From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” -- Matthew 16:21-28

Jesus knew a thing or two about staying on message. The words He used varied, but the core idea remained the same. “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10). “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17). “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10) Different audiences, different phrasing, same message.

When you get off message, mission drift -- a move away from those core ideas -- usually follows. Perhaps this is what provoked Jesus’ terse response to Peter in this passage from Matthew. Peter is proposing that Jesus’s safety takes precedence over God’s Kingdom. (”Far be it from you, Lord!”) He was definitely not on message, nor on mission, and Jesus was not OK with it. The Son of Man then reiterates His message, His mission, and the consequences for deviating from them to his disciples, and to “anyone” (ie, us) who follows Him.

Jesus had had to protect his mission before. Satan threatened it – pushing comfort over Kingdom: “Command this stone to become bread.” “Worship me” and the kingdoms of the world can be yours.

Mission vigilance is important because drift can sneak up on you. My Aunt Claudia, who was a school social worker, once told me that some of the parents who ended up in her office didn’t understand how their kid got so off-course. She said that for most kids, their drift happened in increments, little behavioral compromises that, one at a time, led them to her office. What might be the small compromises we make?

Maybe you read the Bible less, or attend church less frequently. Maybe you stop serving others, or stop gathering with other believers. Maybe instead of being an influence on the world, the world is influencing you.

“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?”

I’m sure listening to Jesus share His future was hard to hear. But tacked on to the end of those difficult details was a new detail that fleshed out the message about saving the lost: “... and on the third day be raised.” Killed for us, raised for us, and one day He will come back for us. Because His love for us is even greater than the love we feel for Him. I thank God that His Son stayed on message and on mission.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 12:9-21
v9a Let love be genuine.

You can count them in this passage: 1. “Abhor” and “hold fast” … 2. “Love” and “outdo” … 3. “Do not be slothful” but “be fervant” … 4. “Rejoice” … 5. “Contribute” and “seek” … 6. “Bless” … 7. “Rejoice” and “weep” … 8. “Live in harmony” … 9. “Repay no one” but “give thought” … 10. “Live peacably.”

Ten. Between an intro (“Let love be genuine,” v9) and a summary postscript (“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good,” v21), the Apostle Paul issues 10 commands. Or, dare I say, Ten Commandments?

We might do well to emphasize these 10 commands as much as we do the ones from Exodus. These complement the ones Moses received perfectly. Whereas the Ten Commandments from the Old Testament are well-known for their generally negative construction (“Thou shalt not …”), Paul’s, with a couple of exceptions, have a positive construction. They aren’t don’ts, they’re do’s.

Ignoring God’s do’s is as much sin as defying the don’ts. Jesus makes that clear in the definitive “love your neighbor” story, the Parable of the Good Samaritan. To counter an evasive “who is my neighbor?” Jesus brushes past the bandits’ violations of “do not covet, steal or kill” to focus on the failures of the priest and Levite. They fail to love, to outdo, to be fervent, to contribute, and to bless.

And these 10 commandments, rather than contribute to legalism – the temptation to feel self-justified because you have followed God’s law – defuse it. I say that because while you can kid yourself about having avoided the don’ts (“I haven’t killed anyone today”), once you measure yourself by Paul’s commands, you can’t help but realize you’ll never obey them perfectly.

And that’s OK. They aren’t about achieving perfection. They aren’t even about striving for perfection. They are about loving. You can’t be guided by Paul’s commands for your own benefit. You are guided by them for the benefit of others, as Jesus has already provided us all we need.

Really, when you look for the common denominator in the Ten Commandments and in Paul’s 10 commandments, in “love the Lord your God” and “love your neighbor,” it’s a positively constructed command: Love.

Guided by God, and God is love,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ. – Matthew 16:13-20

It’s the end of August, which means school is back in session. In classrooms around the country, instructors take attendance, and learn the students’ names through those roll calls. Only with time, though, can a teacher learn more about those students, beyond the labels.

And only with time do the students learn the teacher’s fuller identity and purpose.

In this passage from Matthew, we come to a pivotal moment for Jesus and His disciples. He asks, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” and the disciples launch into a roll call of sorts: John the Baptist. Elijah. Jeremiah. One of the prophets.

But this isn’t roll call. People knew Jesus’ name, but they suspected He might be one of those figures, resurrected, because He shared their traits. He was doing some of the things they had heard those men had done.

