Jesus follower

THE STORY OF JESUS: Hebrews 12-13 “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children.” (Hebrews 12:7) The recipients of this letter were facing increasing persecution. The author challenges them to change the way they think about this hardship. Think of it as God’s discipline, His pruning and perfecting of our faith. Can I think…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Hebrews 11 “Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1) As a Jesus follower, I see in Him a vision of our ideal future. How He related to God, to people, and to world… this is how we were meant to be. This…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Acts 19:23-31 “They were furious and began shouting: ‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!’” (Acts 19:28) How do we respond when people belittle or dishonour what we believe? Do we feel threatened, do we become defensive, do we become negative or aggressive? If we truly think that what we believe is true, we…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Acts 19:13-22 “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” (Acts 19:15) Jesus holds all authority over all creation, given to Him by God. The Spirit of God works with/for Jesus, fulfilling His will and purpose. Those who surrender to Jesus and His message are filled with His Spirit….

THE STORY OF JESUS: Acts 19:8-12 “Arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.” (Acts 19:8) The kingdom of God… we hardly ever talk about it as christians. We talk about church, worship, being saved, programs, buildings, etc. But the heart of Paul’s message, and Jesus’ message, was the kingdom of God. “The kingdom of God has come…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Acts 19:1-7 “On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 19:5) Paul asks what kind of baptism these believers received. Theirs was a baptism of repentance, not a baptism of faith in Jesus. The issue was not the baptism itself, but what the baptism was into. Like…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 142 “Set me free from my prison, that I may praise your name.” (Psalm 142:7) Is there a prison that you need to be set free from? I don’t mean an actual prison, but a metaphorical prison. A relationship or an addiction that is destructive? A physical or mental health condition that…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Hebrews 9-10 “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” (Hebrews 9:22) As a Jesus follower, I need to take very seriously. Every selfish thought, word and deed contributes to the misery of our world. The wage of sin is death; death was the curse for turning away from God. The phrase…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Hebrews 6-8 “Because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.” (Hebrews 7:24) Imagine having the world’s best lawyer always in your service. They would be your advocate in every situation you found yourself in. They would always defend you, and would know the law perfectly. And they were not charging you, they…