Where There Is No Vision
Read: Judges 21:20-25 Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint. (Prov. 29:18) Around the time of our church’s 100th anniversary, the congregation decided to remodel and expand the building. Outside the new entrance they built a substantial sign engraved with the words, “Where there is no vision, the people perish”—quoting Proverbs […]
What to Buy
Read: John 8:23-32 Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding. (Prov. 23:23) I happened to be browsing in a jewelry store one day while my wife was getting a new battery to put in her watch. A nicely dressed salesman politely asked if there was something I was interested in. […]
Rich toward God
Read: Luke 12:13-21 Honor the LORD with your wealth . . . then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine. (Prov. 3:9-10) Jesus’ story is known as the parable of the rich fool. This farmer was a fool because he thought his prosperity was all for himself—notice how many times […]
Where Are They Now?
Read: Psalm 73 When the tempest passes, the wicked is no more, but the righteous is established forever. (Prov. 10:25) It’s tempting to envy the prosperity of those the Bible calls “the wicked” or “the ungodly”—that is, people of the world. These aren’t necessarily extremely evil people; rather they are, in the psalmist’s words, “those […]
Amor Omnia Vincit
Read: 1 Peter 4:7-11 Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses. (Prov. 10:12) The Roman proverb used in the title of this devotional is translated “Love conquers all.” It’s an ancient statement of contemporary bumper sticker theology: “Love Wins.” But I wonder: Whose love? Conquers what? Wins how? Every wedding includes mutual promises […]
Don’t Worry
Read: Matthew 6:25-32 The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked. (Prov. 10:3) Are you a worrier? I’m not usually, but I can fall into that trap at times—the one where you let fears about the future spoil your peace in the present. Jesus said that […]
Pride Goes before a Fall
Read: Daniel 4:28-37 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. (Prov. 16:18) According to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, the walls of Babylon were so massive that a four-horse chariot could drive around the city on top of them. So when King Nebuchadnezzar looked out on his city at the height […]
First Things First
Read: Matthew 6:33-34 Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house. (Prov. 24:27) Recently I visited the historic sites of Abraham Lincoln’s boyhood in Kentucky and Indiana. The Lincoln family led a hard life on a series of frontier farms. Everyone knows about the log […]
Hope Deferred
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. (Prov. 13:12) If you are familiar with the Bible, you probably know Jacob’s story. What happens to him in Genesis 29 is a classic case of the biter bit, the trickster tricked, the con man conned. It’s hard to feel […]