July 2 Paul could never be called a fly-by-night apostle. We have already seen how on multiple occasions, Paul and the other Apostles spent extended periods of time with new converts. They also frequently returned to established churches in order to spend more time with them. Here, in 1 Corinthians 4, Paul tells the church…
May 22 Dr. Luke begins Acts 13 with a little background about the church in Antioch. By this point in time, the church had organized to have prophets and teachers present. God established these positions, and the church recognized God’s gifting for each person’s tasks. (1 Corinthians 12:28) Everyone had his own part to play…
May 11 As the church grew, division began to grow. Some of the widows felt they were not being cared for as well as other widows were. Recognizing the growing cancer of division, and knowing they should guard against distractions, the Apostles told the church to choose seven men who were known for their character,…
January 24 John has much to say to us about authority and truth in this eighteenth chapter, and how we as humans can handle or mishandle it. Judas has now betrayed Jesus, selling his friendship for a mere thirty pieces of silver—the cost of a common slave. Think about the message in that… everything Judas…
In today’s Bible reading, Paul tells Timothy what to look for in church leaders. I don’t know that Paul’s checklist is so much a checklist as it is a reminder that character matters. And character matters … a lot. I find it interesting how Bible teachers and commentators read their Bibles. Many modern Bible teachers look at…
Many people believe that Christians should never take up arms, even in self-defense. But today’s Bible reading* gives a Biblical case against pacifism. When Nehemiah sees that his enemies are threatening to attack his builders, he prays for God’s protection. But not only did he pray for God’s intervention, he also placed a watchman on…