Jesus fishes for an answer again, redirecting the question: “But who do you say I am?” Peter rises to the bait: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”

Jesus first refers to Himself in this passage as the Son of Man, a title that speaks to His humanity and points back to the Messiah described in Daniel: “... and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him.” (Daniel 7:13-14)

“Son of Man” is more than a name, it’s a label that gets to the essence of Jesus’ mission. And when Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, he clearly states what Jesus has been hinting at: that He is the long-awaited Savior.

In William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” Juliet asks, “What’s in a name?” She means that the essence of something doesn’t depend upon how it is labeled. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

Sometimes people earn nicknames that describe their essence better than their given names do. Jesus refers to Peter here as he usually did, with his birth name – “Simon” – but also by the nickname He had given him, because of the rock that he would be for the church. (Or perhaps for how hard-headed he could be.)

That’s something to be mindful of when we adopt the term “disciple.” Calling ourselves Jesus’ disciples is not just a label, it’s to signify our full identity, our role, our essence; it is a life to live.

There is an old saying that if you were on trial for being Jesus’ disciple, would there be enough evidence to convict you? For me, some days, yes. Some days, no. Some days, it’s a hung jury. Praise God that He continues to call me His child and hang with me.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 11:33-12:8
v11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

I’ve been re-reading C.S. Lewis’ “Mere Christianity,” trying to get back into books. I treasure that one because Lewis, as the title implies, doesn’t pretend to have all of the answers about God.

Paul in this passage reminds us that anyone who claims he does is pulling your leg. “How unsearchable are [God’s] judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” (11:33)

Paul, though, is not throwing up his hands. He is just setting the parameters for what he encourages the Romans to do a few verses later, which is to dive deeper into the Word. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (12:2)

And then, when you have advanced in discerning the will of God … check yourself. “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” (12:3)

Immersing yourself in Scripture is enriching and valuable, but you’ll never be done. And in immersing yourself in Scripture, you’re not studying something, you’re studying Someone. Knowing the mind of God better brings peace and assurance. But you’re as likely to comprehend the Creator as you are to read everything that has been published on the Internet.

And that’s OK! There’s no test. “Mere Christianity” conveys that so well. Jesus already passed the test for us.

I guess that’s why on some matters of faith, I certainly have my beliefs, but if they are topics that require me to draw a tangent from a dozen passages, to dig into the Greek and Hebrew, to consult a library of conflicting opinions, I hold those beliefs a little loosely. If something were to convince me of another interpretation, so be it; my foundation would not be shaken.

That foundation is what is stated clearly and repeatedly: That Christ died and rose for us, bringing salvation to those who believe. A few turns of the scroll back, Paul said, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9)

All other doctrines hang from that unshakeable pillar. To that pillar, I hold tight. And so, I can echo the mic drop that Paul makes in 11:36: “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever.”

Amen,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly. – Matthew 15:21-28

I dare say many of us can relate to the Canaanite woman in this passage from Matthew. At some point, we too have found ourselves bowed down, asking Jesus to help the ones we love.

This woman needs Jesus’ help because her daughter is oppressed by a demon. “But he did not answer her a word.” Did He not hear her? Elijah teased the prophets of Baal when they called on their god and received no response that “perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened” (1 Kings 18:27), but we serve a God who does not “slumber nor sleep.” No, Jesus heard the woman.

When we approach Jesus with our requests, how should we deal with the moments of silence we encounter?

I hope we can be like the Canaanite woman, who refused to be put off. Following His initial silence, Jesus puts her off twice more. But she is determined. She reverently addresses Him as Lord with each petition. We must be equally faithful in our prayers.

James 5:16 is one of my favorite scriptures. I love the poetry of the King James Version – the “prayer of a righteous man availeth much” – and appreciate the phrasing of the NIV – “the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” We are not righteous because of ourselves, but because of Jesus’ gift of righteousness to us. The prayers are powerful and effective not because of the words we say, but because of the God who hears them.

James reminds us that our only role in this process is to place our petitions at the Lord’s feet, and trust that He hears us and will know what to do.

I know, it’s easier said than done – especially when those petitions involve someone you love. But as you wait in that moment, or moments, to hear from Jesus, remain persistent in prayer. And remember this: As much as you love them, Jesus loves them even more.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 11
v22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.

