Seeking Mercy
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved
Ephesians 2:4-5
Direction on how to search:
To open a devotional, scroll down and double-click on its title. The titles are arrange alphabetically by Bible Book. Currently Google does not allow a search function. If you are looking for something specific you can key "control f" on a PC, or "command f" on a Mac; then type in a key word in the dialog popup in the upper right hand corner, hit enter and that word will be highlighted on all occurrences. Use the up and down arrows to scroll through all matches. If you are using a tablet or phone click on the vertical three dots menu (Kebab menu) in the upper righthand corner, scroll down to "find in page" type in keyword hit enter.
Rightly Dividing is an in-depth look at a particular topic. All essays will be biblically based; but may include discussions of cultural issues and other topics from a Christian point of view. Comments or questions may be sent to cuddysark@gmail.com. Emails containing vulgar and obscene language will deleted and not answered . Essays will not always be written by me; in that instance credit will be given at the bottom of the article.
Instead of specifying one main purpose for Paul’s letter, it is better to recognize several purposes that arise from Paul’s missionary situation. He wrote the letter to: (1) apply lessons from his recent conflicts in Galatia and Corinth; (2) prepare for the looming crisis in Jerusalem; (3) secure a missionary base for his work in Spain; (4) unify the church in Rome around the gospel; and (5) defend his theology against accusations that he is anti-law and even anti-Jewish (see Rom. 3:8). 1
Each of my essays will be built around the chiastic structure of the letter.
Cf. Will N. Timmins, “Why Paul Wrote Romans: Putting the Pieces Together,” Themelios 43 (2018): 387–404.
"The epistle to the Galatians is my epistle. To it I am as it were in wedlock. It is my Katherine." Thus spoke Martine Luther, who considered Galatians the best of all the books in the Bible. It has been called "the battle cry of the Reformation," "the great charter of religious freedom," "the Christian declaration of independence."
It is important because in any age it answers the basic question asked by the human heart, "How can I find true happiness?" "How can I obtain peace, tranquility, freedom from fear?" William Hendriksen, commentary on Galatians.
About Seeking Mercy:
Seeking Mercy is a Monday thru Friday daily Christian devotional . It strives to be relevant to the things that all people are confronted with on a daily basis. It starts with a short paragraph of a real world situation, often the issue at hand is from my past. The next paragraph explains the Bible verse emphasizing what it meant to the people at the time. The devotion ends with application and encouragement for the modern believer. The devotion then asks an introspective question which is designed to bring conviction to the hearts of the faithful.
I have been a Bible teacher for 45 years and pastored a small country church as a missionary. I have a Master's of Thology degree with an emphasizes on Apologetics. My wife and I have been married for 58 years and we have a daughter living in the Denver area with her family. In my spare time I enjoy photography and woodworking; you can find me on YouTube @ Avid Amateur. My prayer is that you will find this devotional inspiring and helpful as you are confronted with the trails and tribulations of life.
Enjoy and God Bless you,
Gregg