verseoftheday

From now on,  no one should bother me because I bear the marks of Jesus on my body.  Brothers and sisters, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.  Amen. Galatians 6:17-18 CEB What a great way to end a letter, leaving us with some mystery and intrigue (what are these "marks of Jesus" are they something supernatural...or is he just an old man...or are they the marks from the things he has suffered for being a christian?). Paul leaves us something to think about and a blessing: As we head into Monday, whatever we are facing, may we know a little more, hold a little more, let a little more of the Grace of Jesus speak to the deepest parts of us today. Brothers and sisters, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.  Amen. #letters #galatians  #grace #freedominJesus #newcreation #invitation  #shalom

Sunday Psalms; Psalms 119 - Resh. Look at my suffering and deliver me  because I havent forgotten your Instruction. Argue my case and redeem me.  Make me live again by your word.   ... You have so much compassion, LORD - make me live again, according to your rules.   ... Look at how much I love your precepts.  Make me live again, LORD, according to your faithful love!   Psalms 119:153-160 CEB I love the way the CEB has phrased this..."make me live again". Three times in this passage this phrase is repeated "make me live again". Why does the psalmist need to say this? Because he feels like his life is over.  He feels dead.  Maybe you've never felt like that but the writer of this song has, the opening line is "look at my suffering", and a cry to be redeemed, rescued, brought back. Suffering can make us feel dead. The psalmist looks for three things to help him come back to "life" God's word His rules for living His Faithful Love He k...

Don't let loyalty and faithfulness leave you. Bind them on your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart.  Then you will find favor and approval in the eyes of God and humanity. Proverbs 3:3-4 CEB Can we see Jesus in this  Proverb? Our key words here are  "checed" Definition: Lovingkindness, mercy, steadfast love, loyalty, faithfulness, goodness And "emeth" Definition: Truth, faithfulness, reliability, firmness Jesus is "checed" and "emeth" and he entered the Story and bound himself to us, made a way to enter in to the tablet of our hearts and commune with us. He didn't wait for us, but came looking, seeking us out, opening the way, becoming small, stooping down. This is the Love and Grace that we are invited into, and invited to participate in in the lives of others. As the "checed" and "emeth" is written on the tablet of our hearts it finds its expression in the way that we live, the way that we love... Jesus inv...

Friday! Proverbs! Don't let loyalty and faithfulness leave you. Bind them on your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart.  Then you will find favor and approval in the eyes of God and humanity. Proverbs 3:3-4 CEB There are 2 key words here: "checed" Pronunciation: kheh'-sed Definition: Lovingkindness, mercy, steadfast love, loyalty, faithfulness, goodness "emeth" Pronunciation: eh'-meth Definition: Truth, faithfulness, reliability, firmness This Proverb invites us to bind to ourselves and to write deep within ourselves "checed" and "emeth": Lovingkindness,  mercy,  steadfast love,  loyalty,  faithfulness,  goodness,  Truth,  faithfulness,  reliability,  firmness. In the Hebrew world these ideas are not separate from God and His character, His covenants, so when we want to understand what these things are we rely less on our own knowledge and experiences, and more on what our God reveals about Himself. We see God who reaches out,...

It doesn't matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. May God's peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. Galatians 6:15-16 NLT It's no longer about having all the external things looking right, about doing what someone looking for followers requires to be right wirh God, it's a heart thing. It's about change inside. It's about being made new. From the inside. Paul's conclusion to this letter is full of the freedom he has been talking about, freedom that starts with Spirit led change in us, when we experience the mercy of God and allow his peace, his shalom, to be ours, our relationship with the world, with others, with ourselves, shifts a little more as He intends it to be. If Paul was writing to us today, I wonder what he might say to my church...? I think tho that this invitation towards shalom, to being well with the world, others, ours...

