Category: DEVOTIONALS

  • THE REAL REALITY

    Connect The TestamentsEzekiel 1:1–3:15; Revelation 1:1–20; Job 32:1–10 John and Ezekiel open their prophetic books in a similar fashion—to prepare us for an unexpected view: “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his slaves the things which must take place in a short time, and communicated it by sending it…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved. — Song of Solomon 7:13 The spouse desires to give to Jesus all that she produces. Our heart has “all manner of pleasant fruits,” both “old and new,” and they are laid up for our Beloved. At this rich autumnal…

  • KEY PLAYERS AND MAIN NARRATIVES

    Connect The TestamentsMalachi 2:10–4:6; Acts 28:1–31; Job 31:23–40 The book of Acts ends on a somewhat unsatisfying note. After all that Paul has been through—imprisonment, trial, shipwreck—we expect a showdown with Caesar or mass conversions of the Jews. Instead, the plot seems to sputter out. Paul arrives in Rome and appeals to the Jews living…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    A living dog is better than a dead lion. — Ecclesiastes 9:4 Life is a precious thing, and in its humblest form it is superior to death. This truth is eminently certain in spiritual things. It is better to be the least in the kingdom of heaven than the greatest out of it. The lowest…

  • REBUILDING IS NOT ALWAYS WISE

    Connect The TestamentsMalachi 1:1–2:9; Acts 27:1–44; Job 31:9–22 Who can rebuild what Yahweh tears down? The prophets articulate this message again and again. Yahweh tears down evil things; evil people rebuild them; the prophets insist that He will just tear them down again. God tolerates evil for a time, waiting for people to repent, but…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Behold, if the leprosy have covered all his flesh, he shall pronounce him clean that hath the plague. — Leviticus 13:13 Strange enough this regulation appears, yet there was wisdom in it, for the throwing out of the disease proved that the constitution was sound. This morning it may be well for us to see…

  • TURNING THE TABLES

    Connect The TestamentsZechariah 12:1–14:21; Acts 26:1–32; Job 31:1–8 When Paul presents the gospel before King Agrippa, we expect him to be defensive. But Paul is ready to shift the spotlight. He offers a surprisingly simple explanation of recent events and a testimony of his faith, and then he describes how the resurrection of Jesus changes…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    The Lord looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men. — Psalm 33:13 Perhaps no figure of speech represents God in a more gracious light than when he is spoken of as stooping from his throne, and coming down from heaven to attend to the wants and to behold the woes of mankind.…

  • THE TRUE SOURCE OF LEADERSHIP

    Connect The TestamentsZechariah 10:1–11:17; Acts 25:1–27; Job 30:16–31 When leaders latch onto power, considering it their right, it’s destructive. God holds leaders to a higher standard because their words and actions cause others to rise or fall. When leaders of corporations, churches, or other organizations take their authority for granted, entire communities may end up…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Happy art thou, O Israel; who is like unto thee, O people saved by the Lord! — Deuteronomy 33:29 He who affirms that Christianity makes men miserable, is himself an utter stranger to it. It were strange indeed, if it made us wretched, for see to what a position it exalts us! It makes us…