The Great Reverser
So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:14) Don’t you believe in resurrection? Not just at Easter, but everyday resurrection? Resurrection in your marriage, in your relationships with your kids, at work, in your finances, in […]
Who Is Counseling You?
“You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” (James 4:4, NIV84) In James’ letter to the church, he is picking up where some of the OT prophets like Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Hosea left […]
1984 and Jesus’ Ekklesia
Where am I and how did I get in this handbasket?! Some days when I wake up and look at our nation I ask that question. What we’re seeing played out in our world right now, at a greater magnitude than I’ve seen in my 51 years, is a battle of kingdoms. It isn’t new, […]
Loving the Unlovely
“But I say to you who listen: Love your enemies, do what is good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27–28) In our pursuit of “waging peace” – being peacemakers in a world of conflict – we eventually have to come to grips with […]
The Nations Rage
“Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers conspire together against the Lord..:” (Psalm 2:1–2, CSB) What an appropriate psalm for our day and age. The psalmist could be describing Minneapolis or Portland… While the nations conspire against God, he remains […]
How to be Happy
“How happy is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways!” (Psalm 128:1, CSB) The first thing you notice when reading Psalm 128 is the word “happy.” It grabs your attention, doesn’t it? I mean, we all want to be happy! But how can you find happiness? On a lark, I googled the […]
The Lord is on Our Side
“if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, then they would have swallowed us alive in their burning anger against us. Then the water would have engulfed us; the torrent would have swept over us; the raging water would have swept over us.” (Psalm 124:2–5, CSB) David gives us two […]
The Freest People on Earth
“I lift my eyes to you, the one enthroned in heaven. Like a servant’s eyes on his master’s hand,… so our eyes are on the Lord our God until he shows us favor.” (Psalm 123:1–2, CSB) Psalm 123 is all about freedom. That may sound strange as the song begins by comparing us to servants. […]
Work!
“On the seventh day God completed his work…” (Gen. 2:2) The Bible begins with work. God’s creation of the world is called work. Adam, made in God’s image, was created to “work it (the Garden of Eden) and watch over it.” (Gen. 2:15) I think work is a very important part of what it means […]
“When he saw the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to teach them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” (Matthew 5:1–3, CSB) In ancient times, mountains were often considered holy places, where heaven […]
The Suffering Servant
“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3) This was how Isaiah describes Jesus some 600 years before his birth that first Christmas: the “Suffering Servant.” Have you ever wondered […]
Miscalculating God
“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand.” (Job 38:4) Business blogger Anton Roundy asks his readers to consider miscalculations. If you’re going somewhere and you’re off course by just one degree, after one foot, you’ll miss your target by 0.2 inches. No big deal, right? After 100 yards, […]