As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world's interest in me has also died.  Galatians 6:14 NLT Paul is wrapping up his letter and has just explained what these false teachers have been after - the opportunity to boast aboùt themselves & the followers that they have - wouldn't they be loving our current technology! And Paul gives us a glimpse into his inner world, that because his focus is on Jesus, the things that seemed so important, that he strove for, he has lost interest in. And the world that gave him such accolades in his past life, no longer cares.  And he is good with that.  Makes me wonder where I am looking for accolades? Just as Paul was inviting the Galatian church back to focus on Jesus, the same invitation is here for us...and what becomes less important? #letters  #galatians  #invitation  #itsaheartthing 

NOTICE WHAT LARGE LETTERS I USE AS I WRITE THESE CLOSING WORDS IN MY OWN HANDWRITING. Galatians 6:11 NLT Who knew this kind of humour was in the Bible! Maybe Paul is just trying to get his readers or listeners attention at the end of this letter... Paul gives a scathing summary of what the false teachers are all about, and summarises his teaching for us... Galatians 6:15 NLT "What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation." It's not the outside, the things we do, what others see (& judge) it's all about the inside, what is going on in us, where and to who our heart is oriented. It's a heart thing. Paul invites us to focus on what is most important, the becoming a new person from the inside and the freedom that comes from that deep heart work that our God wants to do. #galatians  #letters #freedomtodogood #itsaheartthing  #newcreationfromtheinside

Galatians 6:7-10 NLT Don't be misled - you cannot mock the justice of God.  You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature.  But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let's not get tired of doing what is good.  At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up. Therefore,  whenever we have the opportunity,  we should do good to everyone - especially to those in the family of faith.  Galatians 6:7-10 NLT It's easy to take parts of Paul's teaching here and weaponise it - eg "don't get tired of doing what is good" can lead to burn out, despair, never being "enough" or doing enough...but when we read this passage in the context of false teaching hitting the church that require all the rules being followed, Paul's words here are much more reflective, to always consider ...

Sunday Psalms; Qoph Psalms 119:145-152 I pray with all my heart; answer me, Lord! ... I cry out to you; rescue me... I rise early, before the sun is up; I cry out for help and put my hope in your words. I stay awake through the night, thinking about your promise. In your faithful love,  O Lord, hear my cry;  let me be revived by following your regulations... But you are near,  O Lord,  and all your commands are true. I have known from my earliest days that your laws will last forever.  Psalms 119:145-152 NLT Can you hear the Psalmsist heart? The repeated and repeated crying out to God. And the trust. That whatever the distress is that he is experiencing, it's Truth that holds him. Our God is Faithful Love. Our God is Near. Our God is Bigger, and whatever is going on in our story, His Big Story is enough to hold ours, to hold us. The writer of this Psalm couldn't feel any of that, but knew it was true. And that is what this Psalm invites us into today, to trust o...

My child,  do not forget my teaching,  but let your heart keep my commandments,  for they will provide a long and full life,  and they will add well-being to you. Proverbs 3:1-2 NET Can you hear Jesus voice in this Proverb? My child. The desire for our "chay", our fully aliveness that comes from relationship. The promise of "shalom", the peace and well-being that is at the core of Jesus mission, restoration of what has been lost and broken. His heart for us is not hard to find in this Proverb. And then there's the heart, the "leb", the centre of who we are, which is where Jesus longs to be, more and more. Will we let Him in, invite Him in, to the control centre of our lives, where the big and the small choices are made, will we let Him guide us into shalom, peace, well-being, will we let Him lead us into chay, the fully aliveness that he desires for us, that fully aliveness that is us even in our limitations and humanness. Yes Jesus voice is here, call...

Friday! Proverbs! My child,  do not forget my teaching,  but let your heart keep my commandments,  for they will provide a long and full life,  and they will add well-being to you. Proverbs 3:1-2 NET There's an intention encouraged in this Proverb, do not forget, let your heart keep. The word heart here is "leb", the centre of us, our heart, feelings, intellect, will.  When we hold God's word at the centre of who we are, then life and well-being are the outcome. Life here is the word "chay" which is fully aliveness, an idea that is entwined with living in covenant relationship with God, more than physical life, it encompasses spiritual life. Well-being is the word "shalom", a common greeting & farewell that holds the ideas of peace, completeness, welfare, well-being, safety, prosperity. Proverbs is inviting us to intentionally hold God's word, His Big Story, His heart for us, at the centre of who we are, and as we do that, we will learn and...

Don't be misled - you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.  Galatians 6:7-8 NLT Remember Paul is writing against some false teaching that was hitting the church, so it seems likely that as he starts to wrap this letter up that he hits on some of the other teaching he may have been concerned about. What would have been on the other side of this admonition from Paul? I wonder what was being said about God that his readers needed reminding that His justice can't be mocked? Perhaps their version of God's view of what is just and fair was being twisted & used by the powerful & wealthy to hoard more power & wealth? To use God's name to justify to something that does not line up with the God who IS Love? And then he gives us this picture ...

