There are many subjects in Scripture that if the correct sequencing is not laid out or if the order of operations gets tangled up, great error is the result. For example, the gospel must succeed not precede the new birth. Otherwise, someone could mistake the gospel as a means to salvation. Justification must precede glorification […]
When a God of order and wisdom writes does something, we can expect it to be precise and thought-out. Therefore, reading the Bible is a joyful bounty of finding shifts that are so precise they can be missed by a cursory review. Sometimes these shifts are from a change of tense, different setting, or alteration […]
When verses in Scripture have similar language, the Old Testament is quoted in the New, or different writers speak of the same account, Holy Writ is defining itself for us. As brethren of old used to say time and again, “The best commentary on Scripture, is Scripture.” While we can broaden our study with writings […]
Growing up in the church, I didn’t always realize why preachers spent so much time on things like the law, Abraham, and other characters from the “old book.” Paul tells us in Galatians 4:4 that the law was our “schoolmaster” to bring us to Christ. A schoolmaster, teacher, professor, etc. is someone who is charged […]
Two of the burning questions that have filled human philosophies down through the years are, “Who am I, and what is my purpose?” Interestingly enough, the more man’s philosophies study those questions, the further they seem to get from the truth. Whether ancient Greeks, Romans, or Babylonians, the writings of men are filled with interesting […]
Sometimes we short sell God due to our own broken frame and limited thinking. Paul uses an uncommon word to describe Jesus’ work and deportment: surety. (Hebrews 7:22) This not-oft used word describes the rich beauty of the work of Christ in a way that underpins the vastness of its depth. With a proper understanding […]
Too often times, we find ourselves perpetually living in the past or the future for the wrong reasons. We live in the past with regret, bitterness, and strife, and we live in the future with worry, fear, and anxiety. The Psalmist describes God as a present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1) While He is a […]
When I was a boy listening to preaching from Sunday to Sunday or at big meetings, I would hear preachers use words like “eternal,” “timely,” “position,” and “condition.” Most of the time, they were highlighting what a specific verse’s frame of reference was. They would call it an eternal or timely text and discuss whether […]
There are a pair of contrasting statements made by Jesus and Paul where we’re told we can do “nothing” and we can do “all things.” (John 15:5, Philippians 4:13) Both of these statements are hinged on the Person of Jesus Christ, because “nothing” happens without Him and “all things” happen because of His presence and […]
Sometimes during our experiences, we have interactions that bring things vividly into focus and help re-align our thinking to a more correct viewpoint. Today I visited with a man while we both waited at the tire shop. During the course of our conversation, he shared with me that he had lost his wife of 39 […]