This verse is also part of Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. He contrasted the self-righteous attitude of a proud Pharisee with the humble and penitent attitude of a tax collector.
Continue reading BIBLE CUSTOMS & CURIOSITIES (GRIEF OVER SIN)
Birth is our universal means of arrival in life. We can’t begin to experience all that life has to offer until we have passed through the moment of birth. Life has a formative phase in the womb that the psalmist describes beautifully: Continue reading SINGS AND SYMBOLS (BIRTH)
Jesus spent a lot of time alone in prayer. This impressed the disciples, so they asked Him to teach them how to pray. Jesus responded by teaching them the Model Prayer, often referred to as the Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:1-13). A longer version of this prayer appears in His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:9-13). Continue reading TEACHINGS ON PRAYER
God addressed Ezekiel with an unusual title which will later become Jesus’ favorite way of referring to himself. The title is “son of man.” In the original Hebrew language, it’s literally ben Adam or “son of Adam” since Adam means “humans.” Continue reading WHY “SON OF MAN”?
3. Who forgiveth all think iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4. Who redeemeth thy life form destruction; who crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies;
5. Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s
Continue reading SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY (PSALM 103:3-8) GOD’S GREAT LOVE FOR US
GRACE- Favor or kindness shown without regard to the worth or merit of the one who receives it and in spite of what the person deserves. Grace is one of the key attributes of God. The Lord God is
We need each other. It is easier to do right when there are others to encourage us (Ecclesiastes 4:10, 11). But that is not the focus of this tract. Many people believe they can get to heaven alone-with only one of God’s list of salvation essentials. Interestingly, the word “alone” is found 108 times in Scripture (37 times in the New Testament) but is never used with any one of the twenty-six different things to which salvation is attributed. Let’s examine some of the ways that people try to get to heaven “alone.”
God could never forgive me. I’ve done some awful things.” How many times has that thought passed through the synapses of human brains? Does it frequently lodge in your “gray matter?” When you are alone at night with just your thoughts, are they thoughts of despair, hopelessness, frustration?
Jesus never said grace! Believe it or not, the Bible doesn’t record where Jesus ever used that word. It was used of Him (Luke 2:40; John 1:14, 16, 17) but never by Him. But don’t misunderstand: He taught it; He lived it He just never said it. Then again, He said a lot about grace. We call a whole category of HIs stories the “grace parables.” Classifications vary, but most lists include at least eight grace parables, including some of His most famous.
The shortest is Luke 7:41, 42: “There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he