Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:1-2 Years ago, when I was in Mexico in Oaxaca near its southern border, I felt really far from home. In fact, it felt as if I …
But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble. Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy. Psalm 59:16-17 The adversative but at the beginning of verse 16 …
Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. 2 Cor. 1:3-4 The Bible …
For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:17 In verse 17, we have a contrast between Adam and Chirist. But here what the apostle does is to sum up the content …
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, …
But be filled with the Spirit. Eph. 5:18 What does being filled with the Spirit look like? Well, notice that in these verses, the apostle has been contrasting two types of people: don’t be fools but be wise (16); don’t be unwise but understand God’s will (17); here, don’t be drunk with wine, but be …
And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Matthew 3:17 The idea of the Trinity is massively important. Did you notice the way the Father introduces the Son to the world at his baptism? “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased.” This is …
Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Eph. 5:16 If you do not want to be a fool (and, remember, from a Biblical point of view, a fool is not just someone who does stupid things, but someone who does the most stupid of all things – that is, one who does not fear God or listen to his word), …
Called to be saints. Romans 1:7 In the NT, there are two different types of calling. There is the general call of the gospel, which is the call that goes out to all men to repent and believe the gospel. This is what is being referred to, for example, in Matthew 22:14, when our Lord says that …
To all that be in Rome, beloved of God. Romans 1:7 Let us not miss the implications of this grand statement. Every believer is loved by God. Now, I want to push back here at a notion of the love of God that waters down the force of these words. It comes from a failure to distinguish between the …