Episodes
Thursday Nov 12, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: The Great Unlearning (November 13, 2020)
Thursday Nov 12, 2020
Thursday Nov 12, 2020
We crouch behind our walls and fences, readying ourselves for what we’ve learned to fear. We lock all doors, secure the bars. We mentally rehearse our steps, our routes. We twitch at unfamiliar sounds, lie wide awake when branches scrape the roof, and wait for light and morning. Whoever is not us is “other”—a nameless, faceless “stranger” we assume means only harm. “They” are the people unlike us—of different race, perhaps; or language, habits, customs, faiths. We crave the time machine that takes us back to comfort as we knew it. But grace is so remarkably persistent that even locks and fears cannot deter how it reshapes our thinking. When you discover—at long last—that you were “other” to the Lord—that you were threatening to His kingdom, a rebel to His law and rule, and damaging the world with your hostility and hate. And still He loved—still welcomed you into His house, and gave you keys to all the property. He trusted you before you knew you could be trusted; offered you forgiveness—yes—for sins not yet repented of. We were embraced before we even tried to love. “God proves His love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us” (Rom 5:18). So grace remakes our way of seeing those we used to fear—takes down our walls brick after brick—until we learn that difference is a source of joy, that “other” can be “brother,” “sister” “neighbor,” “friend.” The great unlearning has begun. Now stay in grace. -Bill Knott
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Monday Nov 09, 2020
Journeys With Jesus: The Empty Vase
Monday Nov 09, 2020
Monday Nov 09, 2020
"Journeys with Jesus" is an intimate, personal look at the walk we all have with our Savior. Inspirational, heart-tugging, thought-provoking vignettes of life's journey and life's decisions. Most of all, it points us to our Father, our Friend, as the Source of all wisdom, comfort, and peace. Jill Morikone is the vice president and chief operations officer for Three Angels Broadcasting Network. She and her husband, Greg, live in Illinois and enjoy ministering together. www.adventistreview.org
Monday Nov 09, 2020
Searching The Obvious: Keep Walking
Monday Nov 09, 2020
Monday Nov 09, 2020
Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?”(Psalm 139:7, NRSV) “Searching the Obvious” focuses on how the Holy Spirit is ever active in our surroundings and in our lives, urging us to serve others. Personal stories challenge the reader to be mindful of our Christian Walk, recognize our own fallibility and slow down to ‘search the obvious’, the active presence of the Holy Spirit ever always around us. Dixil Rodriguez is a hospital chaplain, serving in southern California. www.adventistreview.org
Thursday Nov 05, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: Beyond The Galaxy (November 6, 2020)
Thursday Nov 05, 2020
Thursday Nov 05, 2020
If there’s a mountain anywhere to climb, we scale it. If there’s a chasm some say can’t be spanned, we find a way to bridge it. When we demand a new frontier, we harness all the ingenuity we have to launch deep probes of planets, moons and suns. But there’s one goal we’ll never rise to conquer—how to reconcile a sinner to the Father. Nothing in our repertoire responds to this persistent challenge. Effort will not make it happen; wisdom won’t achieve the goal. Diligence and ritual won’t bring the heavens closer. Only from the heart of God could answers come that heal the world, atone for our disaster and disgrace, and offer us a future far beyond the galaxy. Only He who came from God to walk with us, and feel our pain, and mend our brokenness can do the hardest thing that ever was. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn 1:14). Grace came down, and grace abides. And only grace will lead us home. Rejoice in love’s magnificent reality. And stay in grace. -Bill Knott
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Thursday Oct 29, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: The Best Kind Of Graffiti (October 30, 2020)
Thursday Oct 29, 2020
Thursday Oct 29, 2020
“John 3:16,” the hand-lettered poster reads, and we imagine some sharp zealot who bought a stadium endzone seat to get his message out to millions on TV. “John 3:16,” the spattered license plate declares, as we idle in traffic and ponder why some driver would request those letters and those numbers for his car. “John 3:16,” the understated business card asserts, as we turn over all the notes and papers of our day. These characters—four letters and two numbers—spell out the code of grace. They stand for truths so grand and baffling that we need everyday reminders: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). God loves us unimaginably. God gave us Jesus unhesitatingly. God welcomes us unendingly. Grace is the boldest, most audacious thing this broken world has ever heard—so startling we are stark amazed that it could possibly be true. It’s not the fate that we expected. It’s not the verdict we deserved. But it’s the gift that God’s deep heart of love still offers us—on any day, in any place. So paint it somewhere on the walls of your life. And stay in grace. -Bill Knott
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Thursday Oct 22, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: The Gift That Keeps On Giving (October 23, 2020)
Thursday Oct 22, 2020
Thursday Oct 22, 2020
There’s nothing quite as satisfying—or as dangerous—as the certainty that we are right and someone else is wrong. We relish those rare moments of rightness because they wrap us in an unaccustomed virtue, as though we suddenly were several inches taller. Should we be sharp in underlining their mistake, or should we play it cool—and let embarrassment be the bitter aftertaste for those who got it wrong? We toy with power as cats abuse their mice. But there’s another, better way to be both right and righteous. “Above all, love each other deeply,” the Bible says, “because love covers over a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). The grace that blotted out our sins—that made us whole—is grace available to give when others fail. In fact, we show our gratitude for grace by offering it to those who have no place to hide, who wither in the judgment of their peers. Grace isn’t fully part of us until it is re-given. We learn much more of mercy when we’re merciful to those—like us—who don’t deserve forgiveness. “Freely you have received; freely give,” Jesus says (Matt 10:8). And in the giving, we discover our true size as sinners wrapped in grace. Regift the grace that’s given you. And stay in it. -Bill Knott
