Terrell Owens:
Detour: a deviation from a direct course or the
Through the Beatitudes, Jesus radically
You are the
In a world that’s usually looking to
For Jesus…
The Bible is a story that reaches its climax in
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The Bible is.
The Bible is in constant need of debate, dialogue, rethinking, re-reading, etc. in order to get back to theof it.
The Bible wasn’t just meant merely to be read and believed, but also to be.
“Do
be
Them”
“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy [The Greek for healthy here implies generous.], your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy [The Greek for unhealthy here implies stingy.], your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” —Jesus, Matthew 6.1-24
“Do NOT be like them…” —Jesus, Matthew 6.8a
Do Not Be Like Them When you
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“Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” —1st Timothy 6.9-10
Do Not Be Like Them When you
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Do Not Be Like Them When you
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For Jesus, it’s not just about
“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.” —Jesus, Matthew 6.1
“God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.” —Ecclesiastes 5.2
“Christians’ prayers are measured by weight, and not by length. Many of the most prevailing prayers have been as short as they were strong.” —Charles Spurgeon
Apechein: a technical business term, a commercial word for receiving payment in full.
1. Give
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” —John 3.16
2. Pray
“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and wide and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” —Ephesians 3.14-21
3. Fast
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” —Jesus, Matthew 16.24
“We should live in such a way that our lives wouldn’t make much sense if the Gospel were not true.” —Dorothy Day