I don’t remember which former baseball star it was hanging out in the press box, or any specific story that he told us during the game I was covering, but I do remember how casually he dropped in the phrase “Christ-killers.”

I could barely process what I had heard. Did he really say that? I was at the opposite end of the room. No one else reacted, and the story continued. The moment slapped me in the face, then ran away before I could react or get a good look at it.

I wasn’t ready for such casual antisemitism. That ancient hatred waxes and wanes, but never disappears. What I read suggests it’s spiking again. Will I be ready to respond the next time? Would you?

Romans 11 is the end of Paul’s three-chapter essay to gentile Christ-followers about the complicated relationship he had with his fellow Israelites. But as he concludes, he rejects any righteous anger against them. “I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means!” (v1)

I’m going beyond the parts of Romans 11 you might find in your bulletin this Sunday, to a part in the middle that strikes me as Paul warning Christians against antisemitism. In verses 16 and 17, he offers a metaphor for the spread of the gospel: Some Jewish branches broke off from the root, and gentiles were grafted in their place.

Paul says to those gentiles, “do not be arrogant toward the branches.” (v18) He continues, “Do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.” (v20-22)

Earlier in the chapter, Paul talks about the faithful at the time of Elijah. I will assert that Paul’s words in verse 5 apply to us today: “So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace.” We must be the remnant that continues in God’s kindness, defending any people from any hatred, any bigotry. Urge repentance and let God handle the rest.

I pray that all of God’s people – Chosen or otherwise – who are experiencing what verse 25 calls a “partial hardening” against the gospel will come to know salvation and the love of Christ, as it reflects off of us.

Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This week, we come bringing thanks and an invitation.

First, the thanks:

This is our 301st posting! Our goal for writing these devotions is to encourage you to be disciples of Jesus who make disciples. With each posting, we begin with prayer and one question: “Lord, what would you have us to share?”

No matter what passage of Scripture we reflect on, it is always a joy and a privilege to give witness to the salvation we have through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Without a doubt, our first thanks goes to God the Father.

The next thanks goes to all of you: We appreciate your time reading, your comments on Substack and on social media, your emails, and your words of encouragement. You help us grow in our discipleship. Christian community is a wonderful thing.

And that leads us to the invitation:

For some time, Paul and I have prayed about how else, in addition to writing devotions, the Lord might be calling us to love and serve those He’s placed around us. We’ve had a number of ideas, some we need to continue to let marinate. One feels right to pursue now.

On Tuesdays from September 8 through October 13, we will lead a virtual Bible study called “Give Us The Words.”

Each hour-long Zoom gathering will begin at 7 pm Eastern and focus on the Gospel and Epistle passages that we will be writing on in the coming week. Registration is required, though you only need to register once to receive the Zoom link for all sessions. Feel free to come when you can. Please click here to register.

As for how we arrived at the title? It has roots in the question I posed earlier: “Lord, what would you have us to share?” What do the people He has placed around us need to hear? Thankfully, Scripture is brimming with God’s promises to equip us.

“For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.” (John 17:8)

“For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.” (Luke 21:15 NIV)

“For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure.” (John 3:34)

“Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” (Ephesians 6:19–20 NIV)

And before He gives us the words to share, He gives us the Word we need.

Thanks again, and we look forward to sharing time together with you this fall.

Peace to you,

Robin and Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 10:5-17
v15a And how are they to preach unless they are sent?

In software development, the term we use is “dependencies.” Those are tasks that we have to complete first, the foundations of the web pages and whatnot that you eventually see, such as this devotional newsletter.

Paul in this passage states the glorious truth that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (v13) – quoting the book of Joel – but then details what needs to happen first. Before then, they have to believe, in the message they hear preached, by someone sent for that purpose. All dependencies.

Paul even leaves a few dependencies unstated. He implies that the missionary he mentions has been identified, equipped and encouraged by a Christian community, as Paul was identified, equipped and encouraged in Antioch, before being sent off on his first mission trip.

Paul sets this passage in a mission context, which makes sense both given his ministry focus and the letter’s audience in far-away Rome, but it applies for established congregations as well. Who will preach and teach? Many congregations use the term “calling a pastor” or another type of minister, but what about sending one?

