262 results for tag: Quote for today
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 30, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“The church is not a building. The church is not identified by a sign outside of a building or by a steeple that soars above a building. The church is not a legally incorporated entity. One may be a member of a church and not be a member of the universal body of Christ, which is the church that really counts. One may be a member of the universal body of Christ and thus free in Christ (Galatians 5:1) to affiliate with a church. But one’s membership in a church is not required or a necessary prerequisite for membership in the universal church founded by Jesus Christ. Christ-followers are the church – ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 28, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Dietrich Bonhoeffer, widely regarded as a 20th century martyr, put to death by the Nazis before the end of World War 2 because of his faith in Christ, once said, ‘Jesus calls men, not to a new religion, but to life.’ Jesus did not come to this earth to start another religion, but to save the world from religion!
The mission of Christ-less religion is sin management. Christ-less religion is all about making bad people better. Jesus is not interested in cosmetic improvements. He did not, in the ultimate demonstration of love, give his life on the cross for a behavioral modification program. ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 25, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“When it comes to marital love, so many people are not willing to forgive, blaming their husband or wife for all marital difficulties, and then off they go ‘looking for love in all the wrong places.’ They fail to forgive the imperfections of others and they fail to realize their own flaws and foibles and thus they start looking for their ‘soul mate’ – thinking that someone somewhere will make them deliriously happy, without stopping to consider how they might make that someone happy.
‘Dear Abby’ once concluded this short letter in her newspaper column: ‘Dear Abby: I am divorced, 50 ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 23, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“A law-based, rules-focused ministry or church will eventually turn you into a hypocrite, because in a religious environment where the emphasis is on human perfection and human performance, you can never admit to being who you really are. In such a religious environment you must pretend that everything in your life is near-perfect, because if you give any hint that you are less than perfect you will be regarded and probably treated as a failure. So, in order to survive and thrive within religious legalism, you must pretend to be someone (a near-perfect person) whom you are not.
In such an atmosphere, ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 21, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Sad to say, religion, including many parts of Christendom, has been responsible for the repression of women over the years. Many biblical passages have been subjectively interpreted by men to mean that they are superior to women. This was a convenient interpretation for men, of course, as they were, and still are ‘in charge’ of many churches. So, men have, sometimes in the guise of Christianity, lorded it over women, maintaining their domination over women by interpreting biblical passages in such a way that women would be charged with being ‘barefoot and pregnant’ – almost like a possession. ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 18, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Some people seem to think of God in a similar way as they recall their grandmothers. Some may remember when they visited Grandma that they had to be extremely careful not to disturb the museum-like setting of what was erroneously called her ‘living-room.’ As children, they weren’t allowed to sit down, to touch anything, and they had to take great care not to break anything.
God’s kingdom of heaven is not a grandmother’s living room that’s virtually roped off, to be used for viewing purposes only. Our relationship with God is more like sitting down at his kitchen table (which, to be ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 16, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Years ago, I gave a sermon on suffering. I think I was about 30 years old. At the time I was studying the principles of the art and practice of homiletics (preaching). I had just learned an axiom which preachers are often taught – ‘there’s a broken heart in every pew.’ Suffering is always a relevant, necessary and critical part of our lives. Every one suffers during their lives, and everyone desires to find meaning in their suffering. Understood properly from a Christ-centered perspective, suffering always leads us back to Christ and his cross. Paul said:
1 Corinthians 2:2: ‘For I ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 14, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Immediately following 9/11, two well-known American religious professionals alleged that God allowed the attacks to happen because, while they presumed God had once protected the United States, now they believed God was so angered by our growing acceptance of abortion and gay rights that he had removed our so-called ‘hedge of protection.’
Along with millions of others who share their superstitious and off-the-wall ideas of who God is, these so-called ‘evangelists’ seemed to believe that God sits on his heavenly throne, peering down on all our corruption and evil, getting more and more ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 11, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Mothers are perhaps most celebrated when we, their children, can see how they, in some way, enabled us to see and experience something of God’s unconditional love. In that light, remember:
The biological act of childbirth does not deliver all attributes to a woman that enable her to be the mother her children need. There’s more to motherhood than biology.
Women who truly grow and mature into motherhood often sacrifice themselves for the good of their family. When, for example, there are only three pieces of pie left, but four people at the dinner table, mothers will often announce that ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 9, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“I believe the Bible to be inspired by God. However, I also believe there is, by design, a substantial human component in the writing, editing, translating, preservation and publishing of the Bible. You have heard the boast made by processed food manufacturers – “untouched by human hands.” The Bible has been touched by many human hands and is therefore fallible and less than 100% perfect. The Bible is not divine. God never intended that it be divine. The moment humans became involved, absolute perfection and infallibility was out of the equation.”
