Bible Commentary & Daily Devotional

 Ephesians 5 - Opportunity to Shine           Today you and I have an opportunity to shine.  Let's do so.           Do we live as people of the light?  Do we take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness?  Instead, do we expose them?  We know that we can live godly lives with the Spirit of Christ.  God promises that as his children we can produce good fruit even in our old age (Psalm 92:12).           Yet, oh my, what a challenging chapter.  No immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God (Ephesians 5:5).  Have you ever seen aspects of those dark traits in modern churchmen?  Scary thoughts - like a horror movie, but real.  At the end of the day, will those be our defining characteristics?  I trust Jesus to save me and to give me eternal life.  And I want the answer to that question to be absolutely not.  Those are not our traits.  Let's be honest before God.  His Scripture exposes who we really are.             We must live as chil

 Ephesians 4 - Live Well, Live Worthy This is one of those chapters in the Bible that ought to be taught at least monthly in the Church.           It reminds us that our job is to use our God-given abilities to build others up so that we grow more and more like Christ.  It is a great reminder that God’s church is growing, and that it will grow in unity in faith and knowledge of God’s Son until Jesus returns.           May you and I do our parts today.  Let’s ask God for wisdom and trust the Spirit of God to provide for us. You see, the law of Christ is similar, but much superior to the law of Moses.  To live as God’s new covenant people means coming humbly, boldly, and confidently into God’s presence daily for guidance and growth.  I trust that we will grow in maturity.  And I pray that God will show us his approval and make our efforts successful (Psalm 90:17). The Christian is marked by both what we do and what we don’t do.  Sadly the church has seen far too much greed, hypocri

 Ephesians 4:17 - Be Different, Be Christian I’m no prophet, but we do need a call to holiness in the church.  We need to take this verse seriously and be truly sorrowful for the way we’ve lived - and take heed to live no longer as the Gentiles do.           Why?  Because God says so.  We are men and women of God; we know the life He gives us, new life, and we know His standard.  There is no excuse for letting sin, rather than godliness, be our example.  Here is a trustworthy statement “You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God.  For a greedy person is an idolator, worship the things of this world” (Ephesians 5:5).  May that verse never characterize us. Let us make no excuse for our sins.  For we know that the anger of God will fall on all who disobey Him.  Lord Jesus, we are sorry.  We repent of our sins.  May we live in obedience to Jesus alone with strength and character.  And light.  And may our lives produce what is

 Ephesians 4 - It’s Time to Grow Well, I’d like to be honest with you because time is short and because I genuinely want to grow as a Christian.  Jesus calls us to mature, which I want to do.  But here it is.  I definitely fail.  I don’t do what I’m supposed to.  I am without doubt a sinner. I am supposed to lead a life worthy of my calling.  I don’t. I’m not humble.  I’m often a braggart.  My words can be harsh.  I have thoughts of rage as dangerous as a Timber Wolf.  I can let anger give the devil a foothold way too often.  I’m too often impatient and unloving. As I think about it, I seem to make little effort to bind myself together with other Christians.  Do I make a serious effort at peace?  May God work on my heart to make me more like Him. As we’ll talk about in a minute, this passage makes plain that there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father who is over all and in all and living through all (4:5-6).  Thank God!             God, the generous Jes

 Ephesians 3:14-21 - Pray           When was the last time we fell to our knees and prayed for the church and our community like Paul does here?  Let’s do that today; fall on our knees and pray.  Pray like our lives depend on it. Here’s my prayer.             Lord Jesus, I repent of my pride, my selfish ambition, my wasting of time and pettiness, and my failure to obey you.  I’m sorry.             I want your people to know you and represent you well.  May we have inner strength as we fear and trust Christ the solid rock.  May our roots grow deep into God’s love and keep us strong.  May we understand and experience Christ’s love.           May we have the fullness of life and power that comes from God.           All glory to God for He can accomplish infinitely more through us than we can ask or think.           Help us to understand you and to experience your love and protection today.  Please give us wisdom.  Help your church to remove the wicked.  Help us to wait patiently for you

 Ephesians 3 - Accomplish Infinitely More Independence Hall, Philadelphia, PA      Well, the good news is that God holds us to an incredibly high standard.  And He gives us all the resources that we need to accomplish infinitely more than we can imagine.  I’ve spent the week in Philadelphia where the founders of the USA trusted God and banded together their fortune, families, and future.  God's Kingdom is advancing.  This generation, like all generations, must accomplish for God what He wills us to do - infinitely more than we could plan or accomplish on our own.           There will of course come a time when God judges the nations (Psalm 82:8).  Let us praise God for all He is doing in this generation and for all He has done through all generations.           In our generation, it is time for courageous men and women of God to stand up for goodness and righteousness.  It is more than time for humble honest people to rescue the poor and the helpless and to deliver those in need fr

 Ephesians 2 - Membership The good life is the life that listens to and follows God (Psalm 81:10).  It's the Christian life.  It is daily doing what is right and just - genuinely - not some fake religiosity (Proverbs 21:3).  We are reminded in this chapter that God decides what a good life is.  Your legacy is what God says it is, for God sets the standards.           Have you ever noticed how quick people are to assert their rights, demand forgiveness, and quote seventy times seven (Matthew 18:22).  And how slow many Christians are, to be honest, accept responsibility, and honor the One to whom we will all be accountable (Probers 21:12, Romans 14:12, Hebrews 4:13, and Matthew 12, 36).           Today is a day to put faith into action - to help those in need.           I thank God that He brought us peace and that we are all members of God's family.  What a privilege.  I thank God today for my friends and family.  I am not worthy of their friendship, generosity, and love.  But