by Mathew Swora | Feb 6, 2018
Ephesians 1: 3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In...
by Mathew Swora | Jan 23, 2018
Acts 1: 1) In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.3 After his suffering, he presented himself to...
by Mathew Swora | Jan 17, 2018
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your...
by Mathew Swora | Jan 9, 2018
(based on the visit of the magi in Matthew 2: 1-12) You’ve likely heard about how church tradition has named the magi in today’s text as the three wise men, Belshazar, Melchior and Caspar, even though the Gospel account doesn’t give their names nor tell how many there...
by Mathew Swora | Jan 5, 2018
Monday, January 1: Psalm 72: 1-7; 10-14, A “Royal Psalm,” this is ancient Israel’s prayer for a certain kind of king and kingdom. Compare this prayer with Samuel’s warning about what their kings and kingdoms would actually be like, in I Samuel 8: 10-22. Israel...
by Mathew Swora | Jan 5, 2018
Luke 2: 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s...
