Studies, reading plans and every single day within them, alongside devotionals and articles. Search by title, book of the Bible, passage or topic.
Bible Memory collection
The gospel is news before it is advice. These passages give you the message in its apostolic shape, so you can tell it without drifting into moral improvement. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 Paul hands on what he received as of first importance: Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was…
Bible Memory collection
Holiness is the first thing heaven says about God, and it is the reason sin is serious and grace is astonishing. Carry these passages and the rest of the Bible reads differently. Isaiah 6:3 The seraphim call to one another that the Lord of Armies is holy, holy, holy, and that the whole earth is…
Bible Memory collection
The Spirit is not an influence or an atmosphere. He is God with us, working holiness in ordinary people. These verses keep that clear. John 14:26 The Father will send the Helper, the Holy Spirit, in Jesus' name, and he will teach the disciples all things and remind them of what Jesus said.…
Chapter study
John 15 is spoken in motion. Jesus has just finished the Passover meal with His disciples, and John 14 ends with the words 'arise, let us go hence.' Many readers take that sentence as the close of a scene rather than…
Chapter study
Romans 8 is quoted more than it is studied. Most believers can recite verse 28 and verse 38 and have never traced the argument that makes either of them true. Paul is not writing a collection of encouraging lines. He…
Bible study
The chapter that holds the Christian life from beginning to end Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who don’t walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.…
52 Week Journey
Holiness is the attribute Scripture reaches for a superlative to express. Nowhere does the Bible repeat any other quality of God three times in a row the way the seraphim repeat 'holy, holy, holy' in Isaiah 6, and the…
52 Week Journey
The Holy Spirit is easy to speak of vaguely, as an influence or a feeling, but Scripture describes Him as a person who teaches, convicts, intercedes, comforts and gives gifts. He is present from the opening lines of…
Devotional
Leviticus 19:2 "Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and tell them, 'You shall be holy; for I Yahweh your God am holy.'" WEB Leviticus 19 is a chapter of remarkably practical commands, honesty in…
Devotional
Jeremiah 31:33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” says Yahweh: “I will put my law in their inward parts, and I will write it in their heart. I will be their God, and…
Devotional
John 14:16-17 I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Helper, that he may be with you forever, the Spirit of truth, whom the world can’t receive; for it doesn’t see him and doesn’t know him. You know…
Devotional
2 Timothy 3:16 Every writing is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction which is in righteousness WEB Paul writes this to Timothy about the Hebrew Scriptures Timothy…
Devotional
1 Peter 1:15-16 But just as he who called you is holy, you yourselves also be holy in all of your behavior; because it is written, "You shall be holy; for I am holy." WEB Peter writes to believers he calls 'sojourners…
Daily reading
Read Hebrews 12 whole. The race in verses 1 and 2 turns into discipline in verses 5 to 11, and the same love is behind both. What is laid aside: weight first, then sin. Not everything that slows you down is wickedness.…
Devotional
Ephesians 4:30 Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. WEB Paul places this command in the middle of a list of practical instructions: put away lying, do not let the sun…
Devotional
2 Samuel 6:6-7 When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the cattle stumbled. Yahweh's anger burned against Uzzah, and God struck him there for…
Article
Colossians 3:12 Put on therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, humility, and perseverance; Paul reaches for the language of dressing when he wants to describe…
Devotional
1 Corinthians 12:7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the profit of all. WEB Corinth's church was quarreling over which gifts mattered most, and Paul answers by relocating the whole…
Devotional
Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered. WEB Paul has just…
Devotional
Isaiah 6:8 I heard the Lord's voice, saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here I am. Send me!" WEB This offer follows a vision of the Lord high and lifted up, seraphim crying holy, and…
Devotional
Zechariah 14:20 In that day there will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, "HOLY TO YAHWEH"; and the pots in Yahweh's house will be like the bowls before the altar. WEB The phrase 'holy to Yahweh' had a very…
Devotional
Isaiah 6:3 One called to another, and said, "Holy, holy, holy, is Yahweh of Armies! The whole earth is full of his glory!" WEB Hebrew has no simple grammatical way to say 'supremely' or 'most', so it repeats a word for…
Devotional
Genesis 1:2 Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters. WEB Before there is light, before there is land, before there is any…
Devotional
Psalm 34:18 Yahweh is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves those who have a crushed spirit. WEB This verse does not say God is near to those who have recovered from their broken heart. It says He is near to…
Devotional
Ezekiel 36:26-27 I will also give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you. I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you, and…
Devotional
Leviticus 19:15 “‘You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor show favoritism to the great; but you shall judge your neighbor in righteousness. WEB The command cuts both ways.…
Devotional
Matthew 6:33 But seek first God’s Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well. WEB This sentence sits at the end of a passage about anxiety over food, drink and clothing. Jesus…
Devotional
