2 Kings 6.33 observes, the LORD is responsible for this disaster! Why should I continue to wait for the
LORD to help?
On the eve of his deliverance the king of Israel loses his hope and gives up on God. The king had faith as long as he could but he finally reached his breaking point. All of his praying, all of his fasting, all of his trying to do the right thing culminated in nothing in his mind. (more…)
Psalm 101.8 describes, each morning I will destroy all the wicked people in the land, and remove all
evildoers from the city of the LORD.
David was a man deeply committed to the ways of God. At least initially. His commitment was so serious that God described him, ‘as a man after His own heart.’ For God to consider a man like Him in desire, will and way is the greatest compliment anyone could receive. Yet, David imploded. (more…)
Ezekiel 8.6 observes, son of man, do you see what they are doing – the great abominations that the people of Israel are practicing here, to drive Me far from My sanctuary? But you will see greater
abominations than these!
This snapshot into the life of Israel records them fasting and praying seeking God’s mercy and favor for changing their miserable situation. Difficult times has the affect of moving us to prayer. Israel was trying to market themselves to God as penitent, faithful and obedient.
Yet God sees all, not just the religious show we put on for Him. (more…)
Psalm 40.3 records, He gave me reason to sing a new song, praising our God. May many see what God
has done, so that they might swear allegiance to Him and trust in the LORD!
I have been a part of the ministry of CBMC for nearly 30 years. I have worked vocationally for the organization for the past 21 years. The reason I love the ministry so much is because it’s process for making God known is so simple and so effective. (more…)
1 Samuel 8.18 warns, in that day you will cry out because of your king whom you have chosen for
yourselves, but the LORD won’t answer you in that day.
When God chose the people of Israel to live as His people in the land He designated for them to live in, He did not provide them a government structure per se. No central authority was assigned, the priests would handle legal disputes, and chosen leaders of each ‘state’ (they were called tribes in the Bible), would punish wrong doers often with the help of the community in which the transgression had occurred. (more…)
Judges 21.25 records, in those days Israel had no king. Each man did what he considered to be right.
Not much has changed in 4000 years or so. People are people with the same propensities from generation to generation and from nation to nation.
It is because our origin is from God through His creation of one man and one woman from whom all the peoples of the world have their beginning. This ideology is unique to Christianity and explains why in precept, not always in practice, Christianity stands alone in its teaching that all people are created equal regardless of gender, race, income or intelligence. (more…)
Judges 14.17 describes, she cried on his shoulder until the party was almost over. Finally, on the seventh day, he told her because she had nagged him so much. Then she told the young men the solution
to the riddle.
Nagging has a way of wearing us down. That explains why children use it most often because it is so effective at moving their parents to give them their way. God rewards faithfulness and even warns that only those who remain so until the end will be rewarded. Faithful until what end? Ours or the world’s I suppose. (more…)
Judges 3.2 describes, God left those nations simply because He wanted to teach the subsequent
generations of Israelites, who had not experienced the earlier battles, how to conduct holy war.
The idea of holy war is not a very positive one today. While it’s quite an old concept the Muslims have made the idea immensely unpalatable. The Muslim version of holy war involves using women, children and the handicapped, in addition to men without other options for gaining heaven, through the means of suicide, for accomplishing their objectives. Their holy war is the destruction of the infidel or the conversion of the infidel through terror and fear. The god they serve is abusive, terrible and unattractive in every way. Yet holy war predates Islam. (more…)
Matthew 24.12 observes, because lawlessness will increase so much, the love of many will grow cold.
It’s hard to do good when everyone else is doing wrong. Its hard to do good when everyone else seems to be advocating doing bad.
Our hearts and minds are shaped by someone or something. If we saturate ourselves with Bible reading, listening, memorizing and meditating we will think about things more like God thinks about things. If we listen mostly to the radio, internet and television while attending public schools and working in a secular environment we will think and thus act, more like those around us. (more…)
Jeremiah 3.13 commands, you must confess that you have done wrong, and that you have rebelled against the LORD your God. You must confess that you have given yourself to foreign gods under every
green tree, and have not obeyed my commands,’ says the LORD.
Somehow the definition of Christian has become those people who live perfect lives and attend Church. Of course no one lives a perfect life. The impossibility of living perfectly is why Christians are called hypocrites and what is often used by non Christians to justify their continued lifestyle of defiance against God. The premise however is all wrong. (more…)
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