morning, and one on Monday morning. Read the rest…

Morning Musing: Jeremiah 29:10-14

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“For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.  For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you.  You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.  I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Promises like these in the Old Testament are encouraging almost beyond words.  To find ourselves in the midst of a truly difficult season–especially one in which we are reaping the bitter fruits of time spent sowing unrighteousness in our lives and the lives of those around us–and to encounter these kinds of reassurances to a people who were in just that kind of a situation, gives us hope that the mess doesn’t need to be our end either.  But in this hope and encouragement that God is for us, these promises were intended to accomplish something even more important. Read the rest…

Morning Musings: Galatians 2:20

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“I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

At first read, this is a pretty far-out there claim for Paul to make.  I mean, as far as an objective fact goes it is totally false.  He was not crucified with Christ.  As far as we know, he was not anywhere nearby when Jesus was crucified.  More than that, given where he was theologically then, he would have been part of the crowd cheering on the event.  He would likely have been glad to have been able to drive the nails into His hands and feet himself.  So what does he mean? Read the rest…