I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments. Thus ends Psalm 119, where we have been reading all this month. John Piper explains how shocking this last verse is, in a sermon, “The Anatomy of Backsliding,” The truth about our experience is that we fail … More The Shocking Last Verse
And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said: “O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has … More Pattern for prayer
John Piper, helps us understand Philippians 3:10-14 (our passage for today) in a message, “Called to Suffer and Rejoice -that We Might Gain Christ” Why did God ordain and Paul accept the losses that it meant for him to be a Christian? Paul gives the answer again and again in these verses so that we cannot miss … More Gaining something far more precious
Today we come to Luke 6:17-27 in our read-through-the-Bible plan. Here is Coty Pinckney on Luke 6: In verses 24-26, Jesus pronounces four woes: On the rich, on the full or satisfied, on the happy or laughing, and on those that people speak well of. Why does Jesus speak these woes? Because all the rich … More Why does Jesus speak these woes?
Dr. D.A. Carson on 2 Kings 16 (from “The Love of God, Vol 1, Nov 3”) (Read chapters 16-17 today.) THE BOOKS OF 1 AND 2 KINGS, though they follow the fortunes of both Judah and Israel (the southern and northern kingdoms, respectively, after the division that followed Solomon’s death), lay more emphasis on Israel, the northern … More 2 Kings: Every once in a while a really evil or stupid king arises
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ Philippians … More Knowing Christ is a value that surpasses everything else
On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and the Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse him. 8 But he knew their thoughts, and … More The Sabbath Trap?
Today in our Bible reading plan we come to Psalm 119:153-60. Here is verse 156: Great are thy tender mercies, O Lord: quicken me according to thy judgments. (KJV): William Cowper, as quoted in the Treasury of David Great are thy tender mercies, O LORD. Two epithets he ascribes to God’s mercies; first, he calls … More God’s tender mercies: great in many respects
In the second year of Joash the son of Joahaz, king of Israel, Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign. He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in … More RIght in the eyes of the Lord…BUT
Today we read Philippians 2: 23-24….. I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also. Alec Motyer says, “Paul’s doctrine taught him that a sovereign God ruled all things: whether freedom or imprisonment, … More Trusting in a sovereign God
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 