Acts 20:13-21:36 Give your life to Jesus and everything will be perfect. You may have heard someone claim this, but, though everyone should give their lives to Christ, it will not necessarily fix all the brokenness in our lives or the fallen state of the world. Paul's dedication to Christ only led to increased suffering for him. We saw in 2 Corinthians that his ministry was marked by hunger, shipw...  Read More

2 Corinthians 11:1-13:13; Acts 20:7-12 Why do you believe what you believe? It is critical to be able to answer this question; otherwise, you are prone to believe the latest argument you heard, whether it is true or not. At the end of 2 Corinthians, Paul argues why the church should listen to him rather than the super-apostles that have invaded the church. Paul points to his credentials of sufferi...  Read More

2 Corinthians 6:14-10:18 If asked whether you are generous, how would you respond? Most of us would probably say yes, but are we really? In Paul's second letter to the church in Corinth, he deals extensively with the idea of generosity. Paul says that true generosity is first a character trait and not just an occasional act. Generosity is marked by a consistent attitude rather than simply giving w...  Read More

2 Corinthians 2:5-6:13 Having a different perspective can drastically change our experience. If we go into a day thinking that it will be terrible, then it probably will be. On the other hand, if we recognize the difficulty and still choose joy, then we can walk in it. Paul gives us the perspective we need in 2 Corinthians. He says, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting ...  Read More

Romans 15:1-16:27; 2 Corinthians 1:1-2:4 "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet" (Romans 16:20). It might seem like a paradox to say that the God of peace will crush someone, but for peace to be accomplished, evil must be vanquished. This image of Satan being crushed goes back to the beginning of the Bible. After Adam and Eve's rebellion, God promised that "he (the seed) will crus...  Read More

Romans 11:1-14:23 Why do you do what you do? As you consider your actions, what are your motivations? Most people tend to be motivated by feeling good, by the pursuit of comfort, and by pleasing people. God calls us to be motivated by what he has done for us. Paul spends the first eleven chapters of Romans detailing what God has done to deal with our predicament of sin. He finished this section by...  Read More

Romans 8:18-10:21 We are more sinful than we realize, but more loved than we can imagine. Tim Keller spoke of this reality many times during his ministry, and he ultimately got the idea from Romans. After Paul has spoken of the depths of our sin in the first few chapters of the letter, he takes us on a tour of God’s love. He speaks of God’s gift of the Spirit who “helps us in our weakness” (Romans...  Read More

Romans 5:1-8:17The Gospel and the Book of Romans is a message of bad news and good news. For us to fully embrace the good news, we have to first wrestle with the reality of the bad news, which is true of our world and true of us. Paul gives us a lot of bad news in Romans 5-8. We live in a world of sin, we have committed innumerable trespasses, and what we deserve is condemnation and death. This is...  Read More

Romans 2:1-4:25 Our world loves to speak of human rights and dignity. What gives us rights or value at all? The only sure foundation for these things is an eternal God. We are not valuable because we evolved or because others say we are important, rather, God tells us that every human has dignity, value, and worth. This beautiful truth is also complemented by the fact that we are all sinners. Paul...  Read More

1 Corinthians 16:1-24; Acts 19:21-20:6; Romans 1:1-32 When was the last time you shared Jesus with someone? Paul tells us that to do so is not an optional part of the Christian life, but it is an obligation. When we encounter God's grace, our automatic response should be to share this with others and to do so without shame. We may be afraid of hurting a relationship, rocking the boat, or not knowi...  Read More

1 Corinthians 14:1-15:58 What are we trying to communicate to people when we get into a spiritual conversation with them? It can sometimes feel overwhelming to know where to start and what to share. Paul helps us by boiling things down into that which is of "first importance" in 1 Corinthians 15. We are to make our main message that Jesus died for our sins and was raised on the third day according...  Read More

1 Corinthians 11:2-13:13 Understanding our identity is critical to living well. In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul claims that every believer is part of the "body of Christ." When we place our faith in Jesus we are instantly connected to his body. Paul deals with two potentially wrong ways of responding to this truth. The first is to think we are not necessary. We may feel like we have nothing to offer and...  Read More