Psalm 43
Psalm 43 - What hurts more than the abandonment and rejection of our peers? It's the feeling we have been rejected by God. Is this true? Does God reject us? For You are the God of my ...
Psalm 40
Psalm 40 - Gratefulness. Some days it seems to escape us. Our day starts off on the wrong foot and we struggle to regroup. Problems pile up and we find every reason to gripe and complain about ...
Psalm 39
Psalm 39 - Let's track this psalm from the beginning. The psalmist opens with tremendous grief. There seems to be physical, emotional and mental suffering going on in his life and he doesn't know how to respond. ...
Psalm 37
Psalm 37 - It is sometimes difficult to understand why the evil continues to prosper. We struggle to reconcile how they are getting away with corruption, deceit, and manipulation right in front of God's eyes. In fact, ...
Psalm 35
Psalm 35 - Years ago, while working for Youth for Christ, my wife and I become close friends with a young teenage girl. She was a paradox of sorts because her appearance was "tough as nails" but ...
Psalm 31
Psalm 31 - How do we move from anguish and sorrow to trust and assurance? People have smeared your name. They have campaigned among others and built their case with lies and deceit. Others reject you. They ...
Psalm 26
Psalm 26 - The key to Psalm 26, as Hank has written, is the second verse. If you read through the Psalm again and remove verse 2, it sounds completely vain and self-centered. This is an important ...
Psalm 25
Psalm 25 - Have you ever wondered why David prayed so regularly for his enemies to be routed? So far, he has appealed to God on this matter in Psalm 3, 6, 9, 17, 18, 21, 23, ...
Psalm 21
Psalm 21 - There is a theme of kingship within this psalm. It's likely it was originally composed for recital during the ceremony of enthronement for a king. In his commentary titled "Psalms," James Luther Mays writes, ...
Psalm 20
Psalm 20 - Already, but not yet. What a difficult attitude to have. How do you move from crying out in prayer to trusting in God? Does that even happen in your life? It's an interesting question. ...
Psalm 19
Psalm 19 - One of the issues addressed in this psalm is hidden sin. I'm not talking about sins you know about, but sin that you are ignorant of. The psalmist calls them "hidden faults." None of ...
Psalm 17
Psalm 17 - We face critical situations all the time. These trials batter our hearts and our minds. They trample our senses and destroy our hope. The psalmist describes such trials by repeatedly referencing the physical attributes ...
Psalm 16
Psalm 16 - Inheritance is something that's found extensively in Scripture. David writes of this inheritance in verse 5. The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. Psalm 16:5 The ...
Psalm 13
Psalm 13 - This psalm is general enough to speak to anyone going through a crisis but specific enough to contain the primary elements of a prayer for help. It is a solid illustration of how we ...
Psalm 9
Psalm 9 - According to Spurgeon, the title of this Psalm is, “A Psalm on the death of the son,” or “on the death of the champion.” Many have speculated that this could have been written following ...
Psalm 7
Psalm 7 - As I read Psalm 7, I found myself asking if God was not righteous, would I pray to Him? In other words, what logical reason do we have for pleading our case before the ...
Psalm 6
Psalm 6 - This is the first of the Penitential Psalms. Most believe this piece would have begun with a wail and finished as a song. Speaking of... have you ever wailed before God? Can you relate ...
Psalm 5
Psalm 5 - In the morning, O LORD, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch. Psalms 5:3 NASB It's easy to tell God what we want, ...
Psalm 4
Psalm 4 - A major NT theme for believers is the concept of perseverance. This is something David articulated well. If we look closely at this Psalm, we can see that David seems troubled. He is calling ...
Psalm 3
Psalm 3 - When studying the Psalms, you can generally classify them into three different categories of petition, thanksgiving, and praise. This approach to the Psalms is validated in 1 Chronicles. Then he appointed some of the ...
Psalm 2
Psalm 2 - This royal psalm was a familiar one, as it was recited often by God's followers. We read of two instances in the book of Acts where this Psalm is quoted. The one I want ...
Mark 11
Mark 11 - The Pharisees were reeling. Jesus had just cleansed the Temple and done it with supreme authority. Aside from that one event, however, they were most likely trying to figure out who this man really ...
Mark 7
Mark 7 - Judaism during Jesus' time not only put an emphasis on the written law (the Old Testament) but also the oral law. The oral law would have been man's interpretation of the written law passed ...
