Matthew 5:1-2 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:  Many were coming to see Jesus and hear his teaching. Can you imagine this? They were attending an outdoor sermon by the King of Kings himself! Jesus went up…

1 Corinthians 1:10 10 I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. Paul wrote 29 chapters in 2 letters to this troubled church and wrote at least one other…

Isaiah 1:8       8       And the daughter of Zion is left        like a booth in a vineyard,                    like a lodge in a cucumber field,        like a besieged city.  My dad had a large garden where my brother and I lost dozens of baseballs. He always had a huge crop of tomatoes, zucchini, and cucumbers, so much so that…

Psalm 7:1         1       O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge;        save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,  David wrote these words as he was pursued by a man named Cush, a Benjamite, David’s own tribe, but also that of Saul, who was replaced by David. In all that turmoil, David cried…

Isaiah 23:8       8       Who has purposed this        against Tyre, the bestower of crowns,                    whose merchants were princes,        whose traders were the honored of the earth?  Tyre is a coastal city in present day Lebanon that in Isaiah’s day boasted a large population and a name that meant “rock”. They could have thought they were invincible but Isaiah…

1 Peter 1:22-23 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; “I used to lack humility but now I am perfect.” That is…