Revelation of John 4 "What does it all mean?" For much of what is in Rev. 4, I don't have answers. It seems like John is stretching language to its very limits trying to convey something we have no context for understanding. But even if we fail to fully grasp what he is trying to describe for us, one thing comes across with crystal clarity: God, on His throne, is awe-...

1 John 4 We've seen by now how John is cycling through several themes in this epistle. Like a jeweler showing off a prized gemstone, each time John picks up a theme he has already addressed, he "rotates" it a little -- displaying it from a slightly different point of view -- and calls on us to take a fresh look at the new angles displayed. If we were to list the themes...

2 Timothy 1 I used to participate in a "ToastMasters" club. It's a club for people who want to improve their public speaking ability. One of its key tenets is "evaluate everything" -- after every opportunity anyone had to speak, even the smallest opportunities, we tried to give encouraging, constructive, meaningful advice about how they did and what they could improve. ...

2 Corinthians 10 In 2 Cor 10, Paul changes tone and topic. It will take more than one chapter to fully develop, but he clearly is expecting a difficult encounter with some of the believers in Corinth (we'll see in the next chapter that it is over a need to confront false teachers). He's appealing to them not to make it contentious but plainly wants them to know that th...

1 Corinthians 11 Today's reading is from 1 Corinthians 11 and it has two major sections -- one dealing with the expectation that women would wear head coverings when praying or prophesying in the church, and the other dealing with the abuse of the Lord's Supper. Women, Headcoverings, Authority, and Prayer The passage from verse 1 to 16 is among the most difficult in...

We're in a new month, and a new book today as we turn our attention to Paul's first letter to the church in Corinth. Read on as we look at what Paul offers as the reason for our unity and the source of any effectiveness in our efforts to share the good news....

Luke 15 Today's reading is one of the most beloved chapters in the Bible. It contains three parables, each answering the same objection from Jesus' opposition. Interpreting Parables Because these are parables, we should heed a few guidelines for interpreting parables: Focus on the main point, not every little detail. A parable is a story told to make a point -- so ...

In Romans 16, Paul has completed all of the major themes of the letter. He's said all of what he chiefly set out to say. Now he is ready to deliver some personal greetings and end his letter. But even in this concluding chapter there are some real treasures that should inform how we live the Christian life. Observation 1 -- No one, not even Paul, stands alone in the churc...

ROMANS 1 An Important Caution: Don't take any of the next several chapters in isolation. In Paul's letter to the believers in Rome, he begins building a case. But just as when watching a building be constructed you shouldn't make too many assumptions about what the framing says about the finished appearance -- similarly, you should not leap to conclusions based on the ...