Awakened to their drift from God’s commands, God’s people rose up as one man to take action that resulted in the decimation of Benjamin. Now comes the lament, which is also a reaping of what they had sowed. It does not say that they went to God in prayer about their concerns about what they had done that led to this time nor about their future as God’s treasured possession. Neither do we see them inquiring of the LORD about what they ought to do nor a renewing of their covenant with Him. They take action from their own counsel, it seems, to find wives for Benjamin … the tribe that Saul, the ..read more

Where the previous psalm gives the reason why David experiences betrayal from those who should be on his side, encouraging him: “they do not set God before themselves” and how his perseverance in trust results in his redemption, the betrayal in this psalm are more personal. One commentator refers to Psalm 55 as “A Ballad of Betrayal,” and in it, we may see also how Jesus may have felt when Judas, with an angry mob at his back, kissed Him in Gethsemane. Hand-selected by Jesus Himself after a night in prayer, Judas so fits David’s description of this close companion who had turned against him ..read more

In early 2020, we discovered that mold in the home where we had raised our kids was contributing to my wife’s cancer and brain tumor issues. Anything we could keep had to be remediated, and great portions in walls and ceilings where the mold had spread needed to be torn out to save the rest. That’s what Jesus needed to do to save the church in Thyatira. Some there had so compromised with the world that they were tolerating Jezebel—a reference to King Ahab’s wife whose name, even today, is synonymous with sexual immorality. If those guilty would not repent, then He would tear them out and rem ..read more

We want everything in our lives to be quick and easy. We’ve got TurboTax and Lunchables. How can we cut down the amount of time we might have to wait in a drive-thru line at an already fast food place? A Calvin & Hobbes cartoon shows him looking at the box of a microwavable meal and exclaiming, “Six minutes! Who has that kind of time?” Or my favorite sign— . So it is that we want our relationship with God as if the eternal Father can be hurried or made to work with our schedules. This isn’t just about the length of services or the preacher’s sermon; it’s about how we want forgiveness for ..read more

As one man! When had that happened last? It had to be when God’s people crossed the Jordan at flood stage as if on dry ground when last they were united. This was just after Moses had outlined the blessings for obeying and consequences for not and then died after commissioning Joshua to lead the campaign for the Promised Land. They rallied as one man around their new leader to march silently around the fortified city for six days and then trusted God to bring them a victory with just a shout—that brought down those thick walls. Even then it was shortlived as Achan kept wealth for himself ins ..read more

His spirit provoked within him because of the rampant idolatry in the city, Paul “ in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day .” He stated the case for the gospel to everyone who would listen wherever they happened to be. Today, the synagogue and market-place may have changed, but the way to reach into the spiritual darkness with the light has not. We must rea-son with the world. This is what God did in the Old Testament time with us ( ) for salvation, but rea-soning of the world can also persuade us to justify sin ( ). Athenians were open to reas ..read more

It’s amazing how fast people fall out of favor! Because of the jealousy of Saul who quickly went from throwing spears at one he perceived as a rival in anger to relentlessly pursuing him, David’s countrymen went from praising the shepherd-turned-commander killing his tens of thousands to informing Saul of his hiding place. David certainly includes the betraying men of Keilah and the wilderness of Ziph (1 Samuel 23) in those who “ have risen against me; ruthless men [who] seek my life .” But the key to his struggle is what Christians also experience today. It’s from those who call themselves ..read more

On Pentecost, the world heard the gospel message for the very first time—that God had loved the world that He gave His Only Son to die a cruel death—but through the cross, Jesus overcame death. that through death he might destroy the one who has the power fo death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery .” The pangs of death have been loosened! We no longer have to fear death, yet so many of those who have declared Jesus to be Lord as they have believed that He is the Christ who died to wash their sins away and give them the promi ..read more

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