Category: Bible Usage

Devotional from the THRIVE: A Journaling and Devotional Bible for Women

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8, NLT

Love Letter from God
You are my witness in this world. When you live by the power of My Holy Spirit, you will be an effective witness for Me. Some people try to manipulate to get what they want, but that is a dangerous game. You do not have to operate your life in your own strength. Show others what I am like by how you live. Introduce them to Me, and I will do the rest. I want you to rely on the power of My Holy Spirit as you witness and tell people about Me.
Love,
Your heavenly Father

Reflection
Relying on our own strength affects our witness for God. We have a limited voice with little power and only a temporary ability to influence others. Permanent change is only possible when the power of the Holy Spirit works through us, giving power to the weak and new life to the rest.

Treasure of Truth
The Holy Spirit’s power in us can accomplish infinitely more than we can on our own.

Look inside THRIVE

This is an activity from the Hands-On Bible to help kids understand Acts 2:1-42.

“Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!”  Acts 2:9-11, NLT

Huh? Say again? All those words mean “hello” in a different language. There’s a cool story in the Bible about people speaking different languages. But they were speaking in languages they didn’t even know! Read Acts 2:1-42.

Grab a friend (or sibling or parent) and try this.

Together make up your own foreign language. In your new language, what words represent these pictures?

Now, with your friend, go talk to three people using only your new language. They didn’t understand you, did they? So how come on the day of Pentecost the people where able to speak in new languages and others were able to understand them? Because of God! God poured out his Holy Spirit on the people!

Spread the news, just like the disciples did!

Think of three things you can tell about Jesus, and tell to three people this week.

Learn more about the Hands-On Bible

Article from the Illustrated Study Bible

The book of Acts clearly highlights the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. Before the coming of the Spirit, Jesus spoke of the Spirit’s influence on the growth of the church (1:8; see John 14:15‑17, 26; 15:26; 16:7‑15). The Spirit’s guidance was clear in the selection of Spirit- filled leaders to care for the needs of the Hellenistic widows (Acts 6:1‑7) and in the appointing of Barnabas and Saul for missionary service (13:1‑5).

When the first church council met to consider the membership of Gentiles in the church, those present followed the Spirit’s direction (15:28). Christian workers such as Stephen and Philip were filled with the Spirit and preached by his power (6:1–8:40), and Paul’s ministry was charged with the Spirit’s energy from the beginning (9:17).

In Acts, the growth, development, and expansion of the church took place entirely under the guidance and power of the Spirit (e.g., 2:4, 41‑47; 4:31; 5:32; 8:15, 17, 29; 9:31). Because of the prominence of the Spirit’s work in Acts, the book has often been called “the Acts of the Holy Spirit.”

The Holy Spirit works in many ways. He gives and restores life (Gen 2:7; Ps 104:24‑30; Ezek 37:1‑14; Joel 2:28‑32; Rom 8:9‑11). He calls and commissions workers for the service of Christ (Acts 13:2; 20:28) and guides God’s servants where and when he wants, to do as he desires (8:29; 9:15; 10:19‑20; 11:12; 16:6; 1 Cor 2:13; 1 Pet 1:12). He inspired the writing of Scripture (2 Tim 3:16‑17; 2 Pet 1:20‑21), instructing the church in Christ’s message (John 14:26; 1 Cor 12:3). He bears witness to the power of the Good News in signs and wonders (Acts 14:3; Heb 2:4), and teaches the truths of the Bible to God’s people (Acts 1:16; Heb 9:8; 10:15‑17; 1 Pet 1:11‑12). He bears witness to Jesus and brings him glory (John 15:26; 16:14). He convicts people of their sinfulness and need for the Good News (John 16:8) and warns people against hardening their hearts (Heb 3:7‑11, 15). He bestows gifts upon God’s people (1 Cor 12:4‑11), and he energizes and equips them to share the Good News, serve the Lord, and work for the Kingdom of God.