Paul in Ephesians talks about how God “gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry,” (Ephesians 4:11-12) but again, those apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers also had to be equipped.

The key dependency is already in place, for those roles and for all other saints. Paul says in verses 6 through 8, commenting on Deuteronomy 30, that we don’t have to rely on some mythical minister capable of reaching into heaven or of raising Christ, because the Lord gave us the words to proclaim.

Some of them are right here. This passage includes some of the most-quoted verses in Scripture – 9, 10, 12, 17 – which is fitting since just about every other verse in the passage includes a quotation from one of six different Old Testament chapters. Paul knew his Scriptures.

We need to learn the words and use them if we want to see people call on the name of the Lord. It’s the difference between wishing for something and working for something. And when someone does call on the name of the Lord, and someone else hears that, and they believe, and they call on the name of the Lord, and someone else hears that, and so on, and so forth, the cycle continues.

It starts by pressing “Send.”

Always pressing buttons,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

I am speaking the truth in Christ – I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit – that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen. But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. For this is what the promise said: “About this time next year I will return, and Sarah shall have a son.” And not only so, but also when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad – in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls – she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” -- Romans 9:1-13

In this passage from Romans, Paul goes into great detail about his kinsmen’s credentials: They have the covenants, the law, the patriarchs. From their race comes Christ. You’d think that would be something to be happy about. And yet, we find Paul in anguish because their entitlements were cutting them off from Jesus. Paul knew what that was like because he once held the same worldview.

“... Circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.” (Phillipians 3:5-6) Paul knew by the time he wrote Romans that when God chose the nation of Israel out of all the peoples on the earth, that choosing was not based on ethnicity alone. “For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring.” (v6-7) Descent from Abraham isn’t the only way to make it onto God’s family tree.

On any family tree, there’s usually a colorful relative -- or two. John the Baptist fits that bill in God’s family tree. Right after he called the religious leaders a “brood of vipers” he warns them in Matthew that God can build his family out of stones. Paul echoes that sentiment, practically begging his readers to realize “it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise who are counted as offspring.” (v8) And that promise culminated in Jesus.

Sometimes God’s promises run counter to our expectations. For example, there was an expectation in Jewish families that the older son would receive the primary inheritance. Yet, before they were born, “in order that God’s purpose of election might continue,” Rebekah was told that with her two sons, the “older will serve the younger.” And God’s promise held true.

Christ’s appearance ran counter to the Jewish expectations. Paul, too, had to get past the “Jewish good, Gentile bad” perception in order to fulfill his mission. Perhaps some didn’t fully appreciate that when God told Abraham (still called Abram then) that in him “all families of the earth shall be blessed”, “all” meant “all”. Paul encouraged them to expand their worldview.

So how about you? Does your worldview need to be challenged? Maybe it’s not ethnicity, but something closer at hand. For example: My denomination good, other denominations bad. There’s an old joke that, when we get to heaven, some of us might be surprised at who we run into. Praise God that there will be room enough for Matthew, Paul, tax collectors, religious leaders, and all of us children of the promise.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Robin and I traded Scriptures this week. I’m writing off the Gospel; she will write off the Epistle reading from Romans. As always, we pray that these devotions are a blessing to you.

Matthew 14:13-21
v20 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over.

To those nourished by the Spirit,

Maybe it’s because I’ll eat Thanksgiving sides until December, or have BLTs for a week straight when the tomatoes are ripe, but I come away from reading about the feeding of the 5,000 asking, What happened to all of those leftovers?

It’s all rather extravagant, don’t you think, how Jesus miraculously fed all of those people from five loaves of bread and a couple of fish, and then overshot by so much? But, of course, he knew exactly what he was doing. Twelve baskets – that’s one per tribe of Israel. Or, one per disciple. “Here, Andrew, here’s your basket. Here’s yours, Philip. …”

What do you think they did with that food? I hope they paid back the boy whose lunch they had borrowed, with interest, but after that? Chuck it, since everyone was full? Sell it and invent the relic industry? Take it to the nearby villages for the first food pantry?

The Bible doesn’t say, which is perfect. The answer is left to our own imaginations, which will inevitably reflect what we might have done in their places. Well, what would you have done?

More importantly, what do you do now with your leftovers? Which leftovers? When you ask the Lord to give you, today, enough bread for today, and your fridge is so full you have to buy stretchy pants. When you pray for good health to support your family and find yourself with decades of retirement. When you ask for financial stability and then are able to store the rest of your shoes in that unused bedroom.

