Joe Barnett

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins.           —Ephesians 1:7 Alicia cried when she browsed the bill for her medical treatment. Payment was impossible. She nervously called the doctor’s office, explained her family’s financial status, and requested an installment-payment plan. After leaving her on hold for […]

God exalted him . . . and gave him the name that is above every name.               —Philippians 2:9 Elvis, Cher, Oprah: celebrities so well-known they are recognized by a single name. But there is one name that is exalted above every other: Jesus. His earthly parents were told

[M]y words will never pass away.              —Matthew 24:35 Jeff Jacoby, a columnist for the Boston Globe, wrote a piece about the “uncanny ability of experts to get things hopelessly, cataclysmically wrong.” Here are a couple of examples: (1) In 1928 Henry Ford said, “People are becoming too intelligent ever

[G]odliness with contentment is great gain.                              —1 Timothy 6:6 According to a Houston Chronicle column (10/25/17), Albert Einstein, arriving in Tokyo in 1922, didn’t have any “tip” money. So the Nobel-winning scientist scribbled a note and gave it to the bellhop,

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. —Psalm 107:1 Early this morning I gazed for several minutes at a portrait of my late father. Today would have been his 112th birthday. I stood there thinking about him and thanking God for him. I owe him much . . . and much to my

The unfolding of your words gives light.                      —Psalm 119:130 It’s been said that if you live with a lame man, before long you will walk with a limp. Clubs, clans, and cliques prove that people become like those they hang out with. The same is

[S]uch a man is warped and sinful.                   —Titus 3:11 Don’t be influenced by destroyers of unity. They are contagious; a hazard to your spiritual health. “I urge you,” wrote Paul, “to watch out for those who cause divisions . . . Keep away from them” (Rom

[W]atch out for those who cause divisions . . . Keep away from them.    —Romans 16:17 Sooner or later nearly every church is contaminated by contention. Like cancer, it infiltrates furtively at first. But eventually, it metastasizes and permeates the body, resulting in severely depleted strength. Or death. The apostle Paul exhorted Christians to

[G]od did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.                         —2 Timothy 1:7 Greek philosopher Epictetus said, “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” Author Ryan Holiday

[T]he Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.         —Luke 19:10 As the Son of Man, he hungered. As the Son of God, he is the bread of life. As the Son of Man, he thirsted. As the Son of God, he offers the thirsty the water