Look inside the Illustrated Study Bible

“On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. ” Acts 2:1-4, NLT

From the Wayfinding Bible

After Jesus ascends into heaven, his disciples gather in a room in Jerusalem. Not knowing what to expect, they follow Jesus’ instructions and wait. They are about to experience another high point of the big story. God came in human form to live among humans. Now he sends his Spirit to remain with us forever. The Spirit’s presence will be a comfort and a strength to every believer throughout the world until Christ comes again.

Pentecost was an annual Jewish festival that was established during the time of Moses. Originally it was an agricultural celebration called the Festival of Harvest, falling on the fiftieth day after Passover. During the Hellenistic period (300 BC-AD 300), the Jews dropped they agricultural association of Pentecost and viewed it instead as a day to give thanks for the law of Moses (the Torah). After the coming of the Holy Spirit on this day, Christians designated it as the start of the church. Both Jews and Christians continue to celebrate Pentecost today.

Look inside the Wayfinding Bible

From the HelpFinder Bible

In the lonely hours of the night, do you sometimes wrestle with God and your emotions, feeling desperately alone, rejected? Perhaps a best friend deserted you. Or the one you hoped to marry wants someone else. Or the one you did marry wants out. Maybe your child has turned against you, or your parents don’t seem to care. Ironically, you can feel equally lonely on a crowded city street, in a busy airport, or in a stadium filled with people. Have you ever sensed the loneliness of being in a crowd? There are so many people, but no one you know or truly care about is there. Everybody is there but no one is with you—truly with you—except for God, who is always with you. If you develop a relationship with him, you can disperse your loneliness. He is always there for you. You never need to feel lonely when the creator of the universe is by your side.

I’m lonely. What can I do?
• PSALM 23:4 | Even when I walk through the darkest valley . . . you are close beside me.
• PSALM 139:17 | How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
• ISAIAH 54:10 | “For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain.”

Recognize that you are not unlovable or deficient just because you are lonely. You have value because God made you, loves you, and promises never to leave you.

• EXODUS 5:21-22 | The foremen said to them, “May the Lord judge and punish you for making us stink before Pharaoh. . . .” Then Moses went back to the Lord and protested, “. . . Why did you send me?”
• 1 KINGS 19:4 | He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die.

Don’t give up on God when you are lonely. It will cause you to feel sorry for yourself, become discouraged, and fall prey to temptation.

• 1 KINGS 19:10 | “I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”
• MATTHEW 11:2-3 | John the Baptist, who was in prison . . . sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?”
• 1 PETER 4:19 | So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you.

Sometimes we feel alone in our stand for Christ. We can take comfort in knowing that there are others who are equally committed and that God rewards our bold commitment.

• ROMANS 12:4-5 | Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

Be around other people. Get involved in a local church. Volunteer in local community events.

• ISAIAH 41:10 | “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”
• JOHN 14:1 | “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.”

Loneliness can cause us to be afraid. But God calms our fears.

Learn more about the HelpFinder Bible

“See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.

Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God. And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him. Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is.

Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.” 1 John 3:1-10, NLT

Note from the Christian Basics Bible

We live in a world where people constantly imitate others—their favorite football player, movie star, or business guru. They wear the same clothes as them and imitate their behavior; but their attempts to be like them are doomed to failure, for they have neither the wealth, good looks, nor skills to achieve what they did.

And some Christians’ attempts to be like Jesus are equally doomed to failure. They try so hard, putting so much effort into becoming like Christ; but it doesn’t work. In fact, they are left disappointed and frustrated. And yet, God’s goal is for us to become like Christ (1 John 3:2).

What we must realize is this: We cannot become like Christ simply by our own human effort—praying harder, reading the Bible more, giving more, or fasting (valuable though these things are). We become more like Christ as “the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image” (2 Corinthians 3:18). This is the Spirit’s work, not ours! And yet, for that to happen, we have to yield to him. This means making right choices—choices to forgive, serve, sacrifice, love, give.

