Author: Norm

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 124 “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (Psalm 124:8) As a God-seeker I am always looking for ways that God is at work in my life. The fingerprints of God, signs that God has been nearby. The psalmist thinks about all the times he was almost…

SCRIPTURE: Romans 10:1-11:36 Is Paul saying people are saved BECAUSE they were chosen (Romans 11:7)? And others are rejected BECAUSE God hardened their hearts? Do we have no choice, are we predetermined for eternal life or eternal death? “But they were broken off BECAUSE of unbelief, and you stand by faith.” (Romans 11:20) Through this whole passage it…

We will look at Romans 10-11 tomorrow. SCRIPTURE: Romans 9 “It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.” (Romans 9:16) The key to life is not independence but dependence on God. A fish may boldly declare ‘I’m free’ as it jumps from the water and flops on the beach. A plant may…

SCRIPTURE: John 21:15-23 “What is that to you? You must follow me.” (John 21:22) Three times Peter denies Jesus, three times Jesus recommissions Peter. Jesus is not rubbing it in, He is matching His grace to Peter’s failure. The Lord knows each one of us personally, our strengths and our weaknesses. He invites us all, just as…

SCRIPTURE: John 21:1-14 “Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.” (John 21:13) To break bread together is to more than eating together. It is a covenant of two or more people who share one meal: intimate communion. Jesus does not just come to die, He comes to…

SCRIPTURE: John 20:24-31 “Unless I see… I will not believe.” (John 20:24) Lots of people can relate to Thomas. Some have tried to demonstrate the believability of Jesus and God. (See Lee Strobel’s The Case for Christ or The Case for the Creator). This is good stuff, and can be helpful to some. But in the end,…

SCRIPTURE: John 20:19-23 “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” (John 20:21) Jesus came to be like us, so that might be like Him. We are given the Spirit, and sent on a mission, the same mission as Jesus! We represent God again: we announce God’s good news of forgiveness. Its not that we…

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 123 “As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master…” (Psalm 123:2) In this scenario, it is the proud, not God, that cause ridicule and contempt. God is not like a cruel master, cursing and abusing his slaves. But those praying do not look to their human masters for relief or hope….

SCRIPTURE: Romans 7-8 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? (Romans 7:24) Paul shows the struggle of life on our own, in our own strength, in the ‘sinful nature’. Eventually we all come up against the futility and despair of sin and death. We were made…

We will look at Romans 7-8 tomorrow. SCRIPTURE: Romans 5:1-6:23 “Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.” (Romans 5:14) Humans were created to be like God, but like Adam we chose not to live that way. We follow the sinful pattern of Adam, rather than the ‘very good’ pattern of God. Until Jesus comes, the…