If those examples don’t apply to you, use your imaginations for something that would. Some situation in which you petitioned God and got immeasurably more, in which you first sought God’s kingdom and received everything you needed and then some.

I’m sure we’ve all found ourselves in what felt like a desolate place, when it felt like we didn’t have enough of whatever it was we needed. When the Lord has answered your cries in those times with blessings beyond measure, I encourage you to think of those things as your basket.

And as with the leftovers from this story, ours are good! They’re also for sharing. What are you doing with your leftovers?

Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[Jesus said,] “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

“Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” -- Matthew 13:44-52

Some see value that others miss.

Quinn Brown, a 19-year-old who lives in Portland, Ore., shops at thrift stores in search of vintage clothing to resell on his Instagram account. In January, while thrifting at a Portland-area Goodwill store, he bought a Los Angeles Lakers jacket that had the name “Chamberlain” stitched on the back. He paid $3.07.

Turns out the jacket had been worn by Wilt Chamberlain during the 1972 NBA Finals. Last week, Brown’s $3 find was auctioned by Sotheby’s and sold for $89,600.

Brown would later tell a local news outlet, “I didn’t know what I had, but definitely knew it was something.”

In the first two parables in this passage from Matthew, I associate Jesus with the man and the merchant. Jesus is after something, too; someone, really. We’re the hidden treasure, we’re the fine pearls, and as Brown found and purchased the jacket, Jesus found us and paid to bring us home. We were “bought with a price” -- the blood of Jesus, shed for our sins.

As long as we have been sinners, God has been searching for us. After Adam and Eve sinned in Eden and hid, the LORD God called and said, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). Jesus’ mission was rooted in searching. “For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.” (Luke 19:10)

Thank goodness that determining who’s worth saving doesn’t depend on us. When the prophet Samuel was sent to anoint a son of Jesse to replace Saul as king of Israel, he was about to pick the wrong guy. But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature … . For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

“Then in his joy … .” My eyes linger over that phrase, as I know what it cost Jesus to purchase me. It’s humbling, especially on the days when my worth feels closer to $3 than $89,600. But then I remember it was never about my worth. It’s about Jesus’ righteousness. He made us valuable. As Martin Luther said, “Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, I am your sin. … You became what you were not and made me to be what I was not.”

St. Peter put it this way: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

Healed and gathered into His net, assured of our salvation. May we always remember that, especially when we feel lost. Jesus knows exactly where we are, and we need only to look to Him.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 8:28-39
v37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

“Just take the L.” That bit of slang means “accept that you lost” – lost an argument, failed to accomplish something, that sort of thing. With wins and losses abbreviated as Ws and Ls, you notch one in the L column. Another way of saying that is, “Know when you’re beat.”

Paul describes believers who won’t “just take the L.” We may face “tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword” (v35), but Paul questions, rhetorically, whether those could separate us from the love of Christ. In verses 38 and 39, he definitively says he is sure that nothing could.

In between, he says, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” Dig into the Greek, and you’ll see that that phrase “we are more than conquers” comes from one verb. As an English verb, it might be something like “we super-conquer” those challenges.

And tribulation, distress, etc., they’re still there. We face very specific persecutions. We might even feel, as in the psalm Paul quotes, like sheep to be slaughtered.

But we don’t super-conquer by being better fighters; we aren’t conquerors-plus. We transcend the fight because we h`ave been granted something much more valuable than a temporary relief from famine, or nakedness, or danger, or the sword. We know that “all things” – even the objectively bad things – “work together for good” for those God has called. (v28)

Believers refuse to take the earthly L because we aren’t even playing that game.

Meanwhile, we suffer distresses. The Lord allows our sins to affect each another, and the sins of all have corrupted creation. But I take comfort in knowing that, sometimes, God has used the battles that we lose to further his victory in the war – like when the death of Jesus’ friend Lazarus led to the Jewish leaders’ plot against Jesus, and when Jesus’ politically motivated murder led to his victory over death itself.

That’s why believers won’t take the L. We know we have already won.

