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If you’re an evangelical churchgoer, chances are you’re familiar with the Sunday morning “mini-Greek-lesson”—the part of a sermon where the preacher refers back to a Bible passage’s original language in order to better explain its meaning.

Reading a Bible passage in its original language doesn’t unlock any hidden secrets that are missing from modern English translations, but it can be helpful in interpreting challenging passages. For this reason, I’ve long felt that even a basic, introductory knowledge of Greek or Hebrew (just enough to look something up in a Greek or Hebrew dictionary and understand the information there) is a very worthwhile goal for Christians to pursue, given the chance.

Have you ever read part of the Bible in the original language in which it was written? How did it affect your Bible study in general? If you don’t currently know Greek or Hebrew, do you plan to study one or both of them in the future?

Share your thoughts!

In Our Daily Journey, Regina Franklin writes about a time in her life in which she almost gave up on prayer. Exasperated after a series of seemingly unanswered petitions to God, she asked aloud, “Why bother praying?” Her husband answered, “Because God says so.” Regina concludes that she had let her circumstances govern her faith, rather than letting her faith lead her to “a deeper understanding of prayer”:

Telling them of the widow and the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8), Jesus admonished His disciples to be persistent in prayer. Interestingly enough, He ends His lesson by saying, “But when the Son of Man, returns, how many will He find who have faith?” (v.8). Countless times I have allowed the outcome to determine my level of faith, rather than letting my faith lead me to a deeper understanding of prayer.

Unable to escape circumstances, we allow them to blind us, and—subsequently—we lose sight of the battle. Daniel, however, submitted to God’s will. In doing so, he refused to be moved from his declaration of faith in the power of God. He knew God would answer (Daniel 10:12-19). In 2 Corinthians 5:7 we read, “We live by believing and not by seeing.” Imagine the turn of events if Daniel had given up when the answer was delayed!

Read the rest at Our Daily Journey.

Have you ever found yourself asking the question “Why bother praying?” What was the answer you found?

Evil is easy. Not just easy to do, but easy to portray in writing or film. Think about all of the interesting, memorable evildoers in literature and film: Count Dracula, Ebenezer Scrooge, Michael Corleone, Darth Vader, Benjamin Linus. Most exciting stories revolve around the reaction of heroes to dramatic evil, whether it takes the form of murder, deceit, theft, or any one of countless instantly-engaging acts of villainy.

Even the goodness portrayed in most of our stories is defined as a specific response to evil. The heroes of film and literature may be good people before the villain appears on the scene, but we don’t pay much attention to their goodness until they’re provoked by evil—and even then, the goodness we’re most interested in is that waged in opposition to evil.

Can you think of any good examples in film or literature of genuine, Christlike goodness practiced for its own sake? Are there characters whose kindness, grace, or compassion is even more striking than any portrayal of evil?

I was surprised at how easy it was to call to mind effective portrayals of evil, and how challenging it was to think of memorable, inspiring examples of good. One that occurs to me is the portrayal of Gandalf in the opening scenes of Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring (both the book and the movie). Before the evil Sauron or his minions appear on the scene, Gandalf is portrayed as someone who genuinely loves, without condition, the meek and humble. He’s one of the most powerful figures in the land, and yet he takes time every few years to pay a visit to the diminutive hobbits (who are ignored or scorned by some of Gandalf’s peers). He laughs with them, helps them put on dazzling parties, and watches out for their well-being without a single selfish motive. Once the story proper kicks in, Gandalf’s goodness becomes more closely defined by his fight against evil; but his kindness up to that point is inspiring and Christlike.

Do you have a favorite example of good portrayed stirringly and effectively in art?

When you serve, do you do so without reservations?

