Category: Genesis to Revelation

  • ETERNAL HOPE

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 20:1-21:15; 1 Peter 1:1-12; Psalm 121:1-122:9 We don’t often realize where we put our hope. We can seek sustenance, energy, or relief in the most transient, innocuous things—from our morning coffee to a vacation we’ve been anticipating for months. These things are not bad in themselves, but if they constantly serve…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Sanctified by God the Father. — Jude 1Sanctified in Christ Jesus. — 1 Corinthians 1:2Through sanctification of the Spirit. — 1 Peter 1:2 Mark the union of the Three Divine Persons in all their gracious acts. How unwisely do those believers talk who make preferences in the Persons of the Trinity; who think of Jesus…

  • OPPRESSORS, VICTIMS, AND A JUST GOD

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 17:1-58; James 5:1-12; Psalm 119:153-176 Contemporary culture is often pegged as self-indulgent: We live in a have-it-now world, and we don’t always think about the repercussions of our actions. But when we read James’ letter to the early church, we find that self-indulgence isn’t a modern phenomenon. In his letter James…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Fellow citizens with the saints. — Ephesians 2:19 What is meant by our being citizens in heaven? It means that we are under heaven’s government. Christ the king of heaven reigns in our hearts; our daily prayer is, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The proclamations issued from the throne…

  • MOVING FORWARD

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 16:1-23; James 4:1-17; Psalm 119:137-152 Moving on after a person, a hope, or a dream has died can be one of the most difficult challenges of life. It certainly was for Samuel. The prophet Samuel believed that God had chosen Saul as king, but Saul failed God and His people (1…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Forget not all His benefits. — Psalm 103:2 It is a delightful and profitable occupation to mark the hand of God in the lives of ancient saints, and to observe his goodness in delivering them, his mercy in pardoning them, and his faithfulness in keeping his covenant with them. But would it not be even…

  • HONOR, CREDIT, AND GODLY WISDOM

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 15:1-35; James 3:13-18; Psalm 119:121-136 We’re primed to seek validation. Earning “likes” on our social media outlets gives us a sense of self-worth. Getting kudos for a good idea at work makes us feel important. When this is how we derive our self-worth, the opposite will also be true: Being overlooked…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Where lies the secret strength of faith? It lies in the food it feeds on; for faith studies what the promise is—an emanation of divine grace, an overflowing of the great heart of God; and faith says, “My God could not have given this promise, except from love and grace; therefore it is quite certain…

  • RECASTING FAITH

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 14:1-52; James 3:1-12; Psalm 119:97-120 Faith is often cast as a type of intellectual pursuit: It’s something our minds rise up to, conform to, or simply agree with. But in the Bible, faith is often portrayed as rather mystical: Jonathan somehow knew that God would act on his behalf if his…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    This one morning in the year we reserved to refresh the reader’s memory upon the subject of prayer for ministers, and we do most earnestly implore every Christian household to grant the fervent request of the text first uttered by an apostle and now repeated by us. Brethren, our work is solemnly momentous, involving weal…