Contemplative Bible Reading

Mark 6:19-20 (New Living Translation) 19 So Herodias bore a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But without Herod’s approval she was powerless, 20 for Herod respected John; and knowing that he was a good and holy man, he protected him. Herod was greatly disturbed whenever he talked with John, but even so, […]

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Jude verse 23 (New Living Translation) Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives. Interesting balancing act here. Then again, life is made interesting by these occasions when we walk along the top of a […]

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Acts 7:20-21 (New Living Translation) 20 “At that time Moses was born—a beautiful child in God’s eyes. His parents cared for him at home for three months. 21 When they had to abandon him, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and raised him as her own son. These verses are from Stephen giving his defense for preaching […]

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James 4:7 (New Living Translation) So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. The devil is a large, powerful enemy. This verse, however, tells me that the devil will flee from me. Hmmm, I must be pretty powerful, too. What do I have to do so the devil flees? […]

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James 3:2 (New Living Translation) Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way. Notice the power and promise of this verse. If I can control my tongue, I can control myself in every other way. Contemplate on […]

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James 2:3-4 (New Living Translation) 3 If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, 4 doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? This is the passage from […]

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Romans 1:14-15 (New Living Translation) 14 For I have a great sense of obligation to people in both the civilized world and the rest of the world, to the educated and uneducated alike. 15 So I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News. Paul writes about his efforts […]

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1 Corinthians 3:16 (New Living Translation) Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? Jesus is speaking to a crowd of people. I believe that what He says here applies to all of us in all ages. He is saying, Hey, […]

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Luke 6:46 (New Living Translation) So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say? In the New Testament, the term “Lord” means about what we think it means these days. My “lord” is someone that I recognize as my master, my teacher, the person above me whom I […]

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1 Corinthians 12:13 (New Living Translation) Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit. Notice how the writer illustrates the difference between Jews and Gentiles. The writer equates that […]

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