God’s lovingkindness is oftentimes granted to us through agents of His grace. Scripture: Ruth 2

The book of Ruth takes place in the dark setting of the time of the judges. Everything that could go wrong seems to go wrong. What we would expect is that every person would do what is right in their eyes, but what happens is that even in the most difficult times imaginable, an unlikely […]

Paul brings his first and deeply affirming, encouraging letter to the Thessalonians to a close. He prays that their sanctification, God’s will for them, will be finished and through at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And he promises them that their faithful, heavenly Father, the God of peace, will surely do it! In […]

What does it look like to be a family of believers headed to forever together? That’s the question Paul is answering in this text. He’s calling the believers in Thessalonica to walk in a way that pleases God more and more. He’s told them that it’s God’s will for them to be sanctified. And as […]

How do people come to faith in Christ? How do Christians grow in Christ? One thing is central to both – the scriptures. Apart from the scriptures, apart from teaching the Word, disciples cannot be made, and teaching them cannot happen. This text shows us that Paul, Aquilla and Priscilla, and Apollos all rely on […]

Rejection and failure affect all of us at some level. Who likes to share something of importance and deep personal value only to have it rejected, questioned, or mocked? When you’re being authentic and open, you’ve made yourself vulnerable. The least you hope for is a reasonable response. Maybe you’ve faced rejection in the past […]

Maybe your neighbor has this bumper sticker, “Coexist.” That was Athens when the Apostle Paul entered it on his second missionary journey. Athens was like a college town. Philosophy, art, politics, education, commerce, and religion were all part of the experience in the heart of the city, the marketplace. As we look into this passage, […]

Once again in Acts we see the Apostles proclaiming the gospel. And we see people respond much the same way as we have, some are persuaded and some are jealous and create so much conflict that the Apostolic team has to pivot to another place. But in the midst of these verses, we don’t just […]

This text introduces us to a significant event in the history of the world. Today, people tour the great Cathedrals of Europe. But before there were Cathedrals, a small group of faithful followers of Jesus crossed the sea from Asia to Europe and shared the gospel on the banks of a river in Philippi. When […]

The gospel can be threatened. The Good News of how a person can be saved can be threatened by persecution or obscured by false teaching. False teaching changes the good news, adding to or subtracting from God’s clear message of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus. Acts 15 is the story of how the […]