Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

1 Corinthians 10:31 Life throws up many challenges for us in the 21st century, and it was no different in Paul’s day. One of the issues that he faced was meat taken to pagan temples as an act of worship before being sold by the butchers. Paul was quite clear that pagan gods were not true gods and so it really didn’t matter if the meat had been waved in front of them. But if someone were to point out that the meat had been presented in the temple, he concluded that it would be better not to eat it, out...

1 Corinthians 9:19,22-23 I love meeting people who are passionate about something. It may be their love of horses, a particular football club or their devotion to gardening. You sense that their whole life is tuned into their passion and I find it fascinating to learn how they organise their lives. Paul was clearly passionate about people finding salvation in Jesus and here he lets us see his strategy for spreading this amazing message. His method was to get alongside people whatever their background or way of life. Whether they were a Jew or a Gentile, weak or strong he would...

1 Corinthians 4:16-17 The disciples learned how to follow Jesus by looking at his example. They saw the way in which he responded to the constant demands of his ministry. They saw his kindness and patience and the way in which he welcomed every kind of person. They were often shocked by the things that he said and by the sort of people that he spent time with. Previously, they would have steered well clear of prostitutes, tax collectors and people with leprosy but Jesus always had time for them. Paul didn’t have the privilege of observing Jesus’ ministry, but he r...

1 Corinthians 3:5-6 Think for a moment about the Christian leaders that you have known. I’ve been a Christian a long time and I could easily come up with a list of scores of leaders who have helped me to understand the Christian message. I am so grateful to God for them. I can remember very few words that they have spoken (even though I must have heard thousands of their sermons) but I can easily remember their sincerity, kindness, humour, love, compassion, thoughtfulness and their strength of faith. But, at the end of the day, they were all servants. Th...

1 Corinthians 2:1-3 I once heard about a church that regularly visited the houses nearby. They sent out people two by two. A young girl nervously agreed to join in. She went to one house and a large man came to the door asking in a gruff voice what she wanted. She struggled to speak and then, in a quivering voice, she blurted out: “I’ve come to tell you that Jesus loves you.” The man didn’t know what to say and so slammed the door in her face. He went inside and slumped into a chair weeping like a baby. Hi...

1 Corinthians 1:18 Paul was absolutely sure that the cross of Jesus stood right at the heart of his life and ministry. It was the lens through which Paul saw everything. For him it was the most wonderful message, communicating God’s love and power and the way in which he longs to bring peace into the world. So, Paul was determined to take every opportunity to speak about it. However, Paul was more than aware that the message of the cross sounded like nonsense to many people. The Greeks were looking for wisdom. They were very happy to listen to carefully re...

1 Corinthians 1:4-5 If you know anything at all about the church in Corinth you will know that it was a disaster area. Everything seemed to be going wrong. They were divided. They had a case of incest in the church and nothing had been done to sort it out. Their times of worship were an embarrassment. They totally misunderstood what the gifts of the Spirit were for, and viewed them competitively. It’s hard to find anything to celebrate. But look how Paul starts this letter. He could have kicked it off with a long list of moans, but he do...

Ephesians 6:10-11 Just imagine if someone were to walk on to a battlefield wearing casual clothes. The thought is absurd. If you knew that you were heading into battle, you would go fully equipped. Paul made it absolutely clear to his readers that the resurrection power of God was at work in their lives. But, at the same time, he reminded them that they were involved in a daily struggle with the powers of evil. Paul’s conclusion, as he drew this letter to an end, was that they should go into every day fully equipped for the battles that th...

Ephesians 4:22-24 Do you like change? If I’m honest I have a love/hate relationship with change. There is much about life that is comfortable and congenial and I would be happy if it stayed the way it is. There are other things that I would be happy to change in an instant. In these verses Paul tells us we need to get used to the fact that God is looking for revolutionary change in our lives. He wants that because his desire is for our lives to be completely blessed; not merely an improvement on what they used to...

Ephesians 3:20-21 The resurrection of Jesus is so completely amazing that it needs to challenge every aspect of our thinking about life. If God was like us then it would be understandable if we expected only ordinary and predictable things to happen in life. But he isn’t like us. He was able to bring his son Jesus back to life again, and so we need to stop expecting just the ordinary and predictable things to happen. William Carey was a Baptist and the founder of the modern missionary movement. He lived in Northamptonshire and worked as a shoemaker at th...