The Influence of One Devoted Parent
Chuck focuses on an eight-year-old boy named Josiah, who became Judah's king. His friendship and subsequent reign played a vital role in Jeremiah's life and ministry.
Struggling through reading the lesser-known Old Testament passages and long prophetic oracles may seem to have little relevance to everyday 21st-century life. But there are important things we can learn from the Old Testament. First, the New Testament is based on the Old Testament. Second, the Old Testament reveals the character of God. Third, the Old Testament has transformational power. Its message transcends time, geography, and culture. It speaks to everyone, everywhere, in every situation.
Chuck focuses on an eight-year-old boy named Josiah, who became Judah's king. His friendship and subsequent reign played a vital role in Jeremiah's life and ministry.
Before delving into Lamentations in the coming weeks, Pastor Chuck Swindoll first takes a look at the life of the prophet Jeremiah. Why did he write this book? What was going on around him?
Have you ever wondered about the name, “Baalzebub?” The name is comprised of two Hebrew words—Baal meaning “lord or god,” and Zebub meaning, “to move here and there quickly,” referencing flies.
While the law was a covenantal gift to God’s people, it is not our covenant law as Christians. We live under the new covenant, so interpreting the old covenant law can be challenging at times.
Boot camp isn’t supposed to be easy, it’s meant to prepare people to defend their country against the enemy. It has the built-in ingredients to make you strong. There’s a sort of spiritual boot camp believers go through. It’s not easy, but God is using it ultimately for good.
Rather than wallowing in self-pity or bitterness, David praised God with a grateful heart. Praise leaves humanity out of the picture and focuses fully on the exaltation of the living God. The magnifying glass of praise always looks up.
As painful as it is to let go of God’s good gifts, the process of releasing opens our hands to receive the greatest reward—the Giver Himself! As we internalize this biblical account, let’s anchor in our hearts the faithfulness of God who is our Provider.
Biblical poetry may at first seem repetitive, but it forces us to engage both heart and head. Read it slowly. Imagine the experience from different angles. Feel what the poet felt.
A proverb is a short, straight-to-the-point statement about moral truth or general observation on life designed to direct readers toward right and away from wrong.
The Bible’s wisdom literature was different from that of Israel’s neighbours because it was rooted in the theology that God has created an orderly universe with both a natural and moral law. God has wired his creation according to those laws.