Relationships and Community on Maturity

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Many Christians know John Newton

Author

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 1:18, Ezekiel 36:26, Micah 6:8 , 2 Corinthians 5:17, Luke 15:24, Psalm 51:10

Many Christians know John Newton as the author of the hymn Amazing Grace and other beloved hymns. Fewer know that Newton’s own life matches the beauty of transformation written in Amazing Gra...

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From Dropout to Disciple-Maker

Author

Bobby Harrington

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 2:1-10, Psalm 40:2-3, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Luke 15:20, John 1:5

I (Josh) know a young man named Mark who was on the brink of self-destruction. He partied away his first semester of junior college and was later kicked out of school. He was devastated by his loss an...

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Throwing Away Valuable Resources

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 42:, Philippians 3:13-14, 2 Corinthians 5:17, 2 Corinthians 11:24-30

In many parts of the country, leaf clean-up is an annual chore. They fall from the trees, blanket our lawns, and we often bag them up and toss them out (or burn them). There’s a lesson in this… In my...

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Author

Blaise Pascal

Keywords

Scripture

Philippians 3:13-14, Romans 12:18, Colossians 3:13, James 5:16, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Psalm 147:3

Time heals griefs and quarrels, for we change and are no longer the same persons. Neither the offender nor the offended are any more themselves.

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Heavenly Father, we come before Your

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:17, Matthew 6:14, Titus 3:5, Ephesians 1:7, Romans 12:2

Heavenly Father, we come before Your throne of grace to confess our sin. We have been selfish instead of generous; we have been proud instead of humble; we have held grudges instead of forgiving; we h...

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The Problem with the Human Race

Author

Timothy Keller

Keywords

Scripture

Galatians 3:10, Psalm 130:3-4, 2 Corinthians 5:10, Ecclesiastes 12:14, James 2:10

Imagine you have an invisible recorder around your neck that, for all your life, records every time you say to somebody else, “You ought.” It only turns on when you tell somebody else how to live. In ...

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Author

Flannery O'Connor

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 46:10, John 20:29, Psalm 23:4, Proverbs 3:5-6, Isaiah 50:10, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Hebrews 11:1

People...think faith is a big electric blanket, when of course it is the cross...You arrive at enough certainty to be able to make your way, but it is making it in darkness. Don’t expect faith to clea...

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Adapted from “A Cry for Deliverance” in The Valley of Vision

Author

Dustin Ray

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:21, Philippians 3:9, 1 Corinthians 10:13, James 4:7, Matthew 6:13, Romans 12:2, 1 Peter 1:15-16, Galatians 2:20

Pastor: Heavenly Father, save me from sin! I know I am righteous only through Jesus’ righteousness, but I greatly desire to be more like him! I am your child, so help me to resist the temptation to si...

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Gracious God, we ask for Your

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 43:18-19, Hebrews 10:22, Colossians 3:10, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Titus 3:5, Psalm 51:10

Gracious God, we ask for Your forgiveness and receive it with joyful hearts. Renew our minds so that we may discern what is good. Fill us with Your Spirit so that we may be Your witnesses in the world...

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Gracious God, we are called to be a

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 51:10-12, Hebrews 4:16, Romans 5:8, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 1:7, Psalm 103:12, 1 John 1:9

Gracious God, we are called to be a joyful people, giving thanks for You and Your good gifts. There are times, however, when sin and sorrow grow, pushing joy to the side. We lose sight of Your grace, ...

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Author

Emil Brunner

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 3:23-25, 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:24, Ephesians 2:13-14, Colossians 1:19-20

Only at the cross of Christ does man see fully what it is that separates him from God; yet it is here alone that he perceives that he is no longer separated from God. Nowhere else does the inviolable ...

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Author

A. W. Tozer

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 37:5, Jeremiah 17:7, 2 Corinthians 5:7, 1 Corinthians 16:13, Hebrews 11:6

The man of pseudo-faith will fight for his verbal creed but refuse flatly to allow himself to get in a predicament where his future must depend upon that creed being true. He always provides himself w...

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Adapted from “Continual Repentance” in The Valley of Vision

Author

Dustin Ray

Keywords

Scripture

Titus 3:5, Hebrews 10:14, Romans 6:12-13, 1 John 1:9, 2 Corinthians 5:21

Pastor: O God of grace, you have taken my sin and put it on Jesus’ head, and you’ve taken his righteousness and put it on mine. You’ve made me holy and blameless in your sight; therefore, you delight ...

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Author

Elyse M. Fitzpatrick

Keywords

Scripture

John 3:16, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Psalm 103:10-12, Ephesians 2:4-5, Romans 5:8, 1 John 1:8-9, Romans 3:23-24

I am more sinful and flawed than I ever dared believe, more loved and welcomed than I ever dared hope.

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Gracious God, you forgive us whenever

Author

Chip Hardwick

Keywords

Scripture

1 John 1:9, Romans 7:15-20, Galatians 5:16-17, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:8-9, James 1:22-25, Lamentations 3:22-23

Gracious God, you forgive us whenever we ask, and so we ask you now to forgive all of our sins. We need your grace again, for we often return to the same sins, over and over again. Your Spirit longs t...

