Duty or Devotion?
Sometimes, a little story has a big lesson. In Luke 10:38-42, we are introduced to two women, sisters, who both desire to honor Jesus. Which woman do you resemble? Mary sits at Jesus’ Feet The first woman, Mary, “sat at…
Let Your Name Be Sanctified
The first request in the Lord’s prayer is, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed by your name” (Matthew 6:9). Evidently this is an important request. It is listed first. It is more important than ‘our daily bread.’ It is a prayer…
The Luke Challenge
Every year ends the same: I scramble to finish my yearly projects. This year is no different, and several weeks ago I realized that I needed to do extra Scripture reading. At my current rate, I wasn’t going to complete…
The Christian’s Duty to Hope
According to the Apostle Peter, Christians are a privileged people. In just three verses (1 Peter 1:10-12) he showed that they obtain an ancient salvation. All the prophecies of the Old Testament were written for their benefit. In particular,…
Departing the Camp
Modern Jerusalem looks nothing like the City of David in the time of Jesus. Today it is a bustling metropolis, complete with high-rise apartment buildings, sprawling suburbs, and densely-packed roadways. Yet Zion was once contained within walls. Outside the walls,…
Infographic: Spiritual Warfare
The Bible has much to say about spiritual warfare. While it is impossible to summarize everything about this important topic, this infographic points out some key concepts. [email subscribers: this is an updated and corrected repost]
John Brown on the Christian Race
“The whole of the Christian duty is represented as a race – a race set before them, which they must run, and “run with patience.” The principal ideas suggested by this figurative view of Christian duty are the following: It…
Timeline: New Testament History
Without timelines, I find that it is nearly impossible to understand history. Timelines provide a reference point – a sort of framework or scaffolding – that allows visual learners like me to place events in their context. Timelines are also…
Understanding Covenants
This Sunday I had the opportunity to preach from Hebrews 8, on Christ as the mediator of a better covenant. Since I’ve been thinking about this topic of covenants recently, I wanted to share some of my research from the…
A Summary of Paul’s Life
Before Conversion Paul, the “Apostle of the Gentiles,” was born in Tarsus, capital city of the Roman province of Cilicia, in southeast Asia Minor. A strict Pharisee who was educated at the feet of Gamaliel, we first find him in…