Exodus 3:5 He said, "Don't come close. Take your sandals off of your feet, for the place you are standing on is holy ground." WEB Moses is on a mountainside he has walked for forty years, tending sheep. Nothing about…
Devotional
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. WEB Paul calls this fruit, singular, not…
Devotional
Isaiah 6:3 One called to another, and said, “Holy, holy, holy, is Yahweh of Armies! The whole earth is full of his glory!” WEB Isaiah's vision of the throne room shapes the rest of his prophecy. The seraphim do not…
Devotional
Jeremiah 31:33 "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days," says Yahweh: "I will put my law in their inward parts, and I will write it in their heart. I will be their God, and…
Devotional
Philippians 2:9-10 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the…
Devotional
Acts 2:3-4 Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability…
Devotional
Mark 15:39 When the centurion who stood by, saw that he cried out like this and breathed his last, he said, "Truly this man was the Son of God!" WEB A Roman soldier who had likely overseen many crucifixions says this…
Devotional
Acts 1:4 Being assembled together with them, he commanded them, “Don’t depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you heard from me. WEB The risen Christ does not send the disciples out…
Biblical concept
Messiah is Hebrew and Christ is Greek, and both mean anointed. In Israel priests, kings and occasionally prophets were anointed with oil to mark them as set apart for God's work. John 1:41 translates the word for the…
Place in Scripture
Mountains in Scripture are meeting places. Abraham is sent to a mountain in Moriah, Moses receives the law on Sinai, the temple is built on a hill in Jerusalem, Jesus teaches, is transfigured, prays and is crucified on…
Biblical concept
To anoint someone was to pour oil on their head and so mark them out as chosen for a task God had given. Samuel anoints Saul and then David, and in David's case Scripture says the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon him…
Biblical concept
A priest in Israel existed for one reason: sinful people cannot simply walk into the presence of a holy God. Someone has to stand in between, carrying the offering in and carrying the blessing out. Hebrews states the…
Biblical concept
To sanctify is to set apart for God. Vessels, days and people are all sanctified in Scripture, so the first meaning is belonging rather than performance. The New Testament speaks of believers as already sanctified in…
Biblical concept
The Spirit is spoken of as a person, not a force. He teaches, is grieved, distributes gifts as he wills, and speaks in Acts 13:2. Acts 5:3 and 5:4 call lying to the Spirit lying to God. Jesus promises another Helper…
Place in Scripture
The temple was the place God chose for his name to dwell, built by Solomon on the pattern of the tabernacle. Its architecture taught distance and access at once: courts, a holy place, and behind a veil the holy of…
Christian Living
2 Corinthians 6:14 Don’t be unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? WEB 2-corinthians 6 The image is agricultural: two animals…
Christian Living
Luke 9:23 He said to all, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. WEB luke 9 Jesus never hid the cost. Three verbs mark a disciple: deny, take up, follow, and the…
Christian Living
1 Peter 1:15-16 but just as he who called you is holy, you yourselves also be holy in all of your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy; for I am holy.” WEB 1-peter 1 Holiness is not a mood or a style of…
Christian Living
John 14:26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and will remind you of all that I said to you. WEB john 14 Jesus does not describe the Spirit as an…
Christian Living
John 14:15 If you love me, keep my commandments. WEB john 14 Jesus joins love and obedience so tightly that neither can be claimed without the other. Obedience is not how a person earns His favour, it is how love…
Christian Living
1 John 1:8-9 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. WEB…
Christian Living
2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and forever. Amen. WEB 2-peter 3 Growth is commanded, which means it is not automatic, and it is growth…
Christian Living
Ephesians 6:12 For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of…
Christian Living
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make the way of escape,…
Bible question
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. WEB Let God answer this before anyone comforts you or frightens you about it. 1 John…
Bible question
Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good. What does Yahweh require of you, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? WEB God has already spoken about his will. Read that first, because…
Bible question
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make the way of escape,…
Bible question
Romans 6:12-14 Therefore don’t let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. Also, do not present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God, as…
Bible question
John 3:3 Jesus answered him, “Most certainly, I tell you, unless one is born anew, he can’t see God’s Kingdom.” WEB Jesus explains this himself, so read his words before ours. John 3:3-8 Jesus answered him, “Most…
Bible question
Proverbs 9:10 The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom. The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. WEB Before we define the fear of the Lord, listen to how God speaks of it. Proverbs 9:10-11 The fear of…
Bible question
John 14:16-17 I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever, — the Spirit of truth, whom the world can’t receive; for it doesn’t see him, neither knows him. You know…
Bible question
2 Timothy 3:16 Every Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness, WEB Before asking historians, ask what Scripture says about its own origin.…
Prayer
Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered. Paul does not treat…
The Sunday Study
Verse-by-verse teaching with historical context, and a prayer to close. Nothing else in the email.