Devotionals & Poems

Posts tagged Hope

Trust

Trust

2 Corinthians 1:10 says, “Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us.” This verse seems to allude to three stages of salvation, “delivered us” being the moment we were “born again” and sins power over us was broken; “does deliver us” […]

A Son is given

A Son is given

“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given…” Isaiah 9:6. To both the nation of Israel through whom the side of his natural linage came, and also to the Gentiles, thus to the entire human race, as the Scripture says in Luke 2:32 “A light to bring revelation to the […]

Troubled or thankful

Troubled or thankful

Are you troubled and cast down in your mind and spirit? Has the darkness and gloom of this present world around us engulfed you in its hopelessness? Is the turmoil of society troubling you? Are you cast down because you are going through a time of personal difficulty like feeling rejected by one that was […]

Watchful and ready (Parables of Jesu...

Watchful and ready  (Parables of Jesus, part Thirty-seven)

Our focus of attention in Mark13:32-40 is drawn once again to being watchful and prepared for the return of Jesus. Since several parables focus in this area it underlines the importance of the message. Here Jesus speaks about a man going abroad who committed his business affairs into the hands of his servants during his […]

Be prepared (Parables of Jesus part ...

Be prepared  (Parables of Jesus part thirty-two)

In Matthew 25:1-13 we have recorded one of Jesus well known parables. Keep in mind that a parable is a story of earthly activity with a spiritual meaning, and all the details which are part of the earthly side of the story need not necessarily apply to the central theme, which in this parable is […]

Never give up (Parables of Jesus par...

Never give up  (Parables of Jesus part twenty six)

In Luke 18:1-8 Jesus “spoke a parable to them that men always ought to pray and not lose heart.” In Luke’s account this is recorded on the heels of Jesus teaching about His return and the conditions on earth leading up to it, thus we can take encouragement to remain steadfast and not become disheartened […]

Broken bottles (Parables of Jesus pa...

Broken bottles  (Parables of Jesus part twenty five)

Today we continue looking at Jesus response to a question regarding religious observances found in Matthew 9:16-17, where in verse 17 He brings us to the same conclusion as verse 16, but using a different metaphor; here He draws from the ancient process of winemaking. The bottles were made of leather or skin and Jesus […]

The wedding feast (Parables of Jesus...

The wedding feast  (Parables of Jesus part twenty two)

In Matthew 22:1-14 Jesus in this story likens the kingdom of heaven to a king whose son was to be married and many were invited to the reception, but those invited took it lightly and refused to come putting their own interests ahead of the kings invitation, even treating the messengers who brought the invitation […]

Lost and found (Parables of Jesus pa...

Lost and found  (Parables of Jesus part twenty one)

In Luke 15:8-10 Jesus uses the scenario of a woman that has lost a valuable silver coin. The message in this parable is exactly the same as that of the preceding one about the lost sheep, but using a different picture, the “or” in verse 8 clearly indicating this. Such coins were “often worn in […]

The story of two houses (Parables of...

The story of two houses  (Parables of Jesus part nineteen)

In Matthew 7:24-27 and the parallel account of Luke 6:48-49 Jesus likens us to one of two houses, one built on a solid rock foundation, the other hastily, perhaps thoughtlessly, built on shifting sand. The first withstood the storm and the flood, while the second differing only in its foundation was destroyed by the same […]