John Piper draws out five brief lessons from Obadiah which will affect the way we live: First, God rules in this world right now and turns the course of nations and history as he pleases. If this were not so, he could not promise Judah that he would cut off Edom and establish Jacob. No … More Fear not. God holds the reins.
Ray Stedman, in an introduction to 2 John: The second letter of John is the only letter in the New Testament that was written to a woman. As we can gather from the letter itself, it was written to a mother with several children, perhaps a widow. It appears that she had written to the … More 2 John: The sanity of balance
God said to Pharaoh: “You consider yourself a lion of the nations, but you are like a dragon in the seas; you burst forth in your rivers, trouble the waters with your feet, and foul their rivers. Thus says the Lord God: I will throw my net over you with a host of many peoples, and … More God is reminding us that He is in control
Ezek. 29:19 I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. From the ESV Online Study Bible: This prophecy was given in 571 b.c. (see note on vv. 17–21), and Nebuchadnezzar conquered Egypt in 568 (this is described in detail in Jeremiah 43–44 and also recorded in Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 10.180–182). Egypt … More “And they will KNOW that I am the LORD…”
You are my hammer and weapon of war: with you I break nations in pieces; with you I destroy kingdoms; with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider; with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer; with you I break in pieces man and woman; with you I break … More He chooses and uses the hammers He pleases.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. —Jeremiah 29:11 ESV So often this passage is taken out of context and we use it to reassure ourselves that wonderful circumstances are ahead for us. Read … More God’s Plans for Us
Ecclesiastes 8:12, in our Bible reading passage for today, reminds us: Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. Carrollton, Kentucky, was the site of one of the most deadly bus disasters in United … More I know that it will be well with those who fear God
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. … More “If God wills…”
Ray Stedman on Jeremiah 20-22: So it is a number of years later, and Zedekiah, weakest of all the kings of Judah and the last of the line, is now on the throne. Nebuchadnezzar is sending up another army against Jerusalem, the city is under siege, and king Zedekiah now sends a hasty word to … More God is not a heavenly genie
John Piper, in a sermon, “Prayer and the Victory of God” helps us understand Isaiah 37 Now to fix this truth vividly in your minds—that the victory of God is coming and that it is coming by means of our prayers—look with me at Isaiah 37 and one stunning illustration of prayer and the victory … More The Stunning Effect of Prayer Illustrated
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 