Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their chariots and in the great strength of their horsemen, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel, or seek help from the LORD. Isaiah 31:1 NIV In the time of the prophet Isaiah, Assyria was the primary threat the nation of Judah faced. Assyria had already conquered many of Judah’s neighbors to the north, and Judah was desperate to find allies who would enable her to stand against the Assyrian threat. And the most logical ally was Egypt, a powerful neighbor to their south. But God warned Judah th ..read more

For I don’t understand what I am doing. For I do not do what I want—instead, I do what I hate. Romans 7:15 NET In Romans 7:14-22, Paul described a battle that raged within him. It was a battle between two natures. On one side was the flesh, his old sinful nature, the nature we are all born with. On the other side of the battle was the new Paul, crucified, buried, and resurrected with Christ. It was a battle between the old man and the new man. There is a debate about whether Paul is describing his current situation or his pre-Christian experience. But I find it very descriptive of my own exp ..read more

Now while some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and offerings, Jesus said, “As for these things that you are gazing at, the days will come when not one stone will be left on another. All will be torn down!” Luke 21:5-6 NET The temple in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus was large and ornate, the center of Jewish religious life. The disciples’ reaction to the beauty of the building and its activity indicates that it was a point of pride, something to boast about. They were proud of this structure and all that went on in it. And they likely saw it as the ce ..read more

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 NIV “Christ’s love compels us” is an interesting expression, full of meaning. “Christ’s love” can refer both to Christ’s love for Paul and to Paul’s love for Christ. The love of Christ that Paul had experienced, and the love that Paul, in return, now had for Christ, compelled him. The love of Christ is not just a thing to know, or even to che ..read more

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