Taking the W,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. – Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

Having married into a farming family, I’ve picked up a few agricultural terms over the years. One such term is volunteer plant. Volunteer plants appear in a field without having been planted. They can come from seeds that float in on the wind or are left over from the previous crop, like corn in a soybean field, and grow alongside what was actually planted. They act like weeds, competing with your intentional crops for water, sunlight, and nutrients.

The weeds mentioned in this passage from Matthew didn’t just happen to get mixed in with the good seed. They were sown intentionally, by the devil, so that they would choke out the sons of the kingdom – followers of Jesus.

My first instinct was the same as the master’s servants: Why leave the two groups in such close proximity? The parable answers that itself. “Lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them.”

Jesus makes it quite clear what will happen to the sons of the kingdom and the sons of the evil one at the end of the age. Heaven is real and Hell is hot. So my next question is, as sons and daughters of the King, what are we to do in the interim?

Is it best to be like the Pharisees, keeping to our holy huddles, condemning those who are sinners? Or, as we inhabit the same spaces as those who are hostile to God, are we to speak the Gospel, which provides spiritual nourishment and life?

Scripture tells us that God desires all to be saved. Jesus has given us a metaphor in this parable. Could we think of ourselves as volunteer plants in the devil’s field, grafting Jesus’ love onto those around us as partners in the work of salvation?

During a worship service, when I say “Come, Lord Jesus,” I mean it. Yet, far be it for me to say why Jesus doesn’t come back today. On days when the world seems especially challenging, it certainly seems like that would be easiest. And then, I remember again that Heaven is real and Hell is hot.

And I remember that every day is another opportunity to bear witness to the gift of salvation that we have through Jesus’ death and resurrection. As we wait for the end of the age, might a weed turn from a volunteer plant into something better? I pray that Heaven is full of those we know and love, and I pray just as hard that those who don’t yet know and love Jesus won’t run out of time.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 8:18-27
v26b We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

I’ve had trouble knowing how to start this devotional, which I guess is appropriate, since it’s about not knowing what to say.

It’s about those times when you’re burdened by life and feel compelled to pray, but don’t have the words. When an aching, anxious groan comes out instead, Paul says, that’s OK. That’s the Spirit, giving you the prayer – still in a form that “he who searches our hearts” (v27) understands.

In that moment, your groans are added to a chorus. All of creation, Paul says, “was subjected to frustration” in its “bondage to decay.” (v20-21) But all is not lost. Not all groans come from futile misery. Some groans are worth suffering through.

If you’ve seen, or been, a woman in labor, you can relate. Why would she put herself through that? Or, why did I put myself through this?!!! Then the baby is born, and the question is answered. Paul references that example in this passage. “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” (v22)

The middle schoolers I saw this week at football practice in the late-afternoon heat and humidity reminded me of other good groans. The only path to the season opener is through the wind sprints and tackling practice that will leave you sore and weary – the type of workout Paul references in 1 Corinthians 9:25: “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.”

For our groans, the pain is worth the gain. “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” (v18)

We groan in anticipation, waiting for the metamorphosis when we and the rest of creation are freed. We groan at our present sufferings, yes, but also like kids having to wait for Christmas. Our suffering will end.

When we can’t find the words, we can instead give our groans to God.

In return, he gives us hope.

Only groaning at pun titles,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears,let him hear.” …

“Hear then the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.” – Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

When we purchased our house two decades ago, a selling point was its big back yard. I had plans for a big garden. I have planted blueberries, herbs, tomatoes – even corn. Well, the birds ate the blueberries, and the mosquitoes ate me. But the biggest problem was that we didn’t appreciate how hard it would be to grow anything in the sticky red clay in our part of North Carolina; it requires aeration and a lot of conditioning before it’s fit for planting.

Friends suggested I send off a soil sample to be tested to find out what nutrients it needed. I decided that rather than go to that effort, I’d go to the grocery store, where there are no birds, no mosquitoes, and no red clay.

In this passage from Matthew, Jesus’ parable has an agricultural theme. He stars as the Sower, and the seed is His word. Make no mistake, the word is good. As for the soil it falls onto, that’s another story. What’s the condition of our soil? The answer has bearing on the condition of our souls.

We already know God wants us to read His word. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16) “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11) In addition to knowledge, we also receive hope – not hope necessarily for our desired outcome, but hope in Him.

Scripture reminds us that our Father, who formed our first ancestor from the dust of the ground, and breathed His own spirit into him, will also lift us up out of our brokenness and despair.

