What is life? The dictionary defines life as “the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.” But that only tells us how to distinguish life from non-life. It does not tell us what life actually is. What is that thing whose loss changes me from living to dead? I am not a biologist and am not up on the latest research in the field. But as far as I know, the answer to this question is still a mystery to science. The Bible does have an answer to this mystery, th ..read more

For indeed, what had been glorious now has no glory because of the tremendously greater glory of what replaced it. 2 Corinthians 3:10 NET In 2 Corinthians 3:6-18, Paul presents a comparison of two covenants. The first covenant, established at Mt. Sinai, had its terms inscribed on stone tablets. When this covenant was given, the glory of God was seen on Sinai (Ex. 24:16-17). This glory was such that when Moses went up Mt. Sinai, his face glowed with the glory of God (Ex. 34:29-35). But that glory was only temporary; it faded over time. The second covenant, established at the cross of Christ ..read more

Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:1-2 NET In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul addressed a serious issue. Apparently, some within the church at Corinth disputed the reality of the resurrection. Resurrection was a somewhat foreign concept to the Greeks (Acts 17:32), so it is unsurprising that some had brought this skepticism to the church. In refuting this skepticism about the ..read more

And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 NET How important is love? When Jesus was asked which commandment was the greatest, he responded with love. To love the Lord our God with all our being, and to love our neighbor as ourselves (Matt. 22:37-40). In the opening verses of this chapter, Paul described the nature of love. He then told us that, without love, nothing else we might do has any value. Prophecy, tongues, and knowledge will cease. The Corinthian church highly valued these spiritual gifts. And they are good. But they a ..read more

For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with plague, and you would have been destroyed from the earth. But for this purpose I have caused you to stand: to show you my strength, and so that my name may be declared in all the earth. Exodus 9:15-16 NET In Ephesians 1:11, Paul referred to “the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.” In the previous verse, he referred to the mystery of God’s will, which was “to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment.” God has a plan for human history. He is not just ..read more

And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?” Job 26:14 NIV The language of Job 26:5-13 can seem strange to us in our modern scientific age. Spreading out the northern skies over empty space, suspending the earth over nothing, filling the clouds with water, and cutting Rahab (a sea monster of chaos that caused storms) to pieces. This is poetic language describing how the ancients understood the world. There was much that was a mystery to them. And they attributed the mysterious workings of this world ..read more

Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven he gave thanks and broke them. He gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied, and what was left over was picked up—twelve baskets of broken pieces. Luke 9:16-17 NET A large crowd had gathered around Jesus, and he had spent the day teaching and healing them. Then, as evening approached, he instructed his disciples to feed the crowd of 5,000 men. The disciples were incredulous. They had little food to share and little money to buy more food. But Jesus told his disciples to have the ..read more

Therefore, tell the Israelites, ‘I am the LORD. I will bring you out from your enslavement to the Egyptians, I will rescue you from the hard labor they impose, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. I will take you to myself for a people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from your enslavement to the Egyptians. I will bring you to the land I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob—and I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.’” Exodus 6:6-8 NET God gave this message to Moses to pa ..read more

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 1 Timothy 4:1-2 NIV Paul had spent three years teaching in Ephesus and had not been gone for many years when he wrote this letter. But his warning to the Ephesian elders (Acts 20:29-31) had already come true. Men promoting false doctrines had crept into the church there, leading people astray. To counter this, Paul had left Timothy in Ephesus to oppose these fals ..read more

Then he sent his brothers on their way and they left. He said to them, “As you travel don’t be overcome with fear.” Genesis 45:24 NET The story of Joseph is one that, in many ways, mirrors the story of Jesus. Both include rejection, slavery/death, resurrection to a place of power, forgiveness, and salvation. Joseph’s brothers were guilty of selling him as a slave and then lying to their father about what had happened to Joseph. Yet, despite their guilt, Joseph was able to see God’s hand at work in what they did. God used their evil action to bring about salvation for Israel. And Joseph forga ..read more