IN THIS TIME OF TRAGIC DIVISION AND DISAGREEMENT, MAY GOD GIVE ME THE GRACE, HUMILITY, COURAGE, WISDOM, AND LOVE to be more willing to listen and to learn; to be open to investigate even what I think is certain; to be more curious to research deeply; to be ready to learn from new ideas and unfamiliar voices; to be willing to admit when I am wrong and to change my mind; to be quick to say, “I’m sorry. I was wrong. Please…..
My morning Bible reading brought me to Matthew 14 where John the Baptizer confronted King Herod, the immoral despot who, had divorced his wife in order to marry his brother’s wife. John’s truth to power was, “It is not lawful for you to have her” (Matthew 14:4). Herod might think and act like he was above the law, but he was not above God’s law. The response of the autocrat was unsurprising. His modus operandi was to eliminate anyone who…..
Jesus frequently faced off with the Pharisees about how to understand and apply the Old Testament law. In Matthew 12 they accused Him of endorsing law-breaking when His disciples, on the Sabbath, picked and ate heads of grain. Jesus reminded them of two OT illustrations of apparent law-breaking which obviously were not: the priests’ Temple service on the Sabbath and David and company when they ate the consecrated bread. Jesus’ stunning claim to be “the Lord of the Sabbath” and…..
When Jesus said, “I have not come to abolish them [the Law and the Prophets] but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17), what did He mean? I’m thinking that fulfilling the Law and the Prophets included at least two things: Jesus’ incarnation, life, and ministry fulfilled all the prophesies and types in the Old Testament which pointed to His coming to earth and providing for our redemption. Jesus reenergized and reapplied the purposes of the law by reimagining its commands for…..
It must rank among the most stunning statements of all time: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). Every word seems pregnant with significance and mystery beyond comprehension—for example the unfathomable mysteries of the Trinity coupled with the most generous and loving act imaginable: praying for the forgiveness of those who were carrying out the greatest injustice and most brutal atrocity in all history. Jesus prayer was uttered by swollen, thirst-parched, and bloodied…..
Words have power. Solomon, sometimes called “the wisest man who ever lived,” wrote, “The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing,” and “The tongue has the power of life and death”(Proverbs 12:18; 18:21). Too many people experienced the power of words because when they were young, someone, maybe an abusive parent or teacher, used words like these with them: “You’re stupid.” “You’re ugly.” “You can’t sing.” “You’re good for nothing.” “You’ll never…..
In all the years I’ve studied the Bible, I don’t ever remember noticing Timna. It’s not surprising since her name always appears in a long list of genealogies — you know the lists of strange-sounding names which we like to skip over when we’re reading through the Bible. Actually, Timna’s name appears six times in two books of the Bible — one being almost a mirror image of the other. Genesis 36 details the descendants of Esau, father of the…..
This is a common theme in the Bible letter written by James, Jesus’ half-brother (excerpts from chapters 3 and 5): My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but…..
John the Baptizer is a reminder that effective leadership requires commitment, sacrifice, truth-filled messaging, and humble selflessness: “John came preaching, ‘Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near’ . . . John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan, confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in…..
Many Christians believe that, as He promised, Jesus is coming back to earth, and that ultimately He will bring the Kingdom of God to earth – that beautiful kingdom filled with love, life, peace, health, prosperity, unity, righteousness, and justice, and, absent of temptation, selfishness, death, sickness, conflict, poverty, injustice, violence, and all that sin brought and brings into the present broken world. It was often the theme of the Old Testament prophets, of Jesus, and of the Apocalypse (the…..
