The Way Of Escape | a few minutes of meditation on Scripture with H. M. Snow

If heaven is a life of constant worship, how do we approach this life in order to draw nearer to that ideal? [Revelation 4, 1 Thess. 5:16-18]

Our inheritance in Jesus is more than just a ticket to heaven when we die. We are promised a new heaven and earth, with the Holy Spirit as our guarantee.

Why would the Bible recommend funerals over birthday parties? How does a sad face make for a glad heart? It all has to do with a long-term perspective... and a promise.

The history and instruction given in the Bible are an open record of how God has moved in human lives. Faithful lives also become testimony of the nature of the God we serve.

The only way to learn what glory means is to study under the only one to whom glory belongs. [2 Corinthians 3:7-4:10]

Mercy is shown throughout the Bible to be one of God's core qualities; how does this mesh with the fact that he is also depicted as a God of wrath? And how might this affect our lives today? [2 Thess. 2, Exodus 34:6, Jonah 4:1-3, Luke 12:4-5]

When financial uncertainty looms, how do you react: tighten your fists around what you have, or open your hands to offer what's left to God? [2 Corinthians 8-9]

The apostle Paul speaks of suffering and comfort in terms we may well find distinctly uncomfortable. When we are tempted to demand comfort on our own terms, comfort without suffering, we miss out on the promise that our comfort in affliction becomes something we can share with others. We miss out on the type of confidence that can view suffering as not worth comparing with what awaits us on the other side. [2 Cor. 1:3-10]

How can we escape from the instinctive resentment we so often feel toward correction? [Lamentations 2:14, Colossians 1:28]

How can we say, "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?" without naivety or hypocrisy? What do we really mean by that saying? [Hebrews 13:5-6, Luke 12:4-12]

What does the Bible say about the relationship between God and his people? How do we keep faith with him when the fashion of the world is for faithlessness? [2 Timothy 2:11-13]

How do we escape the tendency to idealize the past, thereby quarreling with God's mercy and providence in the midst of a difficult present? [Ecclesiastes 7:10, 2 Peter 3:9-13]

How do we as believers escape the temptation to set our own narrow boundaries instead of participating fully in the life of the Church? [1 Corinthians 12:12-27, Romans 15:5-6]

A brief history lesson about willfulness and the need to set aside what I want until God's will is done.

What does the apostle Paul mean in Ephesians 4:29 when he speaks of "corrupting talk"? How do we prevent such talk from entering our conversation?

What habits of thought can we cultivate to escape being carried away by the ideas of the day? [Philippians 4:8]

Why is self-indulgence a problem, and what is the remedy for a life that gratifies the old self? [Colossians 2:8-3:17]

Diverting as they may be, speculations that seek to go beyond revealed truth only lead to vain (empty, futile) discussion and useless controversy. How do we escape from these? Aim.

How are we to foster an unwavering spirit of gratitude in all circumstances? [2 Timothy 3:2-5, Luke 6:27-35, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18]

Although you won't find "a spirit of pettiness" in any of the Biblical lists of vices, don't you think it's time we talked about escaping from pettiness into graciousness?

How do we make sure we're really escaping from the temptation to deceit? And how is this connected to personal identity? [John 8:31-47, Ephesians 4:20-29, Romans 1:21-32]

How do we deal with divisive elements in a local church congregation? [Titus 3:8-11; 1 Corinthians 3:10-17, 12:4-26]

How do we counter the insidious temptation to malice in everyday life? [Romans 1:28-31, 5:6-11; 2 Peter 1:3-11]

A brief meditation on temptations to impatience [Numbers 21:4-9, Psalm 103, James 5:7-11]

How is a disciple of Jesus to deal with the demands and allurements of things that belong strictly to the here and now? Why can't we have both this age and the next? [Hebrews 10:32-39, 11:13-16]

We can't afford to be ignorant of spiritual realities like the presence of active, malevolent evil. How are we to keep aware of Satan's schemes and take our stand for Christ? [2 Corinthians 2:10-11, Ephesians 6:10-18, Colossians 3:1-2]

Often we mistake greed as wanting a lot when it actually manifests in wanting "just a little more" than we have. How do we free ourselves from this spiral of dissatisfaction? [Matthew 6:19-21, 25-34; Luke 12:13-34; 1 Timothy 6:3-19; Philippians 3:7-14]

What the world considers worthy of pride doesn't match up with what the Bible commands, but real humility is elusive at best. How do we find our way forward? [2 Corinthians 11:22-12:9, Philippians 2:3]

What measures can we take to prevent our spiritual lives from growing stagnant? The solution may surprise you... [Hebrews 5:11-12]

Recognizing folly in ourselves is sometimes difficult, but it's important to escape from it and somehow obtain true wisdom. How do we know what folly and wisdom look like? [Proverbs 9:13-18, 1 Corinthians 1:17-31, James 3:17, James 1:5-8]

When doubts arise through overthinking, second-guessing, or distractions, what can we do? [Luke 24:38-40; 1 Kings 14; 1 John 3:18-4:1, 2 Corinthians 13:5]

Has a little sloth (laziness) crept into your life? Let's talk about the hidden dangers of the temptation to sloth [Matthew 25:14-30]

When confronted with a choice between ease or effort, indulgence or discipline, self-preservation or obedience, too often our nerve fails and we take the easy way out. How can we escape from this temptation of cowardice? [2 Timothy 1:7, Philippians 1:6-14]

It's all too easy to let all kinds of ungodly speech come out of our mouths, casting doubt on the authenticity of our words of faith. How do we gain control of our uncontrollable tongues so that our words match our beliefs? [James 3:6-12, Luke 6:43-45, Matthew 12:33-37]

Stability in life is determined by the strength and depth of your spiritual root system. How do we make sure our roots are deep enough? [Ephesians 3:14-19, Romans 8:35-39]

When is shame necessary? When is it unnecessary, and how do we escape from it when it is unnecessary? [Romans 6:21-22, 2 Timothy 1:8-17]

What's the difference between envy and jealousy? And how do we escape from them both? [Psalm 73]

What can you do to escape from despair when hope seems too far away to grasp? Maybe embrace perplexity... [2 Corinthians 4:8]

How do we make sure we aren't allowing neglect to seep into the church? [Hebrews 10:24-25]

Independence isn't all it's advertised to be. How can we escape from the traps it sets for us? [Romans 6:13-22]

When we're tempted to put our enthusiasms and affiliations ahead of everything, it causes instability in relationships, especially in the Church body. How can we escape from this confusion? [text: James 3:13-18, 1 Corinthians 14]

When facing opposition or controversy, how do you keep out of the enemy's snares? How do you rescue others from the trap? [text: 2 Timothy 2:24-26, Ephesians 6:11-12]

We can't escape from death, but in Jesus Christ we have been set free from being unduly influenced by the fear of death [Text: 1 Corinthians 15, Hebrews 2:14-15]

When your conscience runs out of fuel and you start to get pulled down by sinful desire, how do you escape corruption? [Text: 2 Peter 1:3-9]

When it comes to dealing with temptation, it's important to recognize it for what it is. It's also important to know which way to go when escaping from it.