For whosoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory Luke 9:26 Ashamed – We read these words and immediately exclaim, “I would never be ashamed of Jesus.” We think that what Jesus has in mind are acts that humiliate, like…
to the praise of the glory of His grace Ephesians 1:6 Praise – God chooses me. His choice exalts His Son. It reflects His character. It demonstrates His power. But it also has an eschatological purpose – a purpose that goes beyond the edge of this world. God chooses in order that He might be…
predestinating us to adoption through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will Ephesians 1:5 Good Pleasure – Why would God choose me? If you have never asked this question, you have never understood the true depravity of your soul. It is a travesty of modern Christianity that we almost see…
for us to be holy and without blemish before Him in love Ephesians 1:4 Before – Verbal imagery from the ancient world is often lost in contemporary language. Here we have a seemingly common preposition, but if we only could see the Greek, we would recognize something quite significant. The word is not the common…
according as He chose us in Him before the foundations of the world Ephesians 1:4 Chose – There are only a few verses that cause more argument than this one. Once we decide that our theology needs to close all the gaps, we are bound to confront that age-old question of predestination. But perhaps we…
Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ, who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies Ephesians 1:3 Blessed – There are two words for “blessed” in the New Testament. One is common to the Greek pattern of wise sayings that begin with makarios. You will find this in the…
remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. Ephesians 2:12 Hope – Human beings were made to hope. Hope sets us apart from the rest of animated creation. Hope determines our…
Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth. Proverbs 27:1 But now you boast in your presumptions. All such boasting is evil. James 4:16 Boast – Open your day planner. Look at the top of the page for tomorrow. Do you see God’s fingerprint there? If you…
He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus! Here! Outside!” John 11:43 Outside – Jesus has an exit strategy. Do you? Jesus’ exit strategy does not depend on any of life’s circumstances. Not even death! That’s the kind of exit strategy we all need. Too many times our plans really are nothing more than contingent…
Repent, therefore, and return, that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. Acts 3:19 Return – We know the word for repent. It is a word that means to change the place of your mind. In Hebrew, it is the word for…
