Micah of Moresheth
Who is a God Like You? Micah 7:7-9 (ESV) But as for me, I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise;when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him,until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me.He will bring me out to the…
Amos – The Shepherd of Tekoa
Return to Me that You May Live Amos 4 English Standard Version (ESV) “Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria,who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who say to your husbands, ‘Bring, that we may drink!’The Lord God has sworn by his holiness that, behold, the days are coming upon you,when they shall take you away with hooks, even the last of you with fishhooks.And you shall go out through the breaches, each one straight ahead; and you…
The Dependency of the Son Upon the Father
John 5:19-24 (ESV) 19 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. 21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives…
The Smartphone & the Power of Words
James 3:1-12 English Standard Version (ESV) Taming the Tongue 3 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as…
The Smartphone & the Prevalence of Pornography
1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 (ESV) 4 Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his…
The Smartphone & What We “Like”
Romans 1:18-25 English Standard Version (ESV) God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,[a] in the things that have been made.…
The Smartphone & the Appeal of Approval
John 5:36-47 (ESV) 36 But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38 and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do…
The Smartphone and the Love of Neighbor
Luke 10:25-37 English Standard Version (ESV) The Parable of the Good Samaritan 25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your…
Pondering the Presence of the Smartphone
Proverbs 4:20-27 (ESV) 20 My son, be attentive to my words; incline your ear to my sayings.21 Let them not escape from your sight; keep them within your heart.22 For they are life to those who find them, and healing to all their flesh.23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.24 Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you.25 Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.26 Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways…
Spirit Provoked & Culture Engaged
Acts 17:16-34 (ESV) Paul in Athens 16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. 18 Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said,…
A Meditation on the Motherhood of Mary
Birth of Jesus Foretold 26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And…