Christ, Resurrected

Christ, ResurrectedMatthew 28:1-15March 31, 2024 Every Easter we talk about the resurrection. We gather on resurrection morning to read the story, be reminded of Christ’s life, rejoice in the good gift we have been given through His resurrection, and meditate on the essential nature of the resurrection. For the believer in Christ, nothing is more […]

Why Christ Wept

Imagine a young man who is in love with a young lady. He has been saving and planning and one evening he pulls a box out of his pocket and asks the young woman to spend the rest of her life with him and exposes a gleaming ring in that box. And she bursts […]

The Victorious Christ

The Victorious ChristJohn 12:12-19March 24, 2024 When a country wins a war, it often recognizes it’s victory by constructing a grand memorial: The Victory Monument was erected in Bangkok, Thailand in 1941 to commemorate the Thai victory in the Franco-Thai War. The Buon Ma Thuot Victory Monument in Vietnam commemorates the Ho Chi Minh […]

How Jesus Transforms Our Accounting Methods

At the end of Matthew 16, Jesus utters a familiar saying: “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (v. 26). The saying is part of Jesus’ call to follow Him in faith and obedience […]

Grab bag

I came across these articles a while ago (some a few years ago) but they are still helpful: “I Know a Place…” is a good reminder about an essential place (and Person). Jeremiah 17:9 is often misused and misapplied leading to discouragement and even despair. John Piper helpful asks and answers, “Is the Christian’s Heart […]

Come, Lord Jesus

On this Christmas morning, the words of Charles Spurgeon help us orient our hearts towards Christ: MANY are celebrating our Lord’s first coming this day; let us turn our thoughts to the promise of his second coming. This is as sure as the first advent, and derives a great measure of its certainty from it. […]

At the Right Time

At the Right TimeGalatians 4:4-5December 24, 2023 A couple of days ago I thought of something that might be a nice gift for someone, but I didn’t have time to look for it, so I quickly went to Amazon and found what I was looking for. The right price! But when will it arrive? I […]

Christ’s Two Appearances

Christ’s Two AppearancesTitus 2:11-14December 17, 2023 ’Tis the season for waiting. And waiting. Maxine Bland can empathize. A couple of decades ago she showed up to work and found a letter for her that was postmarked 14 years earlier. It had the correct postage for the time, the correct address and zip code; it […]

Treasure Hunting

For some children (ok, for some adults too), “Christmas season” is a code term for “hunting season” — as in “let’s hunt through all the closets and crevices in the house to find unwrapped Christmas presents. Even as a child, that was never my temptation. But one year I did find myself outside a store, […]

The Messiah’s Return

The Messiah’s ReturnZechariah 14:1-5September 10, 2023 In February 1942, the American war against the Japanese in the Philippines was not going well. It was going so poorly that by March 12, 1942, President Roosevelt ordered General Douglas MacArthur, who was stationed in the Philippines, to leave and relocate his command in Australia. MacArthur briefly considered […]

The Father’s Pleasure in Bruising the Son

Being finite, created beings, we understand that some biblical and theological realities are beyond our comprehension. While God has revealed them to us as true, we cannot grasp the full meaning behind the words. Such is the case with the crucifixion of the Son of God by the Father of God. How can the Father […]

The Messiah’s Redeeming Work, Pt. 2

The Messiah’s Redeeming Work, Pt. 2Zechariah 13:7-9September 3, 2023 In his book, Rejoicing in Christ, Michael Reeves writes, “On the cross we are given not only the sweet salvation of God but the counterintuitive revelation of God. On the cross we see how humble, how self-giving, how perfectly generous and compassionate the living God is. […]

Zechariah and The Day of the Lord

While Zechariah does not use the term, “the day of the Lord,” he speaks frequently (21 times) of “that day,” which is his abbreviated way of referring to the day of the Lord. So what is “that day” and “the day of the Lord?” In the Old Testament, the term generally is used to refer […]

God’s Worthless Shepherd

God’s Worthless Shepherd Zechariah 11:5-17July 9, 2023 I don’t know about you, but it’s hard to know from year to year what I should and shouldn’t eat — what’s good for me and what’s bad for me? High fat? Low fat? Eggs or no eggs? Carbs or no carbs? Meat? Vegetarian? Or vegan? A […]

When the Shepherd is Rejected

When the Shepherd is RejectedZechariah 11:7-14June 25, 2023 Everything seemed to go poorly for Israel. Way back in her history after Solomon died there was political maneuvering for the kingship of Israel and it led to strife, conflict, and a divided nation. It stayed that way for centuries. There were even battles between the northern […]