1 Cor 15 – “if the dead are not raised”

Some among the saints in Corinth were saying “that there is no resurrection of the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:12).  They needed to consider the consequences of such a position.  “But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is […]

Matt 5-7 – “He went up on the mountain”

The longest recorded sermon of Jesus is the sermon on the mount.  He began with the beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12).  Then He said to be salt and light (5:13-16) and avoid sinful thoughts about others (5:21-30).  Just as the Father loves all, “love your enemies and pray for” them (5:38-48).  Don’t give, pray, or fast to […]

Habakkuk – “How long, O Lord”

“How long, O LORD, will I call for help, and You will not hear?” (Habakkuk 1:2).  Habakkuk wanted to know how long God would tolerate Judah’s wickedness (1:3-4).  God’s response?  “Look among the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because I am doing something in your days— You would not believe if you were told.  For […]

Proverbs – “the rod of discipline”

  Children can do some pretty foolish things.  How do we keep them from becoming foolish adults?  “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of discipline will remove it far from him.” (Proverbs 22:15).  Do you want your child to be wise?  “The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child […]

Numbers – “take a census”

  The book of Numbers gets its name from the census/numbering of the men 20 years old and above at both the beginning and toward the end of the book (1; 26).  While the numbers are almost the same – 603,550 vs. 601,730 (not counting the Levites – 1:49) – the men are not.  “But […]

1 Cor 13 – “the greatest of these is love”

In 1 Corinthians 12 and 14 Paul wrote about spiritual gifts.  As important as they were to the early church, exercising spiritual gifts without love was nothing but noise (13:1-2).  Giving everything – even yourself – without love leaves you as nothing (:3).  Even faith and hope are not as great as love (:13).  It […]

Luke 6 – “and chose twelve of them”

“Jesus called them one by one,…”  OK, that’s not how the Bible says it, but that’s how the song begins that you probably learned to know the apostles.  The text says it like this: “And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: […]

Nahum – “the oracle of Ninevah”

Ninevah repented when Jonah preached to it and was shown mercy (Jonah 3-4), but then the city returned to sin and faced God’s judgment.  “A jealous and avenging God is the LORD;… Who can stand before His indignation?” (Nahum 1).  “Though Nineveh was like a pool of water throughout her days, now they are fleeing” and […]

Prov – “wine is a mocker”

Do you want to be wise?  Then stay away from alcoholic beverages.  That’s the message from the book of wisdom.  “Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.” (Proverbs 20:1).  Would you like to prevent unnecessary woe, sorrow, contentions, complaining, wounds without cause, and redness of eyes?  […]

Lev 26 – conditional blessings and curses

While some people talk about God’s unconditional love, He is still very much a conditional God.  He often presented conditions in His word.  One great example is in Leviticus 26.  At the beginning of the chapter He listed conditional blessings when He said, “If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments so as […]