THE INCREDIBLE GREATNESS OF GOD’S POWER FOR BELIEVERS Paul prayed that the believers in Ephesus would understand the incredible greatness of God’s power. Why? That they might live by faith in His power rather than their own. Do you want to see the wonder-working power of Christ in our world today? Then put away human… Read more »
One Year Bible Devotions
All One Year Bible devotions are based on the One Year Bible Online Reading Plan
“After Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it, he went up to the Lord’s Temple and spread it out before the Lord” (Isaiah 37:14 NLT).
SPREAD YOUR TROUBLES OUT BEFORE THE LORD When King Sennacherib sent a letter threatening Jerusalem, King Hezekiah put on burlap, went up to the Temple, and spread the letter out on the floor for the Lord to consider. God heard his prayer and defended him. What threat do you fear today? Have you brought it… Read more »
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there” (Galatians 5:20 NLT).
CHRISTIANITY IS NOT A SELF-IMPROVEMENT COURSE The apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Galatia instructing them to be like executioners, dealing cruelly with their own sin. Our human tendency however, is to deal cruelly with the sin of others, rather than our own. For when we see sin in others, we do not hesitate… Read more »
“I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer” (Psalms 63:4 NLT).
DAVID’S SWEET PSALM OF PRAYER AND PRAISE David made a commitment to praise and pray to the Lord all the days of his life. The superscription of this psalm states that David was in the wilderness of Judah when he wrote it. Many scholars believe it was written during the time he was hiding from… Read more »
“Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him” (Psalms 62:5 NLT).
HOW DO WE LET ALL THAT WE ARE WAIT QUIETLY ON GOD? Do many opinions seem to be battling it out within your mind? You try to quiet the many voices, so that You can hear the most important One, but try as you may the cacophony remains. Ask the Lord to help you, so… Read more »
“Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock” (Isaiah 26:4 NLT).
TRUST IN THE LORD ALWAYS When all else fails, we tend to finally shift our trust to the Lord. Yet Isaiah calls us to a better way. Trust in the Lord “always.” Those who try to take a stand on sand soon discover it only seems to work on sunny days. As soon as clouds… Read more »
“How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?” (Galatians 3:3 NLT).
LIVE IN THE SPIRIT, NOT BY HUMAN EFFORT The apostle Paul warned the believers in Galatia not to foolishly give up their freedom in Christ to be entangled once again under a yoke of slavery to religious rule-keeping. For if we are saved by faith, we must live and walk by faith. Self-effort neither saves… Read more »
“Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law” (Galatians 2:16a NLT).
JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH IN CHRIST ALONE Justification is the doctrine that God pardons, accepts, and declares a sinner to be just, “made right with God,” on the basis of Christ’s righteousness. Justification is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ apart from works. Paul was concerned that the Christians at Galatia, who had received… Read more »
“I received my message from no human source, and no one taught me. Instead, I received it by direct revelation from Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:12 NLT).
THE GOSPEL IS FROM CHRIST, NOT MAN The apostle Paul wrote to the believers in the Galatian churches to explain where he had received his gospel message. He wanted them to know that he had received it by personal, “direct revelation” from the Lord Jesus Christ. This is what it meant to be an “apostle,”… Read more »
“May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14 NLT).
A BEAUTIFUL BENEDICTION With this beautiful benediction, Paul closed his second letter to the Corinthians. Paul’s trinitarian blessing bestowed three powerful attributes of the Godhead upon the believers at Corinth: 1) The “grace” (χάρις – charis) of Jesus. Which is Christ’s free and unmerited favor. 2) The “love” (ἀγάπη – agape) of God. Which is… Read more »