Posts with the category “daily-devotionals”

“He is also the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” - Colossians 1:18-20 Every church bu...  Read More

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible… and in him all things hold together.” - Colossians 1:15-17 Most people read about Jesus and picture Him walking through dusty villages, healing the sick, and teaching the crowds. That’s true, but it's only part of who He is. Colossians makes it cl...  Read More

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving” – Colossians 2:6-7. Have you ever watched someone’s faith completely fall apart? One day, they’re following Jesus and seem strong in their walk. Then the pressure comes. Life gets heavy. Doubts creep in. And the foundation t...  Read More

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness" – James 1:2-3. Yesterday, I made a statement I want to look at further. That is, most people are more eager to be delivered than developed. We pray for rescue, for relief, for the quick way out. But God often chooses development over deliverance because He sees...  Read More

"But he who listens to me shall dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster" – Proverbs 1:33. Sometimes the storms in our lives do not pass quickly. Sometimes they linger. The sky stays gray, the winds keep pounding, and you start wondering how long you’ll have to keep holding on. It’s one thing to have deep roots when a storm hits suddenly and leaves just as fast. It’s another to ...  Read More

"And everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock" - Matthew 7:24. A massive storm swept through Northern California a few years back, tearing down trees that had stood for centuries. One by one, the giant redwoods and pines came crashing to the ground. All except one. There was a single tree that stood tall after the storm passed. It...  Read More

“But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.” – Matthew 5:37 Have you ever clicked “I agree” on something without reading the fine print? We all have. That fine print is where people tend to hide the real terms, the stuff that might change your mind if you actually read it. The Pharisees had spiritual fine print behind everything they said....  Read More

“But what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this defiles a person” – Matthew 15:18 Most people think lying is just a mouth issue. But according to Jesus, it’s actually a heart issue. Your words are just the overflow. If truth is going to come out of you, it has to start inside you. Psalm 15 describes a righteous person as someone who acknowledges the truth in their heart and doesn’t...  Read More

"I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak" – Matthew 12:36 When I was a kid, if you talked back or said something you shouldn’t, you’d get your mouth washed out with soap. It sounds crazy now, but back then, it was how adults taught us something important. Your words matter. I still remember a time I got caught lying to my teacher. It didn’t ju...  Read More

"If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell." – Matthew 5:29 Jesus didn’t tell us to cope with sin. He told us to cut it off. He wasn’t telling you to literally rip your eye out or chop your hand off. That’s not the point. He was using strong language to make somet...  Read More

“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” – Matthew 5:28 I want to let you in on a little secret today. You don’t need to be married to start guarding your marriage. That’s right, you don’t need to be in a crisis to start defending your integrity. If sin works from the inside out, then you’d better build your def...  Read More

“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” – Matthew 5:28 Sin never feels like a big deal at first. You think it’s just a glance. Just a thought. Just a moment. But before you know it, you’re ten steps down a path you never meant to take, asking yourself, “How did I get here?” Jesus already told us the answer. Adu...  Read More

“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” – Matthew 5:28 Most of the time, the real battles we face never make it out into the open. They’re not waged in front of people. They happen in our heads, in our hearts, in those quiet moments when no one is watching. That’s exactly what Jesus is getting at when He talks ...  Read More

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” – Matthew 5:27-28 When we think of adultery, most of us picture an obvious and dramatic act. Something physical. A secret affair. A betrayal played out behind someone’s back. But Jesus doesn’t start with th...  Read More

“So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.” – Matthew 5:23-24 It’s easy to assume that bitterness only affects the person you’re bitter toward. That somehow, your cold shoulder or u...  Read More

“Reach a settlement quickly with your adversary while you’re on the way with him to the court” – Matthew 5:25 Jesus had a way of taking big spiritual truths and laying them out in real, practical terms. In His teaching in Matthew 5, He paints a picture of someone being taken to court over an unpaid debt. If you owed someone money and didn’t pay it back, you were thrown in prison. And from there, y...  Read More

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:9 God isn’t far from you. He never moves away. But He also doesn’t force closeness when your heart is cluttered with things that don’t belong. He wants intimacy with you. He wants you to walk with Him, hear His voice, and feel His presence. But He’s not going to compete w...  Read More

“So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” – Matthew 5:23-24 After you recognize the rift and respond with repentance, the next move is simple, but it’s not easy. Restore the relationship. Whether it’s your relat...  Read More

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:9 Once you recognize the rift, the next step is clear. You’ve got to respond with repentance. Not deflection. Not excuses. Not spiritual language to soften the edges. Real repentance. The kind where you stop justifying what God is trying to fix. The kind where you lay it ...  Read More

“If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” – Psalm 66:18 Sometimes the hardest part of spiritual growth is being honest with yourself. Not honest about what other people do or how they’ve hurt you, but honest about what’s living in your own heart. That’s where the real work starts. Jesus said if you remember your brother has something against you, leave your gift ...  Read More

