Bob Deffinbaugh, “When a Right May Be Wrong,” at Bible.org, helps us understand 1 Corinthians 9:1-12. Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians 9 sheds new light on the matter of pleasing God. Pleasing God does not result from merely keeping the rules. Pleasing God comes from personal sacrifice, for the glory of God, the good of others, and … More Pleasing God vs following a rule book
And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains … More Tell them how much the Lord has done for you!
God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue … More Even the judgments of our most impartial judges will be revised by the High Court of heaven
As we read Judges 1-3 today, a little help from Kim Riddlebarger’s sermon series on Judges: And then there are the judges themselves–men whom God raises up to rescue Israel from some military or political crisis, but who can do nothing about the nation’s spiritual condition. Remember that Israel’s judges are not jurists presiding over … More Broken People-Faithful God
Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” 5 For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”—6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, … More One God and the “so-called gods”
J.C. Ryle comments on “The Parable of the Seed Growing” in Mark 4:26-28 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the … More The workings of grace in the heart in like manner, are utterly mysterious and unsearchable.
Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. —Psalm 81: 10 Rejoice as you read Psalm 81 in the reading plan today! Do you see the connections with Joshua 24? You may easily over expect the creature, but you cannot over expect God: “Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it”; widen and … More We cannot “over expect” God
We come to the end of Joshua today. In Joshua 24:16-18, we read, “Then the people answered, `Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods, for it is the LORD our God who brought us and our fathers up from the land of Egypt, out of the house … More We will serve the LORD, Jesus, for He is our God
Paul steps on a few Corinthian toes. John Piper comments: [1 Corinthians 7] Verse 19 says literally, “Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of God (is everything).” That was about the most offensive thing Paul could say to a Jew: Circumcision is nothing. And if we understand its broad cultural … More Stepping on a few toes…
Today we come to Mark 4:1-20, where Jesus told the parable of the sower. In the conclusion, he says that Satan takes away the Word of God from people’s minds and hearts so that they cannot believe and be saved. Here is some encouragement from John Piper, who suggests “three ways to resist Satan’s efforts to … More John Piper: Three ways to resist Satan’s efforts to defeat the Word of God as you hear it
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 