February 26, 2021 | Romans 15:1–13 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue The church today is divided over many things. Race and politics, in particular, have become a flashpoint in recent days. But there are also many other, less volatile matters over which we disagree. We may have different preferences in the style of the church building, […]
February 25, 2021 | Romans 14:13–23 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Cartoons often depict our conscience as a tiny angel standing on one shoulder, telling you to do good, and a miniature devil standing on the other, urging you to do the opposite. This cartoon image is right in one respect. The voice of our conscience […]
February 24, 2021 | Romans 14:1–12 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue My father was a fan of Dixieland jazz. If I complained about it, he usually responded with the Latin phrase: De gustibus non est disputandem, which means, “In matters of taste, there can be no disputes.” While one person has a great love of jazz, […]
February 23, 2021 | Romans 13:8–14 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue “Oh, to grace, how great a debtor. / Daily I’m constrained to be!” begins the third stanza of the hymn, “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” As recipients of God’s amazing grace, we are in His debt! What do we owe? We must love God […]
CHRISTIANS AND GOVERNMENT February 22, 2021 | Romans 13:1–7 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue In addition to the health threat it presented, the COVID-19 crisis created political tensions for many churches when some states ordered them not to meet for worship. Some complied with government regulations while others saw the order as an infringement on their […]
February 21, 2021 | Romans 12:9–21 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue A popular quote attributed to the 19th-century statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke goes, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” One of the problems with this statement is its vagueness. What exactly are we supposed to do […]
I February 20, 2021 | Romans 12:1–8 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue In her poem entitled “A Christmas Carol,” 19th-century author Christina Rossetti wrote: “What can I give Him, \ Poor as I am? \ If I were a shepherd \ I would bring a lamb, \ If I were a Wise Man \ I would […]
February 19, 2021 | Romans 11:25–36 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue There are many ways we can share the gospel. Some people like to use an outline, a Scripture map, or even a helpful diagram. But evangelism cannot be reduced to a methodology. Paul calls God’s way of drawing people to Himself a “mystery” (v. 25). In […]
February 18, 2021 | Romans 11:1–24 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue When I was a young Christian, I wore a button with the letters PBPGINFWMY on it. The letters stood for the phrase, “Please be patient; God is not finished with me yet.” Paul’s message in this section of Romans is slightly different, more like: “Please […]
February 17, 2021 | Romans 10:1–21 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue When I began attending church in the 1970s, most people wore “Sunday clothes” to the worship service. Men wore suit jackets and neckties, and women wore dresses. Today most people dress much more casually for church. Changes like this can be hard for some to […]