When Paul talks about honoring the elders in today’s Bible reading*, he isn’t talking about honoring your parents or honoring people who are older than you. He’s talking about honoring church elders. Elders in the First Century church were pastors and mature men who had been called to provide spiritual and financial leadership for the…
Paul continues to address the Corinthians regarding the financial support of God’s work in today’s Bible reading*. He summarizes his appeal, “The point is this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 (CSB) Note that Paul doesn’t use manipulation. He…
In today’s Bible reading*, Paul talks about people supporting his mission work. He says that even in the midst of financial hardship, the Macedonian churches gave out of their poverty to support God’s work. He says, ” I can testify that, according to their ability and even beyond their ability, of their own accord, they…
Again, I’ll highlight what I have said before, that when you see a word or phrase repeated in close proximity in the Bible, it’s a signal of its importance. In today’s Bible reading*, Paul uses reconcile five times in only three verses. (2 Corinthians 5:18-20) The word reconcile is used in accounting. You may have…
I’ve said many times that when you see a word or idea repeated several times in a few Bible verses, it’s a pretty good sign that the word or idea is important. Well, in today’s Bible reading* the word “comfort” appears nine times in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7. That’s nine times in five verses! It’s safe…