Tag: JOHN D. BARRY

  • ANXIETY AND THE WILDERNESS

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 35:1–37:13; Luke 12:22–59; Job 8:11–22 Anxiety has a way of ruling over us. Although many of our concerns are legitimate—like having money to pay the rent and buy food—some of them are nonsensical. We envision future catastrophes and spend our days worrying about what might never happen, creating an emotional wilderness for…

  • LETHAL PLANNING

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 30:18–32:20; Luke 11:1–36; Job 7:11–21 I’m a planner. I love schedules. The trouble is I sometimes make plans without consulting God. While I often think of this as a modern problem, I’ve discovered that, like many other modern issues, the Bible regularly addresses it. For example, in Isaiah 30:1 Yahweh declares, “Oh…

  • HAUNTED BY LEVIATHAN

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 27:1–28:29; Luke 9:28–62; Job 6:14–30 Indiana Jones isn’t afraid of anything—until a snake shows up on the scene. Then we hear him mutter, “I hate snakes” and “Snakes, why did it have to be snakes?” Everyone is afraid of something. Even now your greatest fear is probably creeping through your mind—something completely…

  • BORROWED IMAGERY

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 17:1–19:25; Luke 7:1–35; Job 5:1–7 In the OT, Yahweh regularly explains Himself by using imagery familiar to the time. Sometimes Yahweh even uses images associated with other gods to emphasize that He—and not the gods of other nations—has authority over the earth. This poetic exchange would have served as an intercultural dialogue…

  • RAISE THE SIGNAL

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 13:1–14:23; Luke 5:1–39; Job 4:1–11 The Bible echoes with great battle cries: “Raise a signal on a bare hill, lift up your voice to them; wave the hand.… A sound of the roar of the kingdoms, of nations gathering! Yahweh of hosts is mustering an army for battle” (Isa 13:4). In this…

  • PATTERNS AND PROPHECY

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 9:1–10:19; Luke 3:1–38; Job 3:1–16 Luke sees the events surrounding Jesus’ life through the lens of Isaiah. For Luke, Jesus’ life is Isaiah’s prophecy made tangible and complete. Jesus is the anticipated Messiah, prophet, and savior. Even John the Baptist’s role in Jesus’ life is based on Isaiah’s prophesy. Luke repeats the…

  • THE ART OF DISCIPLINE

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 5:1–6:13; Luke 1:67–2:21; Job 2:1–10 Jesus didn’t die for us so that we could continue to sin—He sacrificed Himself so that we could have sinless lives. God is patient, but His patience does not last forever. We wouldn’t test His patience so often if we had not lost sight of the notion…

  • CONNECTING THE STORIES

    Connect The TestamentsIsaiah 1:1–2:5; Luke 1:1–38; Job 1:1–12 The connections between the Testaments aren’t readily apparent, but a closer reading—empowered by the Spirit—can reveal them. Such is the case with the connections among Isaiah, Luke, and Job. The authors of each of these books begin by introducing a person, and then they invite us into…

  • COSMIC, CREATION, CHAOS

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 23:1–24:25; Jude 1:17–25; Psalm 148:1–150:6 Psalm 148 is cosmic in scope and comforting in message. It’s a depiction of how Yahweh brought order to chaos in the very beginning. Yahweh put the heavens, heights, angels, hosts (His armies), sun, moon, stars, and waters in their place—each a sign of His rule…

  • WHEN IT’S REALLY URGENT

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 20:1–21:22; 2 Peter 3:14–18; Psalm 146:1–10 The urgency of God’s work is easily lost on us. But to the early church, Jesus’ return seemed imminent. We get a sense of this urgency in Peter’s second letter, where he writes that every moment between now and when Jesus returns is a moment…