Tag: kindness
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Reconciling Fruit
Psalm 144; Isaiah 27:1–6; 2 Corinthians 5:17–21 (ISV) In times to come, Jacob will take root, and Israel will blossom, sprout shoots, and fill the whole world with fruit. Isaiah 27:6 ISV All of this comes from God, who has reconciled us to himself through the Messiah and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 2 Corinthians…
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Roads and Gates
Psalm 113; Matthew 7:13–23; John 14:1–7 (read online ⧉) “I am the way, the truth, and the life…” is often presented in the same vein as “…the narrow gate.” Yet, “the way” isn’t the same. The Greek ὁδός (hodos) is a relatively generic term that is used to mean a wide road to a narrow…
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Community for Others
Psalm 118:19–29; Deuteronomy 16:1–8; Philippians 2:1–11 (read online ⧉) The brief summary of Passover reminds the Israelites of how, as a community, they are to celebrate it. When Passover was established (Exodus 12) there was a strong community aspect to it insofar as sharing the sacrificial lamb. If a family was too small, they were…
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Let It Be
Psalm 112:1–9, Colossians 3:12–17, James 3:13–18 (read online ⧉) Galatians 5:22–23 lists the following as fruits of the spirit: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. 2 Peter 1:5–7 lists the following characteristics to pursue: faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, love. 1 Timothy 6:11 has its own list of characteristics:…
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Trust But Verify
Luke 19:1–10, 1 John 4:10, Romans 8:22–28 (read online ⧉) You may or may not have heard that a famous person has publicly proclaimed that he has “found” Jesus Christ. Many Christians have not accepted this person’s conversion. It’s not as if this is a new thing. Not really. Over the years there have been…
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From the Heart
Colossians 3:12–17 οἰκτιρμοῦ (oiktirmou) :: mercy and concern with sensitivity and compassion χρηστότητα (chrēstotēta) :: giving to or providing for a person as an act of kindness ταπεινοφροσύνην (tapeinophrosynē) :: humble attitude and without arrogance πραΰτητα (prautēta) :: gentleness of attitude and behavior / not harsh with others μακροθυμίαν (makrothymian) :: emotional calm despite provocation…
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Foundations and Firmaments
Psalm 148, Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:41-52 What are your thoughts when reading Psalm 149? Do you ever think of all of Creation praising God, the Creator? If you haven’t seen Louie Giglio’s Stars and Whales (link below), I strongly recommend it. To think that it is not just us (human beings) that are called and…