Good News for the Poor
Read: Luke 4:14-21, 24-28 At the beginning of his public ministry Jesus explained the work he had come to do using words from the prophet Isaiah. That work was all about deliverance, restoration, good news! In the United States a new presidential administration begins with an impressive ceremony called the Inauguration. Custom dictates many of the […]
When You Feel Forsaken
Read: Matthew 27:46 When Jesus cried out on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” he was all alone, but because he was abandoned by God, you never have to be. The Worst Case Have you ever been forsaken? If there is a word more chilling than that, an experience more dismal, […]
The Macedonian Call
Read: Acts 16:9-12, 16-23 For more than 1500 years, Christianity has been considered to be a “western” or European religion. But it’s not. Christianity is the faith of all—whether European or African, Asian or American—who believe in and follow Jesus Christ. As we all know, Macedonia has been much in the news in recent weeks. The […]
A Song of the Goodness of God
Read: Psalm 34:1-22 “God is great, and God is good . . .” That brief phrase says just about all we need to know about God. But what exactly does it mean to say “God is good”? In a previous message I looked at Psalm 139, a song about the greatness of God. Now, in the 34th […]
How to Rejoice in Hard Times
Read: Habakkuk 3:17-18 The apostle Paul’s word to Christians is, “Rejoice in the Lord always, I say it again, rejoice.” But is that really possible? Sooner or later, most of us meet with hard times. Maybe we have family troubles, bouts with serious illness or some desolating grief. Things go badly wrong at work. We have […]
John the Baptist: The Forerunner
Read: Matthew 3:1-12 The last of the Old Testament prophets was also the first character in the story of Jesus’ ministry. His name was John the Baptist, and his mission was to be the forerunner of Christ. Each of the New Testament gospel writers agrees that the story of Jesus’ ministry begins with the appearance in […]
Ezekiel: Prophet of Hope
Read: Ezekiel 2:3-7, Ezekiel 3:4-11 Ezekiel the prophet saw many strange visions during the course of his ministry, and one of them offers you a hope you might not have thought possible for yourself. Ezekiel is one of those books that was included in the Bible to keep us humble. Ezekiel the prophet lived among the Jewish […]
Isaiah: Prophet of Holiness
Read: Isaiah 6:1-8, Isaiah 1:14-17 Do you know everything you need to know about God? Why not listen to what the great prophet Isaiah tells us about him. We live in a Bible-ignorant age. There have never been as many versions and translations of the Bible available as there are today. There are Bibles for children, Bibles […]
Hosea: Prophet of Love
Read: Hosea 1:1-3, Hosea 3:1-2, Hosea 6:4-6, Hosea 11:1-4 If your image of a biblical prophet is of a stern, angry, bearded figure who does nothing but hurl condemnation at everyone, let me introduce you to the prophet Hosea. We’re considering the message of another of the remarkable Hebrew prophets, Hosea. In the arrangement of the modern Bible, Hosea […]