What’s in a Name?

What’s in a Name?Luke 1:56-66August 4, 2024 One of Raye Jeanne’s sisters was married and pregnant before we got married; one day when I was at her parent’s home, the family was in earnest discussion about names for the coming baby. As soon as suggestions were made, they were rapidly shot down for all […]

“My Soul Exalts the Lord”

“My Soul Exalts the Lord”Luke 1:46-56July 28, 2024 After a second deployment in Iraq, Stacy Bare returned home but he wasn’t doing well: he was drinking too much, thinking suicidal thoughts, and struggling to think about the future and manage life. “What am I doing with my life? What does it mean to be […]

Mary, the Mother of God?

In Luke 1:43, in her hymn of praise, Elizabeth says of Mary, “And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?” She was astounded that the one who was the mother of her Messiah (her declaration emulates David in Ps. 110:1) would visit her. She is humbling […]

God’s Confirmation of The Son of Man

God’s Confirmation of the Son of ManLuke 1:39-45July 21, 2024 It has been called, “The button that could have changed the internet.” About 25 years ago, Tim Berners-Lee, a computer programmer who has been credited with inventing the world wide web and the HTML computer language for writing those pages gave a talk in which […]

The Son of Man, announced

The Son of Man, AnnouncedLuke 1:26-38July 14, 2024 The promise of the Messiah who would redeem Israel and serve as her King was no secret; it had been declared throughout Israel’s history, beginning with Moses: “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise […]

The Forerunner of the Son of Man

The Forerunner of the Son of ManLuke 1:13-17July 7, 2024 Every child wants to believe his dad is a hero; but John Cromwell Jr.’s father really was a hero. A Navy Captain, John, Sr. died in 1943 in his submarine off the Gilbert Islands in the south Pacific. His submarine was one several that was […]

“This is the way the Lord has dealt with me”

“This is the Way the Lord has Dealt with Me”Luke 1:5-25June 30, 2024 In A View from the Zoo, Gary Richmond describes the birth of a giraffe: The first thing to emerge are the baby giraffe’s front hooves and head. A few minutes later the plucky newborn calf is hurled forth, falls ten feet, and […]

How Luke told the story of Jesus

The gospels are not just a succession of stories — they are one story of one Man — the God-Man, Jesus Christ. Yet each of the gospel writers tells the story of Jesus in different ways with different emphases. As we begin a study of the Gospel of Luke — the story of the Son […]

The Story of the Son of Man

The Story of the Son of ManLuke 1:1-4June 23, 2024 Everyone likes a good story: Perhaps this evening you will turn to the guide on your TV and scroll for a good movie to watch. Maybe this week you will finish that blockbuster novel you’ve been reading; it’s not really great literature, but it’s a […]

Standing on the Word

Standing on the Word in a Shaky WorldPsalm 1April 21, 2024 What’s on your music playlist today? Or better yet, what kind of playlists do you have on your music app? If you’re like me, you have different playlists for different times of the day and different activities: I have a list of quiet […]

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 […]