We feel like we deserve more and claim that deserved state whenever we have the opportunity. But, God gave us what we don’t deserve and calls us to give to those who don’t deserve.
To understand Christmas, we need to understand who Jesus is and what He gave for us. It gives us a direction for what He intends for our lives.
We get confused and suddenly our actions are working against God’s Will and our own interests — and we don’t even realize it.
Are we going to be unified with the world or unified with the Lord? That’s the challenge that Paul hands down to us here.
God calls us to “civic” expressions of His love when elections go the way we hope and also when they do not.
As we come an election and contemplate how much those around us drive us crazy, God calls us to a different path as the church than what the world says we ought to do. We turn to 1 Timothy 2 for insights into the Lord’s plan for us in a partisan world.
As we try to not just do something but something pleasing to God, how do we do that? How do we add the flavor of His love into a world that needs it?
How far should we go to control the things we say? James says we should go a lot further than we often do.
James encourages us to listen but not to stop at listening. Combining listening and acting is necessary for arriving where God wants us.
How often do we “listen” to other people without really listening? How often do we jump immediately to actions and words that don’t reflect the heart of God? James challenges us to do something different.