Don’t you just love it when someone starts a conversation with you by saying, “Can I say something to you without you getting mad?” You know it’s going to be one of those conversations. That’s how Eliphaz, one of three friends that came to visit Job, began his discourse. That’s just how I would want…
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Just a short background on 1 Thessalonians before I share a few of my thoughts from today’s reading: It is thought by many scholars that this is the oldest of Paul’s letters (or epistles) to the churches. Thessalonica was the major city in Macedonia when Paul wrote to the church there. The church had as…
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Saul tries to kill David, and the friendship between Jonathan and David begins.
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I want to focus on the exchange between Job and his wife in chapter 2, verses 9 and 10. It said: “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” 10But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and…
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The main verse that just caused me to almost stand up and cheer was chapter 3, verse 2. Here it is again: “Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” Remember, yesterday I spent the entire day writing and producing an episode of the Lifespring! podcast dealing with the SCOTUS decision…
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As you probably know, this book can be read from at least two levels: As just an account of a bride and groom from the purely human level, or as an allegory of the love of Christ for the church. Both interpretations are beautiful, and both have merit. As I was studying it again, in…
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First a little background about the book. Philippi was an important city in the western part of Macedonia, which was generally in the area of modern Greece. Paul wrote this letter from his prison cell in Rome. The Philippian church was started by Paul, so he had a particular fondness for them, considering them his…
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I think that what we can take from Solomon’s teaching here in Ecclesiastes is that wisdom, money, power and everything else that man strives for does not bring happiness or understanding or peace. Solomon had it all. But at the end of his life he realized that what God does is far beyond man’s understanding….
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Paul’s biggest concern with the Galatian church was that some believed the teaching of some false teachers that it was necessary to follow the Mosaic Law, and he said something in chapter five, verses two through four that was very important. Here are those verses again: “I, Paul, promise you that Christ won’t do you…
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Paul begins this chapter by telling the Galatians that they are foolish to listen to the false teachers who are telling them that they need to follow the Mosaic Law. And then he proceeds to tell them why God gave the Law. The Law was given, not as a way to earn a place in…
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