My 10 Favorite Bible Verses
- writer_alexandra_lee
- Nov 15, 2020
- 12 min read
Hello there! Welcome to my blog, That Weird Writer...This week, I thought I'd talk about some Bible verses that I absolutely love. Even if you are not a Christian, I hope these verses speak to you and give you some encouragement and peace. They certainly speak to me.
10. "Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father save me from this hour?' No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!" - John 12: 27-28
Jesus said these two verses on the night of the last supper before he was crucified. When I first read this, it deeply spoke to me.
I think the reason a lot of people are mad at God in our current culture is because he doesn't always answer their prayers the way they want him to, but God never promised to answer all of our prayers the way we want.
When Jesus spoke these words, he knew his crucifixion was quickly approaching; he knew the pain that was to come. He knew that Judas would betray him; he knew Peter would deny him, and he was greatly distressed. He prayed for comfort and for God to take away his pain, but in the end, he wanted God’s will for him to prevail, even though that will included his suffering because he knew that laying down his life would redeem thousands of sinners.
He didn't say, "Save me, God!"
He said, "Your will be done," and more people need to start saying your will be done, through thick and thin, through pain and joy, through peace and uproar. And of course it is difficult, but it is necessary, and this verse is a great reminder of that.
9. "I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." - Luke 15:7
Verses about sin and the depth of human corruption always stick with me because I can see it on full display in our world and in my own heart. But the verses that stick with me more are the ones like this.
Jesus is often referred to as a shepherd—he leaves the ninety-nine sheep who live in his pasture, the ninety-nine righteous who are carrying out his will and glorifying his name daily in search of the one who is lost and wounded in the dark. Not only does he find and heal this sheep, he rejoices over it. He rejoices over the sheep who once was lost, but now is found.
This realization never fails to amaze me.
8. "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
I posted these verses on my Instagram story a few weeks ago. These verses are incredibly encouraging to me. They are centered around eternal prosperity, instead of worldly prosperity, which is usually what most of us think of when we think of prosperity.
"...so we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen..."
Life in this world is hard and often depressing. The Bible says we will suffer in this life. Jesus himself, the God of heaven and earth, suffered. So why wouldn't we, who are mere humans, also suffer?
This verse is a great reminder that even though we suffer God promises that our suffering will not last because our momentary troubles (what we are struggling with now) are achieving for us (not were achieving, or will achieve, they are currently achieving) an eternal glory that far outweighs them all:
"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain,
for the old order of things has passed away [the worldly order; the sinful order; the broken order]." - Revelation 21:4
That's why we have hope for eternity and strength for today—an eternal glory is coming. This world is only temporary. We are being renewed and matured day by day by our struggles and hardships, so we can inherit the eternal peace and glory God has waiting for us.
*For more verses like this, check out Luke 16:19-31 and James 1:2-4.
7. One of the criminals that hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!"
But the other criminal rebuked him, "Don't you fear God, since you're under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."
Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
Jesus answered him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise." - Luke 23:39-43
Justice and forgiveness are two things we, as human beings, greatly struggle with. Vengeance is very often at the forefront of our minds when people mistreat us.
We want things to be fair.
We do not want to be double-crossed or taken advantage of.
We say things like, "Once a cheater, always a cheater," and "Once a liar, always a liar."
We are very good at holding grudges. We judge everyone else's character, but we never examine our own.
I love these verses because it shows just how infinite God's love is for us. When Jesus was crucified, two other criminals were crucified with him. These two men committed gravely immoral acts. They were sinful, like all humans, and some may call them the lowest of the low. One of these criminals hurled insults at Jesus, but he did not retaliate. The other confessed his sin and knew he deserved punishment for his deeds. And Jesus replied, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."
This story shows that no one is too far gone to be saved by the grace of God. Because of Jesus, all sin can be redeemed as long as the sinner confesses that they cannot redeem themselves from their own immoral actions, and proclaims Jesus is Lord. Our God is merciful. And all sins, all sins are redeemed and forgiven by the blood of Christ. This story is a great reminder of God's love for all of humanity, even the most broken and sinful among us.
6. "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." - John 16:33
Jesus said this verse before ascending into heaven. "In this world you will have trouble {we will suffer} but take heart {hope is not lost}!...I have overcome the world."
He has overcome the world because his crucifixion severed the bounds Satan had on humanity's fate. God cannot be unjust, so he could not forgive sin unless the price for that sin had been paid (that price was death and eternity in hell). But Jesus (who was God made man, therefore, he lived as we live but because he was God, he was morally perfect and needed no redemption) became sin for us. (Check out 2 Corinthians 5:21 for more on this.) He paid the price. He has overcome the world. Satan had a hold on it, but now we have no fear because death has been swallowed up in victory:
"When the perishable {humanity} has been clothed with the imperishable {the blood of Christ}, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory.'
'Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?'
The sting of death is sin, [sin leads to eternal torment in hell] and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." - 1 Corinthians 15:54-58
5. "And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace." - Romans 11:6
For those of you who don’t know this, and I only just learned this a few years ago, Christianity was born out of Judaism. When Jesus came to earth, he was Jewish and so were many of the people around him. That was the reigning religion in Israel at the time.
