Posts with the tag “week-51”

December 23rd1 Peter 5:12-14; 2 Peter 1:1-3:18.  “Living by Faith”“We may have as much of God as we will.  Christ puts the key of the treasure-chamber into our hand, and bids us take all that we want.  If a man is admitted into the bullion vault of a bank and told to help himself, and comes out with one cent, whose fault is it that he is poor.”     – Alexander MacLarenHave you ever found yourself ...  Read More

December 22nd1 Peter 2:4-5:11.  “Suffering”“I have given them your word.  And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not.  I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one.” – Jesus (John 17:14-15)For the first-century disciples, like Peter, suffering for the faith was a constant reality.  It did not bother Peter that Jes...  Read More

December 21stHebrews 13:1-25; 1 Peter 1:1-2:3.  “Holiness”In the forests of Northern Europe and Asia lives a little animal called the ermine, known for his snow-white fur in winter.  He instinctively protects his white coat against anything that would soil it.Hunters take advantage of this unusual trait of the ermine.  They don’t set a snare to catch him, but instead they find his home, which is u...  Read More

December 20thHebrews 11:1-12:29.  “Fear Not”For a long time, I read Hebrews 12:1-2 with fear.  I had always assumed that the “cloud of witnesses” were there to judge us as believers as to whether or not we are living up to their standard.  I was living a Christian life, constantly looking over my shoulder and concerned if I was doing it right all of the time.Then one day, someone pointed out that ...  Read More

December 19thHebrews 8:1-10:39.  “Tattooed”“Your body is the one thing you have ultimate control over.  Tattoos are a way of committing to something permanent and stable, of recording who and what you are right now” – Anne Velliquette, academic researcher commenting on the popularity of tattoos.It may surprise some of you to hear that I have a tattoo.  You may be even more surprised when I say tha...  Read More

December 18thHebrews 4:14-7:28.  “Listening”“You are young only once, but you can stay immature indefinitely” – Ogden NashHebrews 5:11-14 describes those Christians who are really not living the word in their daily lives.  Actually, according to the author of Hebrews, not only were they not living it, they were not even listening to it (Hebrews 5:11).  This reminds me of the times when I give my c...  Read More

For those of you who have been reading this devotional through the entire year, the end is almost in sight.  It has been a joy to journey though the scriptures with you and to help you discover the riches that the Word of God has for you.  My prayer is that your experience of reading through the entire Bible this year has been an exciting opportunity that has changed your life.  When you turn the calendar to January, I hope that you will now Live the Word.  James 1:22 says, “And remember, it (the word of God) is a message to obey, not just listen to.  If you don’t obey you are only fooling yourself.”  So, our theme this week, and I hope for the rest of your life, is to Live the Word.  Read More

December 17th2 Timothy 4:19-22; Hebrews 1:1-4:13.  “Living and Active”“The word, as indicated by the words ‘living and active,’ must not be thought of as a static speech-act.  Rather, it is a dynamic power that has the ability to effect change, both in the created order and in individual lives” – George H. GuthrieSo, what does it mean to “live the Word?”  A big part of the meaning has to do with o...  Read More