Psalm 31:14-24 Sometimes we find ourselves being mistreated by others through no fault of our own. It is easy to feel that we are surrounded and alone in these moments. Like Psalm 31, we can even begin to feel like God has abandoned us. In those moments, psalms like this one are so helpful. A […]

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Matthew 24:42-51 The Gospel of Jesus is good news. If that is true, why do we so often hear about His return in attempts to scare people? Shouldn’t we be living in joyful expectation of God’s kingdom coming in its fullness? In a parable in Matthew 24, Jesus compares His followers with servants who were […]

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1 Samuel 12:18-25 One of the dangers of Christian life is that sometimes we trade in our vibrant love for God for stale rule following. We don’t do it on purpose, but it happens. Before long, we can find ourselves trying to earn God’s love, based on our ability to follow rules.  Samuel is calling […]

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2 Samuel 18:24-33 We live in a world that is obsessed with winning and losing. We talk as if in order for someone to win, someone else must always lose. And, of course, if there can only be winners and losers, we want to be winners. David found the price of winning too high. Absalom had […]

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2 Samuel 15:19-26 We spend a lot of our lives waiting to see how things beyond our control will turn out. It is excruciating. We like to know what will happen. We like to have control over the outcome. When we can’t know or control the outcome, we tend to get uncomfortable. David did not know […]

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2 Samuel 15:10-18 Chapters 11-15 of 2 Samuel are hard on David. They recount his most crushing sins and failures, and they pull no punches. In Chapter 15, we start to see David acting in line with his call. He knew that his son Absalom had started a coup, he knew Absalom had a lot […]

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2 Samuel 15:1-9 David had an affair with Bathsheba and had her husband murdered. David’s sons learned from his example. David’s son Amnon violated his half sister Tamar. Like David, he assumed that women were objects to be used. David was furious, but never did anything.  Tamar had a brother named Absalom. Absalom was also […]

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1 John 2:15-25 1 John 2:15-25 is jarring. John warns us that those who love the world cannot love the Father (v. 15). This seems at odds with John’s gospel, which tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish […]

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Psalm 51:13-19 In Psalm 51, David repents of his sin. He acknowledges the things he has done wrong. David describes how he intends to live differently in light of God’s forgiveness.  Sometimes, we fall into the trap of thinking grace is cheap, but it is not. Grace is paid for with the blood of Jesus, […]

The post God’s Good Grace first appeared on Reflecting God - Embrace Holy Living.

Psalm 51:1-12 Forgiveness and salvation are gifts given to us by God through His grace, and we cannot achieve them through hard work. Asking for forgiveness might be the hardest work we ever do. It requires us to admit that we have acted in ways that break our relationship with God and others. It often […]

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