Those who are taught the word should share all good things with their teacher.  Galatians 6:6 CEB Biblehub describes the word "agathos", good things as; "the intrinsically good, good in nature,  good whether it be seen to be so or not,  the widest and most colorless of all words with this meaning." It's like Paul is using the vaguest word possible for the good things the student, the learner, in our context the church member, the small group attender, the person being mentored or helped in their walk, should share with their teacher, pastor, small group leader, mentor, friend. Here's a list of those good things... It seems that Paul was intentionally vague in his letter to this church, maybe because he wanted them to think about what good things they wanted to share with their teachers, given that he has been writing about freedom! So I guess that means he would wants us to think about it too... "Those who are taught the word should share all good thing...

Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else.  Galatians 6:4 NLT Makes you wonder what was going on in the Galatian church that prompted Paul to write this... There must've been comparing, and perhaps that led to ranking, placing some types of work as more important than others, a more than/less than.  I wonder if that is still something we need to be aware of? Do I judge people by what they do? Rank them? Compare myself to them? It can be hard not to right? Paul gives an antidote to focus on our own work whatever that looks like, get our satisfaction from the work, not the validation or recognition of others.  This is not always easy, but there's a freedom that arrives when we let the work become its own reward. Whether we volunteer, are paid, are a student, employee, boss, run our own business, or for whatever reason can't work, the differences matter less and l...

Galatians 6:2-3a NLT Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. Galatians 6:2-3a NLT This idea of fooling myself, Paul uses the word "phrenapatao", which means to deceive the mind. When we deceive ourselves. That thing we justify, just once, just this time, its not that bad, not as bad as someone else, it won't affect me, our mind is deceiving itself. Why would our own mind go in for this self deception? Because our heart, our will, some part of us wants something pleasurable or something that seems easier or better for us in some way. Maybe there's something in sharing one another's burdens that helps us to be a little more honest with our own. At the very least Paul's encouragement here is to be aware of our ability to deceive ourselves, and at the same time, still seen as Beloved! God's Grace and Love is enough to hold us. #letters #galatians ...

Sunday Psalms; Ps119 Tsadhe As pressure and stress bear down on me, I find joy in your commands. Your laws are always right;  help me to understand them so I may live.  Psalms 119:137-144  Who knew that what we think are modern ailments like pressure and stress have been around since at least  the Psalms? And what is the Psalmists way of dealing with pressure and stress? Truth. He comes back to what God has to say. He doesn't always get it, understand it, or see how it might apply, but that doesn't stop the Psalmist from sitting with God's Word and allowing Him to speak into whatever it is that is causing this distress. Jesus said it's the truth that sets us free.  I find myself so easily falling back into old lies, into old stories, and the psalmist simply invites us to sit with Truth, with a Bigger Story. That won't magic away our problems, but as we sit with God's story, His Truth, and let Him speak into our situation, we may just start to find the shalom tha...

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important. Galatians 6:1-3 NLT Do you wonder what was going on in the Galatian church that Paul needed to write this? People judging, not walking alongside, standing back because they are "better" in some way? Some interesting principles or ideas emerge for us though: - we're all in this together (dear brothers & sisters) - help others in areas of your own strength not where its likely to cause you a problem or to trip up. Boundaries are OK. - sharing one another's burdens is holy work, THE work that for a community that wanted to follow rules, here's the rule - share one ano...

Friday! Proverbs! Wisdom will rescue you from the evil path, from people who twist their words.  They forsake the way of integrity and go on obscure paths.  They enjoy doing evil, rejoicing in their twisted evil. Their paths are confused; they get lost on their way. Wisdom will rescue you from the mysterious woman, from the foreign woman with her slick words. She leaves behind the partner of her youth; she even forgets her covenant with God. Her house sinks down to death, and her paths go down to the shadowy dead. All those who go to her will never return; they will never again reach the ways of the living. So you should stay on the path of good people, guarding the road of the righteous.   Proverbs 2:12-20 CEB This part of Proverbs paints some graphic pictures of the dangers in our world, from people who twist and manipulate with the power of their words, of those who have stepped off God's path, ignored his covenant, and want to take us with them. And if it wasn't ...

