Acts 4:1-31 I don’t know for sure how much time passes between Acts 2 and Acts 4. It could have been a few days, or a few weeks. But while Acts 2 appears to show a church widely accepted by the community, Acts 4 begins to show the resistance by the ancient Jewish power center. Culminating in the priests, the Sadducees, and…
Matthew 11:16-17; Matthew 12:10-13 What lessons can we learn from how the Jewish people responded to Jesus and John? How should we react to those in need at inopportune times?
Matt. 11.1-15 Who was John and how was his question and his suffering to fit in with God’s plan?
Mark 7: 31-37; Mark 8:22-26; John 9:1-41 When studying the Bible, one of the most important things for us to do is also one of the most difficult. We need to take ourselves out of the equation. When we’re studying the Bible, it’s not a question of how something sounds to us or how something makes us feel. When we interact with…
Ezra 7:10 The book of Ezra is rather short—only 10 chapters long. But in this short book, we find a rather unusual statement that is repeated a number of times: the hand of the LORD his God was on him. (Ezra 7:6) I took courage, for the hand of the LORD my God was on me, and I gathered leading men from…
Matt. 10:34-39 God promises “Peace” and also says He doesn’t bring peace. How can this be reconciled?
Prov. 24:10-22 Solomon’s God-given wisdom was well-renowned. And even to this day, we find ourselves studying his wisdom recorded 1KN, EC, and PV. In PV 23-24, Solomon records some important advice for his son—30 statements we’ve been reviewing over the last 5 weeks. Today, as we come to the end of these wise statements, we see that Solomon focuses on something new:…
Luke 13:1-9 In Luke 13, the crowd came to Jesus seeking His input on a tragedy: the murder of Galileans by the hand of Pilate. Perhaps they hoped He’d lay the blame at the spilled blood at the feet of Pilate. Perhaps they hoped He’d provide clarity of what sin had made these people deserving of their fate. Either way, they, like…
Matt. 10:29-38 Does God really care for us? And what should this mean for our current relationships?