The sinner’s pathway

Oops. Some parents had a great idea for their children’s special Christmas gift one year. They ordered a kit for a tree house from a mail order catalogue. On Christmas Eve, as the mother and father began to assemble the pieces, they discovered to their dismay that while they had received the plans for a […]

“Why did I not die at birth?”

A job interview that didn’t go the way you expected. A dinner that came out the oven smoky and flat instead of light and fluffy. A checkbook that appears to be inflicted with the black plague. A friend that suffers from a chronic illness. A favorite shirt that gets lost by the dry cleaner. An […]

The first two sins

The first sins recorded in Scripture — Adam and Eve’s rebellion (Gen. 3) and Cain’s murder of Abel (Gen. 4) — provide two distinct examples of the way temptation and sin work in an individual’s life. They are a reminder that not every temptation is the same; sin and its origins are multifaceted and insidious. […]

MacArthur Study Bibles for Kindle

Amazon is currently offering three versions of the John MacArthur Study Bible for $4.99. This is an excellent deal, so take advantage of it now, if you have a Kindle reader. The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV Holy Bible – ESV MacArthur Study Bible The MacArthur Study Bible, NIV (Signature)

Christmas Eve: The Indescribable Gift

The Indescribable Gift 2 Corinthians 9:15 December 24, 2013 It was the Christmas that almost wasn’t for me. I think I was about 8- or 10-years-old. I didn’t almost miss Christmas because I overslept or was out of the country. It was because I made a tactical error. In my recollection, in those years my […]

Reading Zechariah

This week we’ve been reading Zechariah in our Old Testament reading plan. Are you confused about this book of visions? One of the dominant emphases of the book is the revelation of the Messiah. The concept of the Messiah is extremely prominent in this book. No other Old Testament book seemingly is so filled with […]

What the Messiah does

This is our Savior who in the fullness of time appeared to accomplish the redemption and salvation of mankind.

Sermon: Sin, Righteousness, and the Believer (Pt. 2)

Sin, Righteousness, and the Believer (Pt. 2) 1 John 3:4-10 December 15, 2013 The story is told about Calvin Coolidge — nicknamed “Silent Cal” for his reticence to talk — that after returning to the White House from attending worship one Sunday morning he was asked by his wife Grace about the sermon. “It was […]

Daniel’s 70 weeks

As a young man, Daniel was taken captive by Babylon in 605 B.C. There he served under several rulers and two empires (the Babylonian and the Medo-Persian). Near the end of his life, while reading the book of Jeremiah (9:2; cf. Jer. 25:11-12), Daniel realized that the promise of 70 years of judgment under the […]

Daniel’s visions

In Daniel’s prophecy, he received a number of visions relating to future empires and their relationship with Israel. Here is a simple chart to overview and explain these visions:

Some lessons in God’s story of Nebuchadnezzar

The story about Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4) is remarkable — not only for the bizarre events that Nebuchadnezzar endured, but also the interpretation of his dream by Danie and the response of Nebuchadnezzar after the dream (vv. 34-37). Yet whatever else we learn about Nebuchadnezzar in this story, the story is not ultimately about him. The […]

What I would have said in Sunday School today

I was scheduled to teach an adult Sunday School class this morning. This is what I was going to teach: There have always been people — they existed in Christ’s day and they exist in ours — who say “I’m a follower of Christ — I believe in Jesus,” yet their lives seem to indicate […]

Grab bag

Some helpful articles: “Rescuing the Rupps: A Christmas Parable” (Clint Archer) One balmy Summer day in 1997 Rita Rupp (57) from Tulsa Oklahoma, was on a lengthy road trip with her husband Floyd (67). For no reason in particular, she began to sense that they may be in danger. She started thinking, ‘What if someone […]

Reading Ezekiel

Like many of the prophets, the theme of this book is quite simple. It is essential to remember that this book was written while Ezekiel himself was in captivity in Babylon, and he was writing to the Jews to get them to repent. Thus, it is also noted that it encompasses the fact that “the […]

Sunday Leftovers: Make sure no one deceives you

I led a pretty sheltered life growing up. I grew up in a home that loved and honored Christ and the Word of God. No matter where we lived participation in a local church was assumed and I was raised in several outstanding churches. I attended a Christian school in my elementary years. The dominant […]