fisher of men

EDITOR’S NOTE: We’re happy to announce that, coming soon, this devotional will be available in audio version as the Your Daily Bible Verse Podcast! Stay tuned for updates… BIBLE VERSE OF THE DAY: You must make it according to all that I show you  —  the pattern of the tabernacle as well as the pattern of all its furnishings. – Exodus 25:9 The God of Details By Kaite Westenberg Cracking open the book of Exodus feels like a throwback for me. So many dramatic stories from this book were imprinted in my mind by way of Sunday School felt boards. They have become somewhat euphoric for me. Moses in his humble reed basket being taken in by the princess, that burning bush, wild plagues and the Israelite’s spectacular escape – it’s easy to read through the fir...

Judas Iscariot is one of the most infamous characters found in all the Bible. As one of the trusted disciples, he betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, then Judas killed himself.  Theories about the reasons for Judas’ actions and the circumstances surrounding his death are numerous. Judas Betrays Jesus Matthew 26:14-15 wrote that Judas “went to the chief priests and said, ‘What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?’ And they paid him thirty pieces of silver.” Because of Fear Many accounts believe the betrayal was based not on financial gain, but because of a worry that Jesus would become ruler of Judea. Because of Greed John wrote greed was the root of Judas’s actions. In referring to the expensive perfumes Mary used to anoint the feet of Jesus, Judas said, “‘Why was this o...

God is Present by Boyd Bailey, Author of Two Minutes In The Bible™ Through Psalms There they are, overwhelmed with dread,
for God is present in the company of the righteous. Psalm 14:5 God is present in your predicament. You don’t have to pray, “God be with us”; He’s there already. He’s there because He cares. He’s there because you are extremely valuable to Him. God cherishes His children. He loves to give His own good gifts (Matthew 7:11). His presence alone is a present. He’s present to give wisdom. He’s present to give you direction. He’s present to give you courage. In His presence there is peace. He is ever present. God’s presence is there to calm and convict us. His peace is what propels us forward by faith. Don’t give up on doing the right thing. Sinful compromise ...

Where Christians tend to split on progressive sanctification comes when holiness (achieving a blameless life) occurs. Most assert it happens when a believer dies and goes to heaven, as nothing impure can enter heaven (Revelation 21:27). However, some Christians believe one can attain this holiness in life. Meaning of Sanctification When Christians discuss sanctification, they often mean one of two types of sanctification. Before we dive into those, let’s create a clear-cut definition of sanctification that could apply to both types. Sanctification, by definition, means to set something apart for a holy purpose (Leviticus 11:44). God makes us holy because of His holiness. Humans cannot make themselves holy due to their sin nature; only a perfect God can do so (1 Corinthians 6:11). We’ve jus...

First, the good news: Religious leaders are seen as more caring, more likely to be truthful, and can be relied upon to handle resources more responsibly than members of Congress or leaders of tech companies. Now for the bad news: Religious leaders are seen as less caring, less truthful and less likely to handle resources responsibly than K-12 public school principals, police officers, or members of the military. Even more damning is that religious leaders fare their worst when it comes to truth-telling, falling also below journalists and local, elected officials. Ouch. Nothing against the members of those professions, but religious leaders should lead the way in those categories due to the nature of their role.  Of course, the larger issue is why this perception exists. One answer is ...

September 27 Building Bridges to the Kingdom Matthew 25:31-34 Scripture refers to “the kingdom of God” frequently, but many people are unclear as to its meaning. Let’s look at the past, present, and future reality of this concept. The first thing we must realize is that the heavenly kingdom refers to everything under Christ‘s control. At the moment of salvation, we are transferred from the reign of darkness to the bright authority of Jesus. And we are eternally secure in Him. As today’s verses explain, Jesus’ kingdom and reign have been planned since the foundation of the world. From the beginning, God has been preparing mankind for what is to come. One way was by using prophets to foretell how He would redeem humanity and sovereignly rule over heaven an...

Praying God’s will is being honest with him about what we want in prayer, but also surrendering our lives and the outcome of our prayers to him. It’s wanting our lives to align with God’s will more than our own desires.  Praying God’s Will 1 John 5:14-15 says, “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” This seems like such a crazy, cavernous promise. Pray according to the will of God, and your prayers will be answered. God’s will is for us to know him in a personal way and to live for him. When we pray God’s will for our lives, we are setting aside what we want and desire, and we’re asking for what he des...

Lessons from a Superhero by Ryan Duncan “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14 NAS Who is your favorite superhero? If you asked me, the answer would be Aquaman. Most people might find this surprising since, let’s face it; Aquaman has never been that popular of a superhero. He doesn’t strike fear into the heart of evil, like Batman, or block bullets like Wonder Woman. Heck, even most sidekicks are able to fly, but Aquaman needs to hail a seahorse to get anywhere.        For me though, that’s why I like him. Whenever Aquaman fights, he’s always at a disadvantage. His ocean powers never help him on th...

One of the Ten Commandments American Christians struggle the most to keep was given in Exodus 20:8-11: Keep the Sabbath holy. Unlike the previous commandments, which the Bible seems to list and then move on to the next one, the writer (Moses) pauses here and gives an explanation about Sabbath: People work six days a week. (Exodus 20:9) On the seventh day, no one should work. Not your daughter, son, cattle, etc. (Exodus 20:10) God, when creating the world, took a day off to rest, so why can’t you? (Exodus 20:11) We’ll dive into the significance of Sabbaths, how the idea of this got skewed during Jesus’ time, and what it looks like for Christians today to take a day off weekly. Sabbath Definition in Hebrew As the reader might have already derived, a Sabbath means a day of rest. What did it m...

David Pileggi, rector of Christ Church in Jerusalem, points out that Judaism is a religion of remembering.1 The Israelites are to remember that they were once slaves in Egypt, whom God delivered with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. They are to remember how he led them in the desert for forty years. They are to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. So important is the command to remember that God instructed the Israelites to do something that sounds strange to modern ears. He told them to sew tassels on the hems of their garments. Why? First, because clothing, then as now, reflected a person’s social status. In Egypt the Hebrew slaves had occupied the bottom rung of society. By commanding his people to attach tassels to the hem of their garments, God was elevating their status, ...

BIBLE VERSE OF THE DAY: “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” – John 3:6-8 You Are a Spiritual Being By John North When you were dead, He made you alive! We were made by God as spiritual beings. Our spirit enables us to have a spiritual connection to God’s Spirit, through whom we experience the life of God flowing through us. But because of our sin and fallenness, that connection is broken. So we are left spiritually dead. Still, at some point in your life, the Holy Spirit began stirring in your heart an awareness of Go...

The heavenly host is a group or army with heavenly power to assist God’s people. The main purpose of heavenly hosts is to strengthen and comfort believers. “Primarily the angels are meant, but the name gathers into itself the idea of all divine or heavenly power as available for the need of God’s people,” according to Scofield’s Reference Notes. 1. Heavenly host are creations of God.  “You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host.” (Nehemiah 9:6) “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.” (Genesis 2:1) The heavenly host are commonly thought to have been created on the first day. However, the Jewish faith affirms angels were created either on the second or fifth day, as Chabad.org stated. Much of...