The main difference between Judaism and Christianity is the character of Jesus. Jews don’t believe that Jesus was the Savior God sent to redeem Israel and the world. They believe he was a prophet. The reason this information is significant is because Orthodox Judaism is still deeply rooted in the traditional Law God gave to Moses and the Israelites. Christians believe that while there are parts of the original Law that are still applicable (these parts are repeated in the New Testament) Christianity is deeply rooted in the grace of God and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
This verse is written by Paul the Apostle, and what he is saying here is that we have salvation because of the grace of God, not because of our own works or obedience. Now this doesn’t mean that our actions don’t matter, they certainly do. The point is that it is because of grace that we have been saved, not the Law.
I like this verse because it has a nice ring to it, but it is also a good reminder of God's grace—even though we are imperfect and mess up, we are no longer under the Law, but are under grace.
4. Jesus said, "You do not realize what I am doing now, but later you will understand." - John 13:7
This is a verse I feel like God repeats throughout the ages.
We do not know the immensity of God's plan for creation. We cannot understand in full the minute details or defining moments God has in store for our lives—it's not humanly possible. We cannot look across the timeline of generations and see the full picture, we may be able to gather bits and pieces, but we are not left with much. We are left with a few promises from God. These two are my favorite:
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." - Romans 8:28
However, as it is written:
“What no eye has seen,
what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”—the things God has prepared for those who love him—these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. - 1 Corinthians 2:9-10
3. Jesus answered him,“Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
“Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii {this is equal to a day's wage} and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
This verse may be hard to understand, especially if you aren't used to reading scripture. It could seem like Jesus is just talking about wages and deb. In reality, this is one of his many parables that is meant to put into human terms the very character of God.
The debt that needs paying is the price of our sins. Jesus forgave sin when he died on the cross.
"...Now which of them will love him more?"
Who will love God more?
The one who has more sins to be forgiven.
They have a bigger debt. This verse speaks to me for a few reasons—the first time I read this, it made me freeze, and that's usually a sign of a great verse and often a very powerful verse.
The second is that this verse kind of gives a reason for our inability to overcome certain sins and pains and sufferings. The greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind. If our iniquity increases our love for God, then he's using something that we may consider a punishment or curse to advance our love for him, which in the end leads to our eternal salvation.
"For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all." - Romans 11:32
"There's a difference between being innocent and being redeemed. Before they sinned, Adam and Eve were innocent, but we are redeemed." - Frank Turek
2. "'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me." - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
This verse has gotten me through some hard times over the past year. God told Paul this message while he was in prison, and I think it is one of the most powerful pieces of scripture.
“My grace is sufficient for you…”
God is enough...this is something it takes people a long time to realize. You have to know God before you begin to grasp what "God is enough" really means and even after you do that it takes a long time to believe and live out that statement.
"...for my power is made perfect in weakness...”
God’s power is on full display, and its full glory is revealed, when and only when we realize just how much we need it. Humility is at the heart of this realization. We like to do stuff on our own. We don’t like to think about our weaknesses, but when we realize just how much we need God, that’s when things change—our circumstances might not change, but our outlook on life changes. We understand more. We think more too. It’s not our weaknesses that are on display now, we aren’t on display at all, but the power of Christ.
1. "Love never fails, but where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:8-13
This is my favorite verse of all time. It speaks to me personally because brings to light many lessons that I still need to learn and many truths I need to be reminded of.
"...where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears..."
Everything on this earth will disappear. In the end, it will not matter how smart you are, and for someone who is quite proud of their academic achievements and holds themselves to a very high standard when it comes to education, this is a truth I am constantly reminding myself of.
"...For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known..."
There's a day when we are going to the character of God face to face. Our current knowledge of the human mind, history, the character of God, his will for eternity will seem like nothing compared to what we will know then. And perhaps the best, "even as I am fully known..."
We are fully known by God right now, and it will be that way for eternity, even if we do not yet fully know God.
"Love never fails...And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
I have heard many cheesy lines about love, mostly from kids' TV shows and sappy YA novels. They often fall along the lines of, "Love conquers all." We roll our eyes when we hear lines like this, so what makes a biblical line like, "Love never fails," any different?
There is an immense difference between what the world refers to as love and God's love.
I shared this verse with a friend of mine a few weeks, and I think this is the best explanation of this verse I could come up with:
And the question I ask myself when I reach the end of the passage is this—“Why is love the greatest?”
Well, love is the greatest because God’s love started it—in the beginning there was nothing, but God created man to share in his glory because he loved him.
God’s love redeemed us—Jesus was God made man. He was tortured and hung on a cross. He gave up his glory for a punishment he didn’t deserve, so we could be saved. He died for his friends and his enemies.
And God’s love will end it—this world will not last forever. Even Einstein knew that! (Of course Albert and I don’t agree on what that end will bring, lol.) Because of the resurrection not only does God redeem us, but he offers everyone who wants it a place in his eternal glory. Not because we deserve it, but because he loves us.
Thank you so much for reading this post! I know it was a long one, but I haven't posted much lately and these verses mean a lot to me, so I thought it was worth it. I hope these verses spoke to you and gave you some hope in the midst of this crazy year.
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It's been a pleasure writing for you, and until next time—stay weird and stay writing. - Lexi
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