Originally published in:
Wonders ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 7, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“After we are born, it doesn’t take us too many years to realize (especially given the wisdom we receive as the hormones rage through our teenage bodies!) that our parents are not perfect. As we mature and marry and become parents ourselves, we come to the humbling insight that we will not be perfect parents either. It’s about that stage of life when we begin to understand what the philosopher Kierkegaard had in mind when he said something like, ‘Life can only be understood backward, but it has to be lived forward.’
There are, of course, many times when children find it extremely difficult to honor ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 4, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Bad News Religion strikes back when grace is given. Religious legalism, by definition, is not gracious. There is no ritual, no deed, no church tradition, no human innovation, nor any ceremony that imparts grace. Grace comes from God and from God alone. Grace is a direct challenge to legalism’s authority. There is only one response that religion based on externalism can give – and only one response that externalism has ever given to grace – anger, hatred and animosity.”
Originally published in:
Bad News Religion
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Reflections Along the Jesus Way
May 2, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“How God saves us, or when he does, is not completely revealed to us in the pages of the Bible…God does not consign people to hell because imperfect Christians do a poor job of telling others about him… God must have other ways of saving humans other than our efforts! I mean, take a look at our efforts!...
How many people does God reach in the last few days or hours of their lives? We don’t know.
Does God always use another human being to reach those who are ‘cramming for finals?’ No. God might use us, but he doesn’t need to.
How long did it take for Jesus to save the thief on the ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 30, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“On his cross, Jesus opens his arms to you and me and everyone not by our deeds – not by how well we have done, not by how we have measured up or failed to measure up – he opens his arms to us by his goodness and his supreme love, demonstrated for us on his cross…
In return for torture, hatred, violence and crucifixion, Jesus gave forgiveness. In return for abuse, he gave an embrace. In return for evil, he responded with love and goodness.”
Originally published in:
Christianity Without the Religion magazine, April 2021
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Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 27, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“We might ask what forces or desires or motivations are driving us to live our lives frantically – who or what is trying to persuade us that busier and faster is better? Jesus invites us to rest in him, not rush with him!
Resting in Christ, as a Christ-follower, means of course following him, in the direction he takes us and the pace he chooses. If we are in a rush and pass him, then we are not following him but instead we are blazing a different trail, effectively telling him to hurry up and follow us!
Take a deep breath – pause for a moment – take a break from any ‘rush hour’ ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 24, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“The cross of Christ was God saying ‘I love you’ when humanity at large said, ‘I hate you and I am going to kill you.’ Jesus didn’t demand that we sign a contract before he gave his life – he did what he did out of love without any guarantee that we humans would respond favorably, and love him back. That’s part of the freedom of God’s love – the grace of God exhibited and demonstrated in his love. God does not force us to do anything – for if force is involved, then by definition, it is not love…
God’s love is profound because he refuses to use force or intimidation ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 23, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“God’s grace and his love are intertwined – joined at the hip. You can’t have one without the other. God is love. He doesn’t just have love – love is what God is.
God’s grace delivers and expresses his love. God’s grace, like his love, has no limits or boundaries. Grace defies logic and even offends our sense of fair play. The implications of grace are staggering – scandalous – outrageous.
Christ-less religion has erected its institutions, cathedrals, mosques, synagogues, temples and churches. Christ-less religion has its treasured icons of rituals, customs and ceremonies. ...
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 20, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“God is not just ‘out there’ somewhere – he came to be one of us, to be with us, and for that matter, he’s still here with us. Of course, he is also ‘out there’ – but not at the exclusion of being right here with you and me, right now. By virtue of being God, he is everywhere at once.
How Big Is God? Big enough to hear every prayer that is said. Big enough to be in every hospital room and on every battlefield. He’s in every ghetto and slum where children cry and mothers despair.”
Originally published in:
Spiritual Soup for the Hungry Soul, Volume 2
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Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 18, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Some will say God’s honor and perfection and holiness had been so offended that something had to be done – his good name had been muddled and sullied by humans so that his reputation demanded redemption. But again, that’s not love. That’s retribution – that’s God getting his pound of flesh. That idea of the cross is Jesus getting what we deserved because the Father demanded revenge.”
Originally published in:
Christianity Without the Religion magazine, February 2017
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Reflections Along the Jesus Way
April 16, 2024 - Quote for the Day:
“Christ-less religion is singularly focused on its own growth and its own desire to perpetuate its own institutional legacy, often completely missing the unifying, powerful message of the cross of Christ. Christ-less religion obsesses about wafers or crackers, leavened or unleavened, wine or grape juice, the physical authority performing baptism and how much water must be used – so preoccupied with its dogmas, processions and its holy days that it forgets the holy ground at the foot of the cross of Christ.”
Originally published in:
Letters to My Friends
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