Category: Genesis to Revelation

  • LITTLE WHITE LIES

    Reflections on 2 Samuel It’s easy to declare, “Lying is a sin; never lie!” The ninth commandment tells us that God abhors it. And we see King David experience negative consequences for lying in 2 Samuel 11–12. However, a reading of the Old Testament will quickly reveal that “Never lie!” isn’t so clear cut. What…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    Jesus, our Lord, once crucified, dead and buried, now sits upon the throne of glory. The highest place that heaven affords is his by undisputed right. It is sweet to remember that the exaltation of Christ in heaven is a representative exaltation. He is exalted at the Father’s right hand, and though as Jehovah he…

  • THE MISNOMER ABOUT GOD’S WILL

    Connect The TestamentsJoshua 7:1-8:35; 2 Corinthians 10:1-8; Psalm 49:1-20 We often hear a great misnomer about following God’s will. It usually sounds something like this: “God has commanded me to do x, so I’m going to go into x blindly without fear.” A phrase like this has elements of great truth—faith should carry us. But…

  • AN ENTRY-LEVEL KING

    Reflections on 1 Samuel Do you remember your first job? Chances are, it was low paying, low prestige, and if anything like mine, you counted the minutes until quitting time. The best thing about my first job was that I knew it was temporary—I had no doubt that it was not part of my career…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    I know that my Redeemer liveth. Job 19:25 The marrow of Job’s comfort lies in that little word “My”—“My Redeemer,” and in the fact that the Redeemer lives. Oh! to get hold of a living Christ. We must get a property in him before we can enjoy him. What is gold in the mine to…

  • HE’S DEAD, BUT YOU CAN BE ALIVE

    Connect The TestamentsJoshua 1:1-3:17; 2 Corinthians 9:1-5; Psalm 47:1-9 “My servant Moses is dead” (Josh 1:2). Imagine the shock of this moment for Joshua, Moses’ right-hand man. He probably already knew about Moses’ death before God told him (Deut 34:1–8), but it’s in this moment that he really feels the tragedy. If you’ve experienced death,…

  • WHY GOD?

    Reflections on Ruth We have a mental checklist for life. Happy marriage: check. Healthy kids: check. Good reputation: check. Great job: check. Enough money: check. All the pieces are lining up. But then tragedy strikes: The bottom falls out on your finances; you get breast cancer; your spouse dies; or, in my case, you learn…

  • MORNING & EVENING

    No mean miracle was wrought in the rending of so strong and thick a veil; but it was not intended merely as a display of power—many lessons were herein taught us. The old law of ordinances was put away, and like a worn-out vesture, rent and laid aside. When Jesus died, the sacrifices were all…

  • OPERATING STANDARDS

    CONNECT THE TESTAMENTSDeuteronomy 33:1-34:12; 2 Corinthians 8:16-24; Psalm 46 Sometimes I operate on the premise that if I’m honoring God and following Him, I don’t have to be concerned with what other people think. But carrying this too far is just as faulty as basing my identity on the approval of others. One leads to…

  • GOD’S THUNDEROUS & LOVING NATURE

    Reflections on Judges The book of Judges tells the story of Israel’s disobedience and unfaithfulness—again and again Israel turns from God and he allows their enemies to defeat and oppress them. “Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods; therefore I will save you no more. Go and cry out to the gods whom…