But don’t just take my word for it. Never outsource your faith by letting someone, or something, else tell you what God’s word says without checking.

The Barna Group, a research firm specializing in faith, recently released a study on AI and spiritual authority: Nearly one in three U.S. adults now say advice from AI is just as trustworthy as advice from a pastor – approaching two in five among Gen Z, and even higher among Millennials.

When you aren’t familiar with Scripture, it becomes easier to believe half-truths, and outright lies: “Did God really say…”

Going through trials and reading the Bible has a way of making you aware of your soil’s condition, your soul’s condition. It brings me comfort that, no matter what state we’re in, Jesus loves us enough to keep sowing. And He invites us to join Him in sowing the seeds of salvation – sharing the gospel, working through us, so that others might be gathered into His kingdom.

P.S. Substack analytics tracks how many times the Scripture links in these devotions are clicked. It’s not a high number. As much as we love to provide something for you to read, we’d love for you to go to the links, too – there’s no substitute for reading it yourself.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 8:12-17
v16-17 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ,

My grandfather used to break the silence – and crack me up – on long drives together with pronouncements of well-known aphorisms, but with a twist. Like, “You win some, and you lose some. And you tie the rest.”

My favorite was, “Where there’s a will, there’s relatives.”

The Bible talks often about God’s will, for example in Romans 12:2. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

That’s “will” in the sense of God’s desires or purposes, though, not as a document dictating inheritance. Nevertheless, God does have heirs. As Romans 8 says, we are those heirs. We “received the Spirit of adoption as sons,” (v15) making us “fellow heirs with Christ.”

And it is a glorious inheritance, as Paul discusses in Ephesians 1: “... that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe …” (1:18-19)

1 Peter 1 also talks about that inheritance, which I wrote about in April. I don’t recall thinking much then about that inheritance being put down in words, though. The Bible is where God expresses his desires for us, and where we read about the gifts and the promises he has made. In that sense, God’s Word is God’s will; I guess his final testament is what we refer to as the “New” one.

Thank you, Lord, for letting us know your will through your Word. Keep our eyes fixed on the inheritance you have prepared for us, and on the work you have prepared for us in the meantime.

Your fellow heir,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” -- Matthew 11:25-30

I don’t think I realized it until yesterday, but each morning, perhaps with the exception of when one of us is traveling, Paul asks me the same question: “How did you sleep?”

Lately I’ve been able to give him a good report. But there are some mornings when I awake bleary-eyed, perhaps due to a busy mind, or an anxious dog (will the neighbors ever run out of fireworks?!), or a warm room. Suffice it to say my body doesn’t feel particularly rested.

Rest is the central theme of this passage from Matthew. But Jesus is talking about a rest that goes deeper than the CDC’s recommended hours of sleep. It’s as if He’s issuing an altar call of sorts, inviting us to entrust our lives, our inner peace, and our very souls to Him.

When I don’t sleep well, I can always turn to caffeine, a counterfeit god of sorts, with the hope that it will help me grind through my day. And for a while it does. But like all false gods that we look to (money, others, ourselves), resting in them proves unwise, and a crash ensues.

“And Elijah came near to all the people and said, ‘How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.’ And the people did not answer him a word.” This verse, 1 Kings 18:21, sets up one of the Bible’s classic God/counterfeit-god showdowns. In one corner you have the 450 prophets of Baal, and in the other corner you have Elijah, the prophet who reminds me of a brash, heavyweight boxer. He arranges a demonstration designed to aid the Israelites in their decision. As you might expect, a crash followed.

“As for me, I call to God, and the Lord saves me. Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.” (Psalm 55:16-17 NIV) Yes, call out to Jesus, and give Him your burdens. But don’t treat Him as some cosmic genie – someone to call on with wishes, or when you get into trouble.

While we might be focused on our requests, for Jesus it’s about a relationship in which we follow, depend on, and learn from Him. I can’t promise that He’ll save you in the manner you’d like. But I do have faith that just as He heard Elijah, He also hears you. And that’s a pretty cool thought.

Give that some thought the next time you have a sleepless night. And then pray the prayer so many of us learned as a child:

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This Saturday devotion focuses on a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Genesis 1:27
So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

Happy Fourth of July,

Today we commemorate 250 years since the Continental Congress formed the United States of America by adopting the Declaration of Independence.