In this devotional from My Utmost for his Highest, Oswald Chambers describes Jesus as a man who “‘outsocialized’ the socialists.” Jesus’ vision of servant-hood has no regard for personal and financial concerns. To be a servant of all means committing to serve God and His children without consideration for how it will affect you personally:

The institutional church’s idea of a servant of God is not at all like Jesus Christ’s idea. His idea is that we serve Him by being the servants of others. Jesus Christ actually “out-socialized” the socialists. He said that in His kingdom the greatest one would be the servant of all (see Matthew 23:11). The real test of a saint is not one’s willingness to preach the gospel, but one’s willingness to do something like washing the disciples’ feet— that is, being willing to do those things that seem unimportant in human estimation but count as everything to God. It was Paul’s delight to spend his life for God’s interests in other people, and he did not care what it cost. But before we will serve, we stop to ponder our personal and financial concerns— “What if God wants me to go over there? And what about my salary? What is the climate like there? Who will take care of me? A person must consider all these things.” All that is an indication that we have reservations about serving God. But the apostle Paul had no conditions or reservations. Paul focused his life on Jesus Christ’s idea of a New Testament saint; that is, not one who merely proclaims the gospel, but one who becomes broken bread and poured-out wine in the hands of Jesus Christ for the sake of others.

Read the entire devotional at RBC.org.

Have you ever served freely, without reservation or condition? What would it take for you to be able to serve as freely as Paul?

Share your thoughts!

It’s time to start seriously praying and thinking about summer and spring missions trips. We’ve complied a short list of organizations that offer short-term service opportunities below. It’s by no means exhaustive, but should serve as a starting point for those of you who are interested in serving somewhere:

• Youth Unlimited—Short-term trips for youth groups.
• The Strip Church—The Strip Church hosts short-term trips reaching out to the people of Las Vegas.
• Arab World Ministries—they have a number of trips around the Arab world and the USA.
• Christian Camp and Conference Association—Use their camp locator tool to find camping ministries nearby you that need help.
• Center for Urban Missions—Urban missions trips in cities across the United States.
• Habitat for Humanity&mdash:Habitat is always looking for willing workers to help build houses across the United States and beyond.
• Christian Volunteering—use their search to find service opportunities in your area.

Are you doing a missions trip with a different organization? Do you have any advice for people who are thinking about doing their first short-term trip?

Do you ever wish you had a ministry? Spend much time at a Christian conference or large church gathering and you’ll bump into countless people who have been called into ministries—preaching, outreach, counseling, missions, or many others.

But what about the rest of us, the ones without public speaking skills or leadership training? Are we meant to sit on the sidelines while others do the “real” work for God’s Kingdom?

Maybe each of us already has a ministry. So says Blaine Smith of the Nehemiah Notes ministry:

Too often we think of ministry purely in terms of doing certain things–reciting a memorized evangelistic routine, giving an impressive talk, counseling with a proven approach. Or ministry is something you “go into” professionally, by becoming a pastor, youth leader, Christian counselor or missionary.

God does call some of us into such roles, and they are vital. And all of us can benefit from learning how to minister to others and express our faith more effectively. But we must not think that we’re ministering only when we’re involved in “ministry activities.” [...]

Christ also uses our life and our unique gifts to help others in countless ways, and this is a vital part of our mission as well. The ministry of Christ touches every area of human need. He gives to each of us a unique mix of abilities and opportunities, which enable us to serve others in ways that no one else is as well-equipped to do.

Each day brings with it the opportunity to use our gifts to help others, and to draw others to Christ through the example of our life. As we are faithful to these roles, God gives us special opportunities to speak directly with others about Christ. Yet–and far more often than we think–our life is speaking volumes to others about him, and Christ is using it in remarkable ways to awaken others to their need for a relationship with him.

Read the full devotional at Nehemiah Notes.

Don’t ask yourself “Why can’t I do ministry work for Christ?” Instead, consider what ministry you’re already doing—and strive to do even better!

I’ve been thinking recently about what my relationship to the Bible would have been if I had been born in a different time period. For example, if I had been born in Europe in A.D. 900, chances are I wouldn’t have been able to read or write. Nor would I have had access to anything to read, since the printing press was still a good 500 years in the future. Everything I would have known about the Bible would have been passed to me via someone connected with the Church.

It would have been impossible for me to read the Bible on my own. The concept of a personal quiet time with my Bible and my journal would have seemed ludicrous. In fact, I’d likely have been a Christian without having ever read the Bible myself.

Today, we have ready access to the Bible through the internet and mass-produced physical copies. The illiteracy rate in the United States is well below 10 percent. We have the ability to read the Bible and the education to understand it. We have 24/7 access to it in a huge variety of formats and languages. I’ve heard a sermon every year of my life about the importance of personal Bible study. While I happen to agree that reading the Bible is a spiritually rewarding experience, I keep coming back to the Christian of 900. Were they any less of a Christian than I because of their illiteracy?

