Jesus follower

SCRIPTURE: 1 Peter 1:13-2:3 OBSERVATION: God loves us by grace alone, but having received this grace, we are called to respond with action: obedience, holiness, love, reverent fear, ridding ourselves of sin and craving what is good and pure. This way of living is the evidence of a sincere Christ-follower. When we receive the message (the enduring…

SCRIPTURE: 1 Peter 1:1-12 OBSERVATION: Peter is writing to Christ-followers (those obedient to Jesus, forgiven/sprinkled by His sacrificial death) wherever they may be scattered, reminding them of their great joy and great hope in the midst of great trials. He reminds them that many people in the past longed to know Jesus as we do, but did…

SCRIPTURE: Luke 24:33-49 OBSERVATION: It is not surprising that they had a hard time believing that Jesus was alive! Even seing him, they still doubted, but who can blame them. Jesus had to open their minds (and their hearts) to believe that He was real. He did this by (a) letting them touch and see Him…

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 4:1-8 OBSERVATION: David seems to be in the midst of a crisis, and the people who are troubling him are also mocking him, “turning his glory into shame”. Those with David are despairing, “who can show us any good?” David refuses to give up. He appeals to God for help (mercy) and declares his…

SCRIPTURE: 1 John 3:1-10 OBSERVATION: John reminds believers of their new identity: much loved children of God. This identity encourages us when persecuted, but also affects how we live. John assures them that Jesus came to restore His followers and destroy the devil’s work. When Jesus is finished, we shall see Him as He is, we shall…

This month we are reading through complete books of the Bible: 1 Peter, Ruth, Ephesians and Joel. 1 1 Peter 1:1-12  2 1 Peter 1:13-2:3  3 1 Peter 2:4-17  4 1 Peter 2:18-25  5 1 Peter 3:1-12  6 1 Peter 3:13-4:6  7 1 Peter 4:7-19  8 1 Peter 5:1-14  9 Ruth 1:1-22  10 Ruth 2:1-23  11 Ruth 3:1-18  12 Ruth 4:1-22  13 Ephesians 1:1-14…

SCRIPTURE: Acts 3:17-26 OBSERVATION: Peter appeals to Jews/Jewish leaders to accept Jesus as the promised messiah (‘Christ’ is Greek for Hebrew ‘Messiah’), claiming that He is the fulfillment of all the OT prophecies. The call is to change their minds (repent) regarding Jesus. Note the two levels, what the Jewish leaders did in ignorance, and God’s…

SCRIPTURE: Acts 3:1-16 OBSERVATION: Peter is not surprised that this man is healed. I would be… unless I had already experienced a greater miracle, i.e. Jesus resurrection! Compared to that, healing a cripple is not amazing! Peter calls Jesus the author of life, yet says they killed Him (can the author of life be killed?), and…

SCRIPTURE: Mark 16:9-20 OBSERVATION: This passage should be read as supportive of other more reliable passages. Most of it echoes what we read elsewhere. It was probably added later to fix the abrupt ending and fill in the missing details. There is no other reference to handling snakes and drinking poison, so it is not accepted…