[This Words of Grace was originally posted on May 12, 2017.] Twice, the apostle John wrote the concise theological statement that "God is love." (I John 4:8, 16) He never meant to say that love is God. God is a personal being; love is an attribute...
[This Words of Grace was originally posted on August 7, 2015.] We have one word for many kinds of affection. The word "love" is used for food, sports, and spouses. It applies to marital fidelity and fornication. The only way to know what it means when...
Paul closes his letter to the Colossians Christians with a sentence that has captured my attention, "Remember my chains." For months Grace Community Church has been reading, preaching, and discussing Colossians. And, Colossians has been reading us. As we come to the end, what are...
To be honest, praying about buildings initially seemed a bit strange to me. I have had to get over the idea that we should pray about the "spiritual" things, like evangelism and discipleship, but not the things like building plans and money. Maybe my hesitance...
"Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples!" Psalm 117:1 This morning my Bible reading began with the clarion call to all nations to give praise to the LORD. God is not provincial. He does not belong to a nation or a people. His people...
"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body" Colossians 3:15 We naturally think of a ruler as someone who tells other people what to do. The ruler has the power. And in a fallen and broken...
"Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation." Mark 14:38 This Sunday at Grace, we will continue to let Colossians 3 read us. We will focus on verses 10-14 and the call to put on the new self with its qualities of love. This weekend,...
I have a terrible habit. Most mornings when I wake up, I grab my phone and look at yesterday's news or the most recent Twitter feed. For me, looking at the news brings up a lot of different emotions: sadness, confusion, doubt, fear, anger, and...
"Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth." Colossians 3:2 "Get your head in the game." If you attend a ball game this spring, you are likely to hear the coach say this to the kids standing in outfield...