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Thursday Oct 15, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: Winning Together (October 16, 2020)
Thursday Oct 15, 2020
Thursday Oct 15, 2020
When we were kids, each walk became a race; each math assignment launched a competition; every recital was a place to prove our mastery. Half of us, on any day, were losers of some kind—in the race to the mailbox; in the quest to get the better grade; in the hope to have one shining moment when we were proclaimed the best. And so we arrive at mid-life with a shelf half-full of trophies and an aching sense that we have lost more than some rounds of golf and afternoons of tennis. We spend the first half of our lives turning friends into competitors, and spend the last half trying to reverse that process. Winning may be everything, but everything on many days can feel remarkably like nothing. Grace offers us a different way—a way to run with others, not against them; a way to play for joy and not for triumph. There are no losers in this race, except for those who will not enter. The apostle Paul, as tough a man as ever walked the planet, reminded us how all may share the final victory: “I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing.” Grace crowds the finish line with millions of co-winners. And the Lord, who judges everyone, is delighted with the outcome. So stay in grace. -Bill Knott
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Thursday Oct 08, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: When Gripped By Guilt (October 9, 2020)
Thursday Oct 08, 2020
Thursday Oct 08, 2020
Someone has said, “Guilt is the great equalizer of the world.” Whether we are leaders in society or live quietly out of sight, we know the deep and inescapable voice of conscience, calling us to account for things everybody knows, and things nobody knows. Beneath our calm exteriors, we struggle with ourselves for missing the mark, breaking the law, violating the expectations God has of us, and we have of ourselves. Unless we bring our guilt to God, it leads to countless dangerous behaviors. We multiply offenses, hoping to somehow numb our sense of being misaligned. We turn our guilt to anger—at others, at situations, at ourselves. We try to find hard ways to work our way back into favor by doing deeds of charity, reciting familiar prayers, and demanding tough discipline of ourselves. But there’s only one way back to God, and it’s open, free, available on any day—for any fault. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn 1:9). In grace, the Father teaches us to trust the only one who never wavered in His faith, never felt a pang of conscience, never needed atonement for Himself. “God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them” (2 Cor 5:19). Guilt never was a match for grace, and never, ever will be. “To all who received Him, who believed in His name, He gave power to become children of God” (Jn 1:12). Trade all your guilt for matchless grace. And stay in it. -Bill Knott
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Thursday Oct 01, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: Beyond Debate (October 2, 2020)
Thursday Oct 01, 2020
Thursday Oct 01, 2020
When all the sermons have been heard; when all the books have been re-shelved; when every scholarly debate about who He was has faded into dry obscurity, we still have stories that persuade us Jesus understands our inconsistent, bungled lives. He ate with people just like us—from Pharisees to prostitutes. He lavished time on fishermen and mothers. He played with little kids, insisting they should be protected. He welcomed wealthy men to poverty, and told the poor that they were honored in His kingdom. He brought new hope—and life—to grieving families, and held the very ones His culture had rejected. He fed great crowds, and ministered His grace in deeply private moments. We love these stories in those times when what we call our faith seems distant or uncertain. We are the lepers being touched; the wounded ones who reach for healing; the lonely who would gladly spend an hour with Him. When storms break on our boat, we need a Captain, not a theorist. We need that Voice that still speaks peace to waves of worry, and brings us back to terra firma—safe and sound, and saved. There’s grace in every gospel story, including yours. “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people” (Tit 2:11). Find your story; find your place. And stay in grace. -Bill Knott
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Friday Sep 25, 2020
Bill Knott's GraceNotes: Best Selfie Of All (September 25, 2020)
Friday Sep 25, 2020
Friday Sep 25, 2020
Some pundits claim the future will be owned by clothiers and cosmeticians, for they know what it takes to make us feel momentarily good about ourselves. In a world mad-obsessed with self-presentation, humans take 35 billion selfies a year, choosing only ones that get the eyebrows tweezed, the lighting kind, the stubble on the beard just right. Ten thousand clothing companies regale us with images designed to help us hide our flaws and showcase youthfulness, our grasp of trends, and mimic what our cultural idols are wearing. But the hardest picture we will take is the candid selfie of our souls—the one we never show to others. Beneath the liners and the layers, behind the tints and overstated plaids, we know the real picture—the place where there are wrinkles on the heart; where tears erase what we have carefully composed. Will I be loved? Is there a purpose to my life? Will someone walk with me through illness, grief, and setbacks on the job? The grace of God sees deeper than our posing—and chooses us just as we are. The Bible says, “The Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Sam 16:7). Our flaws, our sins, our brokenness do not deter Him: He knows we are “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked” (Rev 3:17)—and yet Christ holds us with an everlasting love that won’t give up, that won’t let go. Share all the outtakes of your life with Him. And stay in grace.
-Bill Knott
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