In Deuteronomy 30:15, 19 God spells out a choice that He has always given to mankind, saying, “I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.” This is the same choice God gave to Adam at the beginning in Genesis 2:16-17, but […]
Sheep comprise a large part of the agricultural life and livelihood of the Near Eastern people, including the Hebrews, and are mentioned in the Bible more than 500 times. They are also a very fitting symbol of the people of God. David, the Psalmist, and king of Israel, had been a shepherd in his youth […]
The Christian life is not a life free of pressure, stress, anguish, adversity, oppression, affliction, and crushing. In fact, when Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation” (John 16:33), the Greek word He used is “thlipsis” which means all of the above! The word is actually used of pressing olives or grapes to […]
Since the secret place of God is in Jesus who became the physical manifestation of the rock upon which Moses stood, the physical manifestation of God and His presence, we can only enter through Him. He Himself declared in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, No man comes to the […]
In Psalm 17, David references his own situation in which enemies and evil men have oppressed and surrounded him. He calls on God to be his vindicator, appealing to Him for His help. There is a neat thing about Scripture, where in portions like this, it focuses on the then present time and people, yet […]
In Philippians 3:10, “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection…” is the goal of the apostle Paul. The Contemporary English version says, “All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised Him to life”. Are you seeking to know Him, or are you merely seeking to know about Him? Are […]
Psalm 139:3 in the Amplified Bible reads, “You sift and search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.” In the language of the Psalmist David, to sift out meant to toss about, by implication to diffuse and winnow; so the picture is that of threshing grain, in which the grain is removed […]
“I will lift up my eyes to the hills – From whence comes my help?” (Psalm 121:1). The KJV places a period at the end of this verse, but six other versions I have looked at place a question mark. Looking at it from that angle, the Psalmist recognizes that the hills and mountains in […]
In 1 John 4:19, the beloved Apostle wrote, “We love Him because He first loved us.” The first and foremost thing that God desires from us is that we love Him in return for His love for us. In Deuteronomy 6:5, He said to His people, “you shall love the Lord your God with all […]
The Apostle Paul writes in 2 Thessalonians of that future day when Jesus will be revealed from heaven, giving rest to those who have fought “the good fight of faith” (1 Timothy 6:12), and to render the vengeance of judgment “on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the […]