“But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” – Isaiah 59:2 It’s easy to show up to church, lift your hands in worship, and say a prayer. But it’s also easy to forget that there are things in your life that can actually block your connection with God. Not because He’s distant or uninterested, but because...  Read More

“So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” – Matthew 5:23-24 Worship matters to God, but your relationships matter too. And in Matthew 5, Jesus gives us a strong reminder that if you’re holding on to conflict wit...  Read More

“But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to hell of fire.” – Matthew 5:22 We live in a world that celebrates speaking your mind. Say what you feel, let it fly, speak your truth. But Jesus warns us that not every word is harmless, and not every out...  Read More

“But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment” - Matthew 5:22 Jesus had a way of taking the obvious and flipping it. Everyone knew murder was wrong. Nobody argued that. But when He said, “You have heard it said… but I tell you,” He shifted the conversation from what we do with our hands to what we allow in our hearts. He was not just raising the standard....  Read More

“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment” - Matthew 5:21-22 When you hear the word “murder,” what comes to mind? Some people might think of high-profile cases like O.J. Simpson or the Menendez brothers. Others might go further back...  Read More

“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment” - Matthew 5:21-22 When people think of sin, murder usually makes the list. It is one of the most universally recognized wrongs, and even those with no faith background tend to agree on that...  Read More

“But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name.” – John 1:12 Some people just look the part. You know who I mean. The ones who are always upbeat, always quoting Scripture, always volunteering at church, and never seem to break a sweat. And honestly, that’s not a bad thing. We need examples of joy and faithfulness. But we also need to...  Read More

“But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed… The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, since there is no distinction.” – Romans 3:21-22 The Pharisees had rules for everything. And I mean everything. They were so committed to avoiding any chance of offending God that they wouldn’t even say His name out loud. When they wrote it, they r...  Read More

“For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 5:20 When Jesus said what He said in Matthew 5:20 out loud, jaws would’ve hit the ground. The crowd had been raised to believe the scribes and Pharisees were the pinnacle of righteousness. If anyone was getting into Heaven, it was those guys. So for Jesus to ...  Read More

“Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 5:19 According to Jesus, the way we treat God’s Word matters not just now, but forever. He tells us plainly that one day, God will evaluate our lives based ...  Read More

"Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth." – John 17:17 There is no shortage of opinions in our world today. Everywhere you look, people are sharing what they think, how they feel, and why their view is the right one. But with so many competing voices, how do you know what’s actually true?  That’s the question a young college student asked her professor on the first day of class. When the p...  Read More

“For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass away from the law until all things are accomplished.” - Matthew 5:18 We live in a world that’s allergic to absolutes. The most popular belief in culture today is that truth is relative. What’s true for you doesn’t have to be true for me. Everyone gets to decide their own version of ...  Read More

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me.” - John 5:39 There’s a big difference between knowing what the Bible says and knowing the God who said it. The Pharisees in Jesus’ day knew the Scriptures better than anyone. They memorized it, recited it, and even taught it. But when the Word made flesh stood right in front ...  Read More

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” - Matthew 5:17 If you claim to follow Jesus, then you should see Scripture the way He did. And Jesus never once questioned the authority of God’s Word. Not the New Testament, and not the Old either. In fact, right here in His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus makes it crystal clear. He...  Read More

“But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles” - Isaiah 40:31 Jesus didn’t call you to blend in. He didn’t rescue you just to get comfortable. He called you to live different. To live holy, to live bold, and to live with purpose in a dark and broken world. There’s a story about a duck who broke his wing on the way south for the winter. A kin...  Read More

“You are the salt of the earth… You are the light of the world” - Matthew 5:13-14 Jesus was sitting on a hillside when He preached what we now call the Sermon on the Mount. He looked at a group of ordinary people, His disciples and a crowd gathered around, and gave them a brand new identity. He said, “You are the salt of the earth” and “You are the light of the world.” Those weren’t compliments. T...  Read More

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” - Matthew 5:16 One of the most important tests for a follower of Jesus is simple. Are other people seeing your life and giving glory to God? Not “Are they impressed with you?” Not “Do they like you?” Not “Do they think you’re a good person?” Are they seeing your good...  Read More

“You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house.” - Matthew 5:14-15 Jesus did not say you might be the light of the world. He said you are. That means this is not something you can opt out of. If you follow Jesus, your life is meant to shine. You ...  Read More

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.” - Matthew 5:13 Salt does no good if it stays in the shaker. Jesus did not save you so you could sit still, stay safe, and keep to yourself. He called you salt. That means you were made to be poured out, scattered, ...  Read More

“You are the salt of the earth” - Matthew 5:13 When Jesus called His followers salt, He wasn’t tossing out a random metaphor. He was speaking directly to the value, influence, and purpose He designed them to carry. And the same is true for you. Salt is a miracle. You take two elements, sodium and chloride, that on their own are toxic and deadly, but when combined correctly, they form something use...  Read More