Category: Bible (Page 103 of 424)

Every election cycle features boasting. Candidates tout their credentials and brag on either the wonderful job they’ve done while in office, or will do if elected. With so many seemingly talented people it’s hard to believe we face any problems at all. Snide comments aside, I’m thankful for our system of government and value my right to vote for the candidates of my choice, even if democracy comes with lots of noise.

While it’s a necessary component of running for office, the Scriptures reminds me that if I’m going to boast, then I should boast in the right things:

This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.

In the midst of calamity Jeremiah reminded listeners to pursue the Lord, to grow in their knowledge of their savior, and to discern his ways. Then trumpet the goodness of God.

Responding to false teachers puffing up their credentials, Paul bragged in an unorthodox way: If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. Paul’s weaknesses elevated the Lord in the eyes of his listeners. He followed, Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

The message? Deprecate my own wonderful self and talk big about God. Get out of the way and allow the awareness of the Lord to shine. When it comes to divine communication, the less the messenger demands attention the more power accompanies the message.

Politicians sing their own praises, that’s a part of getting elected. But when those of us who follow Jesus start boasting, let’s lay it on thick about the Lord.

Jeremiah 9; 2 Corinthians 11 & 12 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Jon Tyson

We all face times of decision in life—crossroads of one type or another. Occasionally choices are obvious, but mostly we pass through a series of small decisions leading us down paths we failed to anticipate.

Jeremiah wrote to his people who had chosen a road away from the Lord’s direction. Mired in greed and detestable conduct, they faced an impending disaster. The Lord’s patience wore thin, but still He left a route of return.

This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.

Tragically, the people of Jerusalem refused paths carved by the Lord, and veered instead down a highway to hell on earth. They chose poorly.

Ask where the good way is, and walk in it. The crossroads remain in place. Take up the Good Book, discover the ways found within, and put them into practice. The Lord walks along the ancient paths, and there we will find that most elusive of wonders—rest for our souls.

Jeremiah 6 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Oliver Roos

I like generous people. I know many, and am the recipient of their thoughtfulness. But in the workings of society, generosity gets subsumed by consumption. How do I keep generosity in mind as I manage my affairs?

I gain encouragement from Paul when he wrote, Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Years ago someone shared with me this acronym about generous giving — LIFE. I carry the potential to help others with my Labor, my Influence, my Finances, and my Expertise.

I add my labor by helping a neighbor clean up their yard, or serving at church setting up for a funeral service. My influence helps friends meet a missionary raising funds to reach the field. Giving financially is most understood and most easily practiced, but the area of expertise takes some thought—what has the Lord made me especially good at that I could use to help others? I know friends handy with tools who work on widow’s houses free of charge. What do I have to offer?

Paul leaves the possibilities wide-open— give how you want with no obligation, just do so with optimism and good will. Generosity will rebound in delightful and unexpected ways.

Generosity gets easier the more I practice. The positive cycle of sowing and reaping gains momentum. The Lord, always open-handed, allows me to participate in his generosity for the benefit of both myself and those around me.

2 Corinthians 9 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Joel Muniz

I try to be a generous giver. I help with needs in my community, I support my church, and I give towards missions efforts around the world. So I feel pretty good about giving at the level of my ability.

But Paul writes a pesky line in a letter to the church members in Corinth. While encouraging them to give generously, he praised the efforts of a set of sister churches in Macedonia: In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability.

How did these impoverished believers give beyond their ability? These were not wealthy people with money to move from one account to another. They didn’t cash in bonds or sell real estate. They possessed very little. It seems to me that the Lord provided them excess funds in some unexpected way, which they sent to a severe need facing the believers in far distant Jerusalem.

The Lord blessed them with extra which they gave away, resulting in more blessings from the Lord. Perhaps not financial, but certainly eternal. A virtuous cycle ensued.

Try a faith experiment based on this type of giving. Perhaps you have a cause or person on your heart you would like to support, but you don’t have the funds to help. Why not pray and ask the Lord to send you extra to give away? Ask God to help give beyond your ability? We can attempt this experiment without telling anyone, but simply ask the Lord and see how He provides.

Sounds crazy, but God works through crazy, and perhaps we can also experience the thill of giving beyond our ability.

2 Corinthians 8 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Josh Appel