Bible podcasts, videos, blogs, printables, and more to help you know, trust, and apply the Bible.

What manner of people ought we to be? the pastoral epistles—1,2 Timothy, Titus, 1,2 Peter, Jude

2024-01-10 by bible805

Our study of the New Testament is about so much more than an overview of books, or a historical tour. It is the culmination of God’s rescue plan for the people He created.

The development God’s changed, redeemed people is what we’ve been learning about.

All else will fade (churches, buildings, denominations); God’s people will not. And it is those people (you) who will reach the world with God’s message of salvation.
How we become that, the spiritual formation of God’s people is what these “Pastoral Epistles” are about. [Read more…]

Paul’s Prison Letters, Pity party or extraordinary focused witness? Lesson on Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon

2024-01-09 by bible805

How do we act when bad things happen to us?

We always have a choice—we can retaliate; we can throw a pity party; we can blame others. Or we can trust God no matter what and try to respond in a way He wants us to.

In what are called the “Prison Epistles,” Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon, we’ll look at how the Apostle Paul responded in a very difficult situation. This lesson about them is much more than a history lesson about Paul because what we do, how we respond to challenging situations is the clearest evidence possible of what we truly believe and WHO we truly believe in. [Read more…]

The book of Romans, saved by grace alone; challenged to walk worthy

2023-12-24 by bible805

Romans is one of the most significant books in the Bible because it is a complete and systematic explanation of the Christian faith.

It is different than the other letters of the New Testament that were written to address specific problems in specific churches.

The focus in this book was to clarify the Christian faith and our salvation—to show from start to finish that it is by grace alone through faith alone, not adherence to Jewish laws, or human effort, that salvation is possible.

At the same time, it also clarifies God’s continuing expectations for those who have accepted His gift of salvation and challenges them to walk worthy. [Read more…]

What if the answer to exhaustion is not self-care? a challenge as we begin the New Year

2023-12-24 by bible805

All eternity to celebrate what we do now for the Lord — Click on the image to download a FREE printable of this quote.

I recently read an overview of books entitled “How Christians are prioritizing faith and rest.” On the first reading, on the surface, it was a well-written, thoughtful article on the need for rest and reflection amid the currently busy and overburdened, frantic, and frustrating lives many of us live.

Who can argue with a need for that? [Read more…]

The cost of focus if we truly want to mature or accomplish anything of spiritual significance in our Christian lives

2023-11-28 by bible805

Distraction of a cookie — A cookie can solve any problem when we’re a child; as we mature we need to learn to say no to the distracting equivalent of cookies in our lives.

Children are easily distracted.

A cookie can solve the most heartfelt tragedy; a toy can detract from a pinched finger; a hug can calm night terrors.

One of the characteristics of maturity is the ability to set aside distractions and focus on work that needs to be done. However, the reality for many of us is that as we get older, we don’t learn to focus better, we swap distractions.

The new distractions aren’t necessarily evil. They may include hobbies, vacations, time with family and friends, downtime, me-time, and many things done in the name of a “balanced life.”

But what if we want a significant life? What if we want to grow as Christians and truly pursue becoming like Jesus? What if we want to create a book, blog, video, or podcast that will enrich the kingdom of God? [Read more…]

1 & 2 Corinthians, saints in God’s eyes, sinners in process

2023-11-18 by bible805

A struggle for most of us who follow Jesus is that we know we should be better than we are. We know God called us to live lives that reflect our Savior, but far too often our lives reflect our world instead.

As we learn in reading Paul’s letters to the Corinthians, this struggle is nothing new. We can grow and become all God wants us to be, and these books and this lesson about them will help us do that. [Read more…]