In his first letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 16:1-4), Paul urged the church to begin systematically storing up money to give to churches in Jerusalem. They were evidently excited about the opportunity to use what they had to enrich believers in need, because Paul commended their eagerness in 2 Corinthians 9:2. In this passage, Paul explains that since they have been blessed richly in Christ, they should give generously with a cheerful heart.

Greeks had two world-famous athletic festivals: the Olympic Games and the Isthmian Games. The second of these two festivals, the Isthmian Games, were held in Corinth—the city to which Paul wrote 1 Corinthians. The athletes in these games would stick to extremely strict training regimens so that they would be in the best possible shape to win the prize at the end of them. Everybody in Corinth would have been familiar with these games and the lengths to which the athletes devoted themselves to them, so Paul uses them to draw out a bigger picture for the believers there: Athletes train day and night to win a prize made of leaves; what are you doing to receive a prize that lasts forever?

The church that Paul wrote to in 1 Corinthians was, for lack of a better term, dysfunctional. They were set up in the middle of a culture that was full of hedonism, narcissism, and an obsession with every kind of philosophy that rode in on the wind, and these things began creeping into the church. Because they had made it into the church’s teaching, the message of the Gospel started getting replaced with worldly wisdom and philosophy. So Paul wrote to remind them of something powerful: human wisdom cannot compare to the wisdom that God displayed through the cross of Christ.

In the middle of Galatians, Paul took a few chapters to discuss the law and its place in a believer’s life, even tracing it back to Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar. Beginning in Chapter 5, however, he is going to demonstrate what a believer’s life, under a new covenant of Grace, should look like in practice. Even more importantly than that, he will command believers to walk in the Spirit—doing so is the only way that they will be able to display the character of Christ.

James, the pastor of the church at Jerusalem and the brother of Jesus, wrote his letter to Jewish Christians living in or around Palestine in the middle of the first century AD. Because of the political and social climate of the day, the people of this church were experiencing difficulties. James wrote to remind them that God is faithful even in our darkest days, that intimacy with Christ is more valuable than worldly comfort, and to encourage them to keep strong in their faith.

James, the pastor of the church at Jerusalem and the brother of Jesus, wrote his letter to Jewish Christians living in or around Palestine in the middle of the first century AD. Because of the political and social climate of the day, the people of this church were experiencing difficulties. James wrote to remind them that God is faithful even in our darkest days, that intimacy with Christ is more valuable than worldly comfort, and to encourage them to keep strong in their faith.

No matter what failure you’re facing or the storm you’re in the middle of, Jesus is more significant than it. He stands ready to forgive and restore us, and He asks only one thing, the same thing He asked Peter:

Follow Me.

Leading up to the final journey Jesus would take before His crucifixion, He is handed over to the whim of the crowd. In keeping with a custom of the day,

they could let Him go free, or they could let Barabbas, a known murderer, do the same. Their choice is revealing and leads us to a poignant understanding of Jesus’ sacrifice and our place in it.

From Chapters 13 through 19 in his gospel, John recounts one single 24-hour period in the life of Jesus and His disciples: the night before and day leading up to His crucifixion. He takes this time to impart some of His most personal teaching to His closest followers. In today’s passage, Jesus teaches them that persecution is coming their way and that He is leaving them, but that they will be better off because of what He’s sending when He’s gone.

The Parable of the Prodigal Son is one of Jesus’ most famous. As we study it, let’s notice that it is not necessarily about a son who ran away, but about the Father who rejoices when His children return to Him. God showers His forgiveness upon all who would repent and return to Him.