Psalms 147:3 CEB God heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.   Psalms 147:3 CEB Psalm 147 is quite a song, and tucked in there is a little reference to Isaiah 61, this picture of God binding up wounds, putting bandages on, tending to what has been hurt and harmed. We all have wounds. Our hearts have been hurt. This song is written for a community.  Individually, groups, families, communities, we know what wounds are. Will we let our God in though, let him into the woundedness that we carry? Will we let Him in to the broken parts of our hearts? Am I brave enough to name the wound and invite the healing of the Spirit in? Are we as communities, together, brave enough to name the wounds and invite the healing of the Spirit in? Healing happens in relationship - relationship with God, and with others, and that's what love is all about, our God who steps towards us to bind up broken hearts and to heal wounds, so that we can love others in the same way...maybe it's all...

[25] Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit's leading in every part of our lives. [26] Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another. Galatians 5:25-26 NLT It feels like Paul had finished his teaching about Spirit led freedom, then adds this last sentence... Conceit Provoking one another  Jealous of one another  Perhaps he realised that these are barriers to this Spirit led freedom that he is inviting the Galatian church to step into. And I know that I have all of these things going on in my heart and mind at times, so maybe its about noticing, about being honest with ourselves, and seeking the Holy Spirit's help when we do notice these heart things bubbling up. Perhaps Paul is answering the question about what stops me being more in tune with the Holy Spirit? Perhaps it's Conceit, (thinking I already have all the answers), Provoking others, being  Jealous of others. These are heart conditions. Heart conditions that...

Galatians 5:24-25 NLT Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit's leading in every part of our lives.  Galatians 5:24-25 NLT That's quite a picture nailing things to the cross.  You can't nail something to the cross if you don't  name it first. And it takes intention to do this. A stepping towards the cross, faith that Jesus work there is enough to hold what I leave there, and then a walking away without it. That doesn't sound like easy work, so we may have to come back and repeat this. What are we nailing there? It's not the things we do, but the heart and mind, the desires, the things we want and strive for and value that are not in line with, or are opposite to the fruit of the Spirit.  Then Paul invites us to follow the leading of the Spirit in every part of our lives... seems there's a long way to go...but...

When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear.... But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives:  love,  joy,  peace,  patience,  kindness,  goodness,  faithfulness, gentleness,  and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:19, 22-23 NLT Paul's letter starts with his concern for the church, that they're following false teaching, he reiterates that the Good News is all about faith in Jesus and that brings freedom, freedom from the law these false teachers want to hold them under, and he describes the inner battles that we have and the work of the Spirit in that battle. It's a battle of our heart desires, wanting what we want, and he hits us now with this idea of the consequences, the impact, the fruit of following our desires compared to the fruit of the Spirit. It's a heart thing. Less of me, more of Him, and the fruit is  love,  joy,  peace,  patience, ...

Sunday Psalms; Pe Your laws are wonderful. No wonder I obey them!The teaching of your word gives light, so even the simple can understand. I pant with expectation, longing for your commands. Come and show me your mercy, as you do for all who love your name. Guide my steps by your word, so I will not be overcome by evil. Ransom me from the oppression of evil people; then I can obey your commandments. Look upon me with love; teach me your decrees. Rivers of tears gush from my eyes because people disobey your instructions.  Psalms 119:129-136 NLT While there seems to my ears some "over the top" language in this part of the Psalm, some things seem to jump out, maybe it that's because it's what I need to hear today... Your word gives light - so even the simple can get it - in our modern world we can tend to make things so complicated - maybe that's what I need reminding of, inviting into, the simple truths of God's story, His love, His desire to redeem and reconnec...

So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants.  And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. Galatians 5:16-18 NLT Here Paul gives his manifesto for living in freedom, to get in tune with the Holy Spirit and to let Him not just be our guide (which is like an external thing) but to change our desires! To change what we want. Are we prepared, am I prepared, to give up that kind of control to God? "Jesus, allow the Holy Spirit reign in my life to shape and change my heart, my desires, to line up with You today, help me to let the Spirit win that internal battle, let me give Him more and more contro...

Friday! Proverbs! Wisdom will save you from evil people, from those whose words are twisted.  These men turn from the right way to walk down dark paths. Proverbs 2:12-13 NLT We sometimes hear this story that hurt people hurt people, and I know that people's lives and motivations are complex, but Proverbs cuts through this where someone's words have power over us in some way, they are choosing their path. At some point in their journey they've chosen that wrong is right, that what is not OK is OK for them, and they've stayed on that path. With intention. And Wisdom helps us see that.  We often need the Wisdom of community to help us see that. We need one another to help keep the vulnerable safe. We need God's heart revealed in His Word and by His Spirit to guide us, to help us see. And we too get to choose the path that we stay on, and it's OK to ask for help to shift if that is what we need to do. Proverbs says that Wisdom is available to us. We get to choose to...