Share your thoughts!

As Easter approaches, many churches and individuals are revisiting the Gospel accounts of the suffering and death that preceded Jesus’ glorious resurrection. Is the torture Jesus experienced just part of the story, a historical event along the route to Easter? Does Jesus’ suffering mean something for us today?

Margaret Manning writes at Slice of Infinity about what the atonement means for us today, finding a parallel with the efforts of some Native Americans to make sense of the suffering their ancestors experienced:

A chance meeting at a church gathering introduced me to a ministry in my local area that works with urban-dwelling Native Americans. Most are homeless and many struggle with alcohol and drug addiction. Like me, these individuals are far removed from the Trail of Tears. But like me, this organization wonders what meaning to assign to a tragic past. Clearly, we carry the events of our past into our present lives. In some cases, painful hurts and histories have ongoing repercussions. Cycles of violence, addiction, and despair are shaped, in part, by the meaning assigned to these past events. Therefore, this ministry seeks to reassign new meaning to difficult pasts through reconciliation and forgiveness.

In the same way, as we look at the atonement of Jesus, we can either view it as an event that happened in the past that primarily impacted our individual, vertical relationship with God, or we can see that the justice of God on our behalf enjoins us to do justice on behalf of others. We can live the atonement as a way to give meaning to the past that is redemptive for the present. Recognizing both our need for forgiveness and the need to offer forgiveness, we give meaning to those who need atonement today. Not simply an act of injustice perpetrated against Jesus, the atonement brings life, as surely as it binds us to give life to others.

Read the full devotional at Slice of Infinity.

What happens when a university’s ideal of academic freedom clashes with its statement of faith? That’s the core question at the heart of a recent essay describing the tension between evangelical orthodoxy and academic freedom at Wheaton College.

The essay speaks directly about Wheaton’s upcoming change of leadership (shortly after the article’s publication, Wheaton announced its new president), but the issues are relevant to any Christian college or university that cares both about academic integrity and theological orthodoxy.

Does requiring all faculty at a Christian school to adhere to a very specific statement of faith lead to intellectual stagnation on campus? Wheaton’s statement of faith, like that of many Christian schools, excludes not only followers of non-Christian religions, but also fellow Christians who don’t agree with the school’s take on controversial (and often “non-salvation”) issues like Creation or homosexuality. This can result in the school not hiring otherwise superb teachers due to doctrinal disagreements; or even in the firing of professors whose beliefs don’t conform to the school’s.

It’s not an easy question to answer—everyone acknowledges that without requiring some adherence to a statement of faith, a Christian school risks drifting away from the Christian values it was founded to promote. On the other hand, there’s a point at which a statement of faith becomes too restrictive, needlessly keeping out Christian educators whose presence would be a real benefit to the school.

The article raises these questions in a challenging but fair way. What’s your reaction to the issue?

Consider how you’d answer these questions:

Did you (or do you) attend a Christian college that held faculty to a specific statement of faith?

If so, have you seen examples of such policies getting in the way of academic ideals? Any instances where the policy protected the school from unbiblical ideas?

As you read the article above, are you more sympathetic toward the traditional (keep a strict statement of faith) position, or to the progressive (allow faculty from outside the statement of faith) position?

Share your thoughts!

This entry from Morning and Evening describes the help God offers Joseph in Genesis 49:24. Spurgeon describes God as actually putting his arms around Joseph’s, steadying them like a father for his child:

There is nought that we can do without the power of God. All true strength comes from “the mighty God of Jacob.” Notice in what a blessedly familiar way God gives this strength to Joseph—”The arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob.” Thus God is represented as putting His hands on Joseph’s hands, placing His arms on Joseph’s arms. Like as a father teaches his children, so the Lord teaches them that fear Him. He puts His arms upon them. Marvellous condescension! God Almighty, Eternal, Omnipotent, stoops from His throne and lays His hand upon the child’s hand, stretching His arm upon the arm of Joseph, that he may be made strong!

Read the rest of the devotional at Crosswalk.com.

How has God “steadied your hands” recently? Do you feel God helping you as you go about your day?