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Key Verse: 1 Peter 3:15, 16a “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defence to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience…” There’s a difference between being able to “give a defence” and […]

Key Verse: 1 Peter 2:2 “…as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby…” A newborn baby is voracious — he lives to eat. His whole world is committed to survival. And his parents (especially his mother!) must align their lives to that infant’s appetite for life. One of […]

Key Verse: 1 Peter 1:3-5 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an in hesitance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in […]

Key Verse: James 5:20 “…Whoever turns a sinner from the error his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins” (NIV). In the context, the key verse is the continuation of a sentence which begins, “My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring […]

Key Verse: James 4:7, 8a “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” Years ago the American comedian Flip Wilson used to get lots of laughs when he would look innocently into the camera and explain some fictional bad […]

Matthew 5  The Pure in Heart v.8 – Part 2 Long before Jesus, the Psalms expressed the genius of the pure in heart: “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol […]

  Recently my wife and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary. We’re a bit in shock. How does this happen? We feel like it’s been around 20 years. 50 means we’re really old no? But the clock won’t be stopped. The only comfort is that we’re all aging, and at the same rate! At a […]

Key Verse: James 3:2 “For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.” If, indeed, the writer of this letter was Jesus’ half-brother, then it should comfort us to hear him say, “We all stumble in many things”. […]

Key Verse: James 2:18 “But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” One of the great statements from the letter of James is, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: […]

Key Verse: James 1:22 “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” I like the way the NIV puts it, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” There are three subjects for discussion here: 1. listening to the word, 2. self-deception, and 3. […]

Key Verse: Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever ” (NIV). Chapter 13 is sort of a postscript to the letter. The conclusion of the writer’s thought on the subject of Jesus’ superiority over the Law is “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be […]

Key Verse: Hebrews 12:22-24 “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, who names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, […]