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Anxiety is Spiritual Warfare
7 Throw all your anxiety onto him, because he cares about you. 8 Be clearheaded. Keep alert. Your accuser, the devil, is on the prowl like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:7-8, CEB) Anxiety confuses our thinking. We create “what if” scenarios, along with “If only” scenarios. When that happens, the enemy roars. He smells the blood. Anxiety has…
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Long Haul Christianity
James 1:2-4 brings us a picture of faith that does not shy away from trials. We don’t go looking for trials, but we also need to understand that trials are not necessarily fearful. Trials produce the ability to stand the test of time. With that comes maturity. Maturity is understand that all we have in Christ is enough. It isn’t…
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Leading and Pastoring
There will always be the call to LEAD. It is not a matter of saying it’s either you pastor or you lead. But it is painfully clear that we are putting leadership on steroids these days in our cultural churches. Pastors MUST lead. But in the church, and in being the pastor (or whatever you want to call it today)…
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Theology of Suffering
In our world of pain avoidance, letters like 1 Peter are just odd to read. We are so much into “blessing” that we have missed the true nuance of “being blessed.” Blessedness is not the absence of pain, necessarily. We don’t go looking for pain. Yet, when pain comes, there is probably a message to heed. We don’t need to…
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The End is Near!
The Mayans aren’t the only ones saying this! It’s Peter as well: 7 The end of everything has come. Therefore, be self-controlled and clearheaded so you can pray. (1 Peter 4:7, CEB) See?!?! The end is near! Rather than induce panic, Peter gives a more calm approach to the end (as does Jesus in the Olivet Discourse). It’s not scary.…
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The Role of Suffering
These are incredibly uncomfortable words: 1 Therefore, since Christ suffered as a human, you should also arm yourselves with his way of thinking. This is because whoever suffers is finished with sin. 2 As a result, they don’t live the rest of their human lives in ways determined by human desires but in ways determined by God’s will. (1 Peter…
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Where is God’s Chest?
3 God’s lamp hadn’t gone out yet, and Samuel was lying down in the LORD’s temple, where God’s chest was. (1 Sam. 3:3, CEB) It just begs a lot of questions… and images my mind shouldn’t conjure up when it comes to God. I know “ark” may be archaic, but it HAS to be better than “chest.”
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Self Promotion and Modesty
8 Finally, all of you be of one mind, sympathetic, lovers of your fellow believers, compassionate, and modest in your opinion of yourselves. (1 Peter 3:8, CEB) The Common English Bible uses the language to stretch out the word “humble,” which is what other translations use. It’s a good call. I brush by “humble.” I am struck by the phrase,…
Category: Common English Bible