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Author

Richard J. Foster

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 8:29, 2 Corinthians 3:18, John 15:4-5, Romans 12:2, Titus 3:5, 2 Corinthians 5:17

The needed change within us is God's work, not ours. The demand is for an inside job, and only God can work from the inside. We cannot attain or earn this righteousness of the kingdom of God: it i...

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A Better And Wiser Judge

Author

Source Unknown

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 21:2, Revelation 20:12, James 2:12-13, 2 Corinthians 5:10, Romans 14:12

Horace Gray was a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. During one of his cases, a criminal was about to be released, not because he was innocent, but because of a technicality. As Gray prepared to relea...

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Author

N. T. Wright

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 1:18-19, Romans 8:30, Colossians 1:13-14, Romans 5:1, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Ephesians 1:7

Dealing with sin, saving humans from it, giving them grace, forgiveness, justification, glorification-all this was the purpose of the single covenant from the beginning, now fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

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Getting to Do the Things She Loves

Author

Chris Spielman

Keywords

Scripture

Philippians 3:20-21, 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 2 Corinthians 5:1-2, Revelation 21:4, Isaiah 40:31, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

Chris Spielman was at one time a paragon of athletic performance. A two-time All-American Linebacker at Ohio State University, and later three-time all pro for the Detroit Lions, Spielman knew what it...

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The Reconciling Love of the Father

Author

Jen Pollock Michel

Keywords

Scripture

John 1:12-13, Romans 8:15-17, Galatians 4:4-5, Ephesians 2:12-13, Colossians 1:21-22, 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

In her book Keeping Place: Reflections on the Meaning of Home , Jen Pollock Michel reflects on the nature of home in a transient age. In this short excerpt, Michel reflects on the Biblical doctrine...

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2 Corinthians 5:20, 21

Author

Bud Thoreen

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:20, Isaiah 55:11

Brothers and sisters, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. We know this to be true, that the word of the ...

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A Christmas with Home Alone

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 15:20-21, 1 John 1:9, Ephesians 2:13-14, Matthew 5:23-24, Psalm 51:10, 2 Corinthians 5:18, Luke 19:1-10

Richness in the Slapstick I don’t know about you, but when I think of insightful, theologically rich content on Christmas , I don’t naturally start with blockbuster films. And no, I’m not referring ...

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Follow the Bubbles

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 8:26, John 14:26, Psalm 139:9-10, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Isaiah 42:16, Psalm 119:105

When I graduated from college I was given one of the greatest opportunities of my young life. A group of my friends were told that if we were able to purchase a flight to the Cayman Islands, we would ...

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The Corinthian Judgment Seat

Author

Discover Revelation

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:10

The city of Corinth was famous for the Isthmian Games, a festival of athletic contests and events similar to the Olympic games. At the end of each contest or event, the athletes would appear before a ...

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Holy Father, You are perfect and just,

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

Scripture

Colossians 1:13-14, Psalm 103:12, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 5:8, Titus 3:5, 1 John 1:9

Holy Father, You are perfect and just, but we are sinful and unworthy. We intend the best in how we live our lives, Yet sin remains in us. Through Your Son, we are able to have redemption and a reconn...

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The Debt Must Be Paid

Author

Peter Kreeft

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 3:23-26, 1 Peter 2:24, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 2:13-14, Isaiah 53:5, Hebrews 9:22

Mercy goes beyond justice, it does not undercut it. If I forgive you the hundred dollar debt you owe me, that means I must use one hundred dollars of my own money to pay my creditors. I cannot really ...

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Evangelism on a Wrestling Mat

Author

Don Everts and Doug Schaupp

Keywords

Scripture

1 Corinthians 9:22, Luke 7:34, 1 Thessalonians 2:8, Matthew 5:16, 2 Corinthians 5:20

It was impossible for me (Doug) to become Mark’s friend. He always avoided eye contact with me though I would smile and say hi as I passed him in the dorm. I had no idea what was going on in his heart...

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Why We Love Makeover Shows

Author

Emily P. Freeman

Keywords

Scripture

Ezekiel 37:1-14, Isaiah 61:1-4, Job 42:10-17, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Luke 8:26-39 , Psalm 51:10-12

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition was one of my favorite shows for a while, mainly because I loved to see the before and after shots. The water damage in the bathroom, the rotting ceiling beams, and the ...

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Dearest Father, we long for light, but

Author

Scott B. Bullock

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 13:43, John 1:1-14, John 8:12-20, 1 John 1:5-10, Psalm 27:, John 9:5, 2 Corinthians 5:1-10

Dearest Father, we long for light, but dwell in darkness. We crave the warmth of the sun, but crawl into our caverns of sin and sadness. We are a people who prefer the misery and melancholy that we kn...

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Dear Lord Jesus, we feel our sins. They

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:21, Psalm 103:12, Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 8:1, John 6:40, Romans 10:9-10, 1 John 1:9

Dear Lord Jesus, we feel our sins. They bite and gnaw and terrify us. Where shall we go? We will look to You, Lord Jesus, and believe in You. Although our faith is often weak, we look to You and find ...

relationships and community on Maturity

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