Mark 1
Mark 1 - It's fascinating to identify the different writing styles of the Gospel authors. Matthew began with genealogy. His mission was to write to the Jews and prove that Jesus was the heir to David's throne. ...
Deuteronomy 29
Deuteronomy 29 - When I was younger, I used to think it was enough to "keep my oath" with God. If I tried to live as a good person, prayed once in a while, and asked for ...
Deuteronomy 23
Deuteronomy 23 - As we've written many times in Deuteronomy, these laws can seem foreign to us. In some ways, they prescribe almost an ascetic type of lifestyle. Asceticism is defined as a lifestyle characterized by abstinence ...
Deuteronomy 18
Deuteronomy 18 - "God said..." It's a phrase that has permeated our Christian culture. It's a statement that flies out of people's mouths easily and routinely. Reading it in Christian books and magazines and hearing it in ...
Deuteronomy 12
Deuteronomy 12 - What separated the people of God from the pagans around them was their total allegiance to the One True God. He gave them commands to follow which centered around every facet of life. They ...
Deuteronomy 9
Deuteronomy 9 - Today know this: GOD, your God, is crossing the river ahead of you—he's a consuming fire. He will destroy the nations, he will put them under your power. You will dispossess them and very ...
Deuteronomy 5
Deuteronomy 5 - False teachers love to cherry-pick verses and twist the context to their liking. A perfect example of this is found in Deuteronomy 5:9. 'You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness ...
Ecclesiastes 11
Ecclesiastes 11 - This is the shortest chapter in the book. The theme here is dealing with risk as we consider the uncertainty of the future. Verse 4 really spoke to me. One who watches the wind ...
Ecclesiastes 5
Ecclesiastes 5 - Fear God. Not exactly a popular message these days. You don't hear many sermons on the fear of God or what that even means. So, what does it actually mean to fear God? Solomon ...
Numbers 28
Numbers 28 - God was teaching the Israelites what it meant to have a heart full of love for Him. This fact has not changed today. Following and loving God means we bring a sacrificial heart of ...
Numbers 27
Numbers 27 - Don't gloss over this chapter too quickly or you will miss a moment that is very rare in our current society today. As we know, Moses was not going to be allowed to enter ...
Numbers 20
Numbers 20 - So... do you want the bad news or the worse news? Well, the bad news is that in Numbers 20 we, unfortunately, witness a sobering truth - complaining and unbelief go hand-in-hand. Where you ...
Numbers 17
Numbers 17 - But the LORD said to Moses, "Put back the rod of Aaron before the testimony to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put an end to their grumblings against ...
Numbers 16
Numbers 16 - Numbers 16 is part of a much bigger picture of Moses' leadership of Israel. This rollercoaster of leading the Israelites toward the Promised Land had many twists and turns. If we go all the ...
Numbers 9
Numbers 9 - What an amazing scene! Now on the day that the tabernacle was erected the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the testimony, and in the evening it was like the appearance of fire ...
Numbers 7
Numbers 7 - This chapter is a bit repetitive and long. OK, let's just be honest - it's boring. Each of the leaders from the 12 tribes brought a gift to the altar to present to the Lord. ...
Numbers 6
Numbers 6 - People are probably surprised to learn that this famous prayer of blessing comes from the book of Numbers. The LORD bless you, and keep you; 25 The LORD make His face shine on you, ...
Numbers 2
Numbers 2 - You really need a visual for Numbers 2. It describes the arrangement of the camps around the tabernacle. There were three tribes on each of the four sides of the tabernacle and there were ...
Luke 18
Luke 18 - Have you ever uttered these phrases? “Well, I’m not really that bad.” “I’m not as bad as _________.” “I’ve done ________ so I’m a pretty good person.” We’ve probably all muttered these phrases to ...
Luke 5
Luke 5 - But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. Luke 5:16 NASB On the heels of being with His Father in prayer, Jesus is strengthened and empowered for divine service. In ...
Ezekiel 46
Ezekiel 46 - First, this is a tough chapter to reconcile with our modernized Christian worldview. Second, there are many details that paint a clouded picture of what a fulfillment would look like. We can rest assured ...
Ezekiel 40
Ezekiel 40 - Ezekiel's ministry began with a vision of God. The last 9 chapters end with a vision for his people. This vision is one of reconciliation, protection, trust, and blessings. Throughout his book, Ezekiel has ...