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don't use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature.  Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another.  Galatians 5:13-15 NLT Paul quotes Leviticus 19:18 to his readers "love your neighbor as yourself" - my guess is providing that connection with the law that was so important to the readers of this letter. He continues the invitation into freedom in faith in Jesus by adding to the freedom to serve one another in love, with the freedom to love my neighbor without biting, devouring  or destroying them. A workmate brought her 15mth old Rottweiler dog into work this week. There was no barking, growling, biting or devouring, just open inquistive exploring and meeting us all where we were at. Paul is...

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don't use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature.  Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.  Galatians 5:13 NLT Instead. Freedom in Jesus is not some "get out of jail free" card or some removal of consequences to our choices, but the freedom to become the people we were made to be. To serve one another in love. What does "serve one another in love" mean? Mmm. It seems to be intentionally vague, bit it is about community, one another, thinking about, considering, wanting the best, the good for others. An otherness mindset that holds everything in love. I know i can't do that without tapping into the source, the awa, the water of life. This "serving one another in love" is going to look different for everyone depending on our capacity, capability, it's not a thing or something we do, but a way of being in the world. Tapping into the source of love and ser...

This false teaching is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough! I am trusting the Lord to keep you from believing false teachings. God will judge that person, whoever he is, who has been confusing you. Galatians 5:9-10 NLT When we hold on to something that is not the Gospel, when we make that small thing The Thing, then it impacts on all parts of us. That's the warning. And then Paul does something interesting - he doesn't go after the person who is giving this false teaching, he has spent time in this letter restating what's true and simply invites his readers and hearers to stick with that, to let God's spirit keep the community on track together. When we focus on what is True, what is false loses its power. When we focus on what is True, the lies we've believed lose their power.  Paul's letter is about the freedom we have in Jesus, when we accept His gift of Grace and express that faith in Love. Let's stick with that. #letters #G...

You were running the race so well.  Who has held you back from following the truth? It certainly isn't God, for he is the one who called you to freedom.  Galatians 5:7-8 NLT Ever been running, walking, moving in a direction and someone holds you back? Grabs your shirt. Gets in the way. Sends you in the wrong direction, down the wrong path, slows you down... In a race that's just illegal, against the rules, there'd be a disqualification. But in this life there's a lot of freedom, and Paul is warning that there are people who will exercise their freedom against you. To hold you back, steer you away from God's Truth, from Freedom. In our world these are often "the shoulds". The shoulds come from outside, social media, peers, friends, pastors, parents, family...and inside voices...and mostly the shoulds are good things, and sometimes they're conspiring to steal our shalom, hold us back from the freedom we have in Jesus. To express faith in Love. Love for G...

Sunday Psalms; Ayin Don't leave me to the mercy of my enemies, for I have done what is just and right. Please guarantee a blessing for me. Don't let the arrogant oppress me! My eyes strain to see your rescue, to see the truth of your promise fulfilled. I am your servant; deal with me in unfailing love, and teach me your decrees. ... Truly, I love your commands more than gold, even the finest gold. ... Psalms 119:121-128 NLT At the heart of this part of Ps119, nestled between the psalmists cries for help and putting his trust in God, is this: "My eyes strain to see your rescue, to see the truth of your promise fulfilled." In the midst of his troubles he is holding on to faith, and gives this very human response too, "I can't see You at work in this". Does that resonate? Health, finance, relationships, loss, tragedy, pressure, change, the world pushing in, and I'm holding on to faith, holding to the truth that our God is Good, but "I can't see...

Wisdom will rescue you from the evil path, from people who twist their words.   Proverbs 2:12 CEB If there's a group of people that Jesus stood against it was those who deceived others, who twisted God's words for their own benefit, to maintain power.  Jesus came to redeem the world, and we personalise that which is OK, but he stood against the power structures that led to injustice, the systems that oppress & marginalise. The law repeated the need to care for the alien, the stranger, the poor, the widows, Jesus said he quoted Isaiah in Luke 4 that he had come to bring healing and freedom for the oppressed, Jesus brother James wrote that true religion is caring for orphans and widows (those without, in need). We can see Jesus in this proverb, He is the Wisdom that acts and rescues from those in power, and Jesus invites us to join Him in that work in our world too. This joining in always starts small, the kindness of giving someone our attention, choosing connection, s...