That document contains these words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

That was written in a society that generally accepted the assertions of Genesis 1:27, of a Creator God, even if many of the signees disagreed about the details. Lately I’ve come to sense that that belief in equality is contingent upon that belief in a creator.

That is, “all men are created equal” only so long as they are created.

If a society generally believes we are a biochemical accident that survived because we were the fittest, it’s likely to view some as fitter, and better, now in the fight to survive. Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness may depend upon their whims.

Of course, we humans aren’t identical in every way, some differences are advantages, and in that sense, we are not equal. But we are equal in, as the Declaration says, “our unalienable Rights” – among these being access to justification through faith.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) “Whoever.” We are equal in value to our Creator. Equal in our Creator’s love.

“This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:3)

That verse from 1 Timothy comes in the context of praying for a peaceful and quiet life through good government. Our nation is showing signs of strain, perhaps signs of age, in pursuit of that peaceful and quiet life, but biblically that isn’t surprising. “The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.” (Psalm 46:6)

Today, I ask you to pray for the nation, yes, but more so pray for the people, that they come to the knowledge of a truth that may not in fact be self-evident: That we have a Creator God who loves us and sent a Savior.

Not for the nation. For them, for me, for you.

Writing from God’s kingdom,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[Jesus said], “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

“Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.” -- Matthew 10: 34-42

In this passage from Matthew, Jesus arrives with a metaphorical sword, a literal choice, and an unavoidable question. Knowing that being Jesus’ disciple can invite division, will you take up your cross and follow Him?

Not answering – which is itself an answer – or trying to live in the murky middle is not an option. It’s as if Jesus is building on the words of the Hebrew leader Joshua, who centuries earlier issued the same ultimatum: “Choose this day whom you will serve.”

It’s not that Jesus’ goal is division for division’s sake. He desires all to be saved. But He doesn’t compromise. In chapter 8 of the book of Ezekiel, God shows that prophet what it looks like when His people have divided loyalties. The Israelites outwardly claimed to worship the LORD, but in and around His temple, they worshipped false gods.

That’s the murky middle, and it’s easy to drift into. We might live one way on Sunday, and drift from God’s commands the other six days of the week, allowing something or someone other than Jesus to disciple us.

But Jesus has also given us a sword – “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17) – to help trim away distractions. That word of God, described in Hebrews 4:12 as “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword,” can whittle away the things that cling to us, and that we cling to, that come between us and Jesus.

There is someone who does seek division. The devil is in the business of dividing. God’s word is good and divides for a different purpose: to cut sin away from us, not to cut us off from each other.

As much as I hate division, staying silent to avoid an argument, and thus creating a false peace, feels worse. We should speak, in love, what we know to be true: that Jesus died and rose again to save us from our sins. His disciples are called to be ambassadors and witnesses to that truth. To share that gospel is a cup of cold water that the world so desperately needs.

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved

This Saturday devotion focuses on a New Testament epistle – a passage, a verse or phrase, perhaps a single word. We pray that it is a blessing to you.

Romans 7:1-13
v5-6 For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.

From the frontiers of science,

“You are what you eat,” I learned as a child, and since your hunger guides what you eat, it’s a short step to say that you are your appetites.

That’s why the way that GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic and Zepbound appear to suppress not just the appetite for food but also for alcohol, for shopping, even for violence, fascinates me. If you are your appetites, and these drugs redefine your appetites, then they redefine … you. It’s a bit mind-blowing.

The Apostle Paul saw a similar transformation in himself and others, not from a GLP-1, but from the Gospel. Before, “our sinful passions … were at work in our members to bear fruit for death.” In this case, he was talking about a religious legalism that enticed and trapped him. “I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died.” (v9)

Freed by the Gospel, he lost his appetite for attacking what he and his fellow Pharisees saw as a rival sect. He joined that group, and the change redefined him, “having died to that which held us captive.”

How has Christ changed your appetites? Are there hungers, desires, passions that you no longer feel? Have they been replaced by new appetites, like the ones mentioned in the psalms? “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” (Psalm 42:1-2)

“You are what you eat,” I learned as a child. As an adult, I have learned that to be true for those of us who have the gift of the Lord’s Supper and are, as Paul calls us elsewhere, the body of Christ.

Indulging my hunger for righteousness,
Paul

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.