The Blessings of Fearing God

The fear of the Lord has two main emphases — a dread and terror of the judgment of God and an awe and reverential delight in God for His greatness. The former is the experience of the unbeliever and the latter is the experience of the believer. The former compels people to attempt to run […]

How to Be an Almost Follower of Christ

“How to Be an Almost Follower of Christ”Luke 9:57-62May 10, 2026 There is a kind of follower of Christ who is not a follower of Christ. Consider the crowds that followed Jesus; on one occasion, after He taught of the necessity of believing solely in Him and the Spirit’s role in bringing them to faith […]

With His Eyes on Jerusalem

“With His Eyes on Jerusalem”Luke 9:”51-56April 19, 2026 It seems inconceivable, but Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, the God-Man, God incarnate, was rejected by Israel when He came to be her Messiah and to provide redemption from sin. His message was rejected by Herod when Herod imprisoned and beheaded John the Baptist (3:20) He […]

When Prayer Becomes Joyless

It’s hard to pray. Sometimes we lack the discipline to pray. Sometimes we forget to pray. Or perhaps worse, we allow the pressures and burdens of less important but seemingly more urgent responsibilities push aside prayer. At times prayer is inhibited because of sinful indulgences — and those indulgences become more precious to us than […]

Because Christ is Resurrected…

Passover is finished. The crowds are gone from Jerusalem. The Roman soldiers are relaxing. The disciples and their friends and family are returning to their daily duties and a few added priorities. There is still some buzz in the city and among the disciples, but Easter is over. Or is it? What happens after the […]

The Greatest Message

“The Greatest Message”1 Corinthians 15:1-11April 5, 2026 What’s your most important possession? (Not your most important person, but possession.) You might say, “My cash/wealth,” or “My job” (no cash without some kind of job), or “my car” (have to get to work somehow) or “my house,” or “my special collection — wedding pictures, art, stamps, […]

Our Savior, the Son of Man

“Our Savior, the Son of Man”Luke 1-9 SummaryMarch 29, 2026 When you think about Christ, how do you characterize Him? What is He like? What does He do? How is He different from everyone else that has walked on earth so that we should believe in and follow Him? John Newton said that Christ is […]

Jealous?

Jealousy and envy are insidious and persistent, showing up in unexpected places and at unexpected times. Jealousy wasn’t there. And then it was. Even in church. Among church leaders. Among the faithful servants of God. Consider the story of Jesus in Matthew 20:1-16. Workers arrive at the town marketplace looking for work; a landowner arrives […]

The Great God and Our Quest for Greatness

“The Great God and Our Quest for Greatness”Luke 9:46-50March 22, 2026 It’s hard to be humble. Pride may show up at the most unexpected times and unexpected places. Consider the story of William Masvinu and Mison Sere. For three years (2012-14) William won Zimbabwe’s annual “Mister Ugly” contest. But in 2015 he lost the title […]

Our Great God

“Our Great God”Luke 9:37-45March 15, 2026 In recent years, it seems that there has been a fair bit of talk about GOATs. Not goats, as in “domesticated, social, and intelligent mammals in the Bovidae family, related to sheep, known for providing milk, meat, and fiber.” GOATs as in the Greatest of All-Time. As in Willie […]

The Son of Man, Revealed

“The Son of Man, Revealed”Luke 9:28-36March 1, 2026 In Luke 14, Jesus offers two parables to explain the importance of considering the cost of believing in Him and following Him: a builder who makes sure he has enough money to construct his tower and a king in battle who first determines if he has enough […]

You Will Lose Your Life

“You Will Lose Your Life”Luke 9:23-27February 22, 2026 Perhaps no advertising campaign has ever been as successful as the one undertaken by the US government in 1917. Initially designed to promote patriotism and enlist men into the military for World War I the campaign has persisted and remained an iconic slogan in American culture: “[Uncle […]

Building the Church

“Building the Church”1 Corinthians 12February 15, 2026 Someone called this maze of relationships, “the theory of relativity:” …consider the marriage mayhem created when 76-year-old Bill Baker of London recently wed Edna Harvey. She happened to be his granddaughter’s husband’s mother [granddaughter’s mother-in-law]. That’s where the confusion began, according to Baker’s granddaughter, Lynn. “My mother-in-law is […]

Do You Pray?

It has been said that whenever we teach, “we stand on the shoulders of others.” That is, we are dependent on the understanding and interpretation of Scripture by others, or we confirm our interpretations by the insights of others. Additionally, other writers and speakers will often have more compelling ways to say about biblical topics […]

He is Available

In the 1930s, famed physicist Albert Einstein fled the impending war in Europe and the Nazis and came to America, purchasing a home near Princeton University. While residing there, he frequently was visited by famed politicians and mathematicians. And a 10-year-old girl named Emmy. It seems she had heard he was something of a math […]