For it is as we make these choices that the Spirit enables us to live them out; and as we do, we discover that—little by little—we are becoming less like our old selves and more like our Savior.

Look inside the Christian Basics Bible

“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,* neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:31-39, NLT

Note from the Every Man’s Bible

Our security is based on God’s unshakable love for us. The love God has for us is not just an emotion but an actual fact. God proved his love for us by willingly sending his Son to suffer and die. So why would he hold back any lesser gift?

In fact, there is nothing in the whole universe that can separate us from God’s love! What more could God say to us to make us more secure in his love?

Look inside the Every Man’s Bible

“Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace
with God.” Romans 5:1, NLT

Article from the Beyond Suffering Bible

Paul begins Romans 5 with the presupposition that we have peace with God. This is not a simplistic assertion by Paul. He has taken four chapters to explain both the need for being right with God (1:18–3:20) and the way to get right with God (3:21–4:25). Having carefully built his argument, Paul has arrived at the settled conclusion that peace with God is a reality.

Getting right with God, according to Paul, is based on faith—the kind of faith that Abraham, the father of faith, demonstrated (4:3). It is not based on the law or perfect behavior or perfect bodies. There are no qualifications, exceptions, or exemptions here—no matter how much we might feel that somehow we are the exceptions to the rule. We think, Surely God wouldn’t accept me. We reprimand ourselves for our failures and our imperfectly functioning bodies. We think that if only we did not fail God in our heads, our hearts, and our whole physical being, we could find peace with God.

But that is not what Paul writes. Since we have been made right with God no exceptions—we already have peace with God. Moreover, we have this peace because of our faith and what Jesus did for us. It had nothing to do with our heads or our hearts or our bodies in the first place. If this is true and it is—what are we to do with our agonizing, unrelenting pain? Does the peace we have with God make the circumstances of our lives simply vanish? Certainly not. We can simultaneously have pain and peace.

Christ experienced pain and suffering in order to reconcile us to God. Not because we were perfect, but because we were broken. Christ died for us imperfect though we are. God saw our intense suffering and entered into it with us. Because of this, we have the assurance that even in the midst of trials we have peace with God.

Look inside the Beyond Suffering Bible

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. ” John 3:16-17, NLT

Note from the Swindoll Study Bible

I think I love people deeply— until I read about the way God loves people. Chances are good I wouldn’t sacrifice my son or daughter for anyone. But God did— and He did it for all of us. He so loved you and me that He gave His Son to die for us.

Why did He do it? “So that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” You don’t have to clean up your life. You couldn’t if you tried. You just have to believe in Jesus Christ. That’s the Good News. He died for you on a cross. And if you believe in Him, you will have eternal life with God and a whole new beginning that starts from the inside out. Goodness knows we need help from the inside out.

Look inside the Swindoll Study Bible

“What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.

“I tell you the truth, everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, the Son of Man will also acknowledge in the presence of God’s angels. But anyone who denies me here on earth will be denied before God’s angels. Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

“And when you are brought to trial in the synagogues and before rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how to defend yourself or what to say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what needs to be said.” Luke 12:6-12, NLT

Note from the New Believer’s Bible

As this parable illustrates, it is easy to allow other pursuits to cloud our spiritual vision. We have to make enough money to get that new car, buy that house, or take that dream vacation.

But we get so caught up in chasing after money and success that we leave God out of the equation altogether. Jesus has strong words for people who store up earthly wealth but fail to cultivate a rich relationship with God—he says they are fools.

God’s answer to this dilemma is for us to focus on his will for our lives. Jesus said, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (Matthew 6:33). The more you channel your energy, ambition, and life into this one holy pursuit, the less obsessed you will be with the cares and concerns of this world.

Everything else will come into balance. Seek God’s Kingdom in all that you do. Failure to do so will only guarantee confusion, failure, and emptiness.

Look inside the New Believer’s Bible