Category: Digging in Deeper

Digging in Deeper: Lamentations 3:21-24

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“But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.  ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him.'”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Lamentations is a series of complaints to God.  Jeremiah wrote these toward the end of his ministry when Babylon had conquered and destroyed Jerusalem.  It is mostly a bitter book.  It’s tone is both corporate and personal.  Chapter three here in particular is very personal.  The prophet describes feeling totally abandoned and even actively attacked by the Lord.  They are words that ring with familiarity to those who have experienced loss and grief and seasons of great distress today. Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: Habakkuk

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“O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear?  Or cry to you ‘Violence!’ and you will not save?  Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong?  Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise.  So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth.  For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted.”  (ESV – Read the book)

This will be a longer comment, but it’s going to cover the whole book.  Habakkuk is one of my favorite books in the Bible (and not just because it’s really fun to say!).  It is definitely my favorite among the minor prophets.  I am drawn to it because it asks a question that people still ask today, and offers an answer that while not immediately satisfying (in fact, initially, it is deeply unsatisfying), after some reflection leads us into a greater peace and faith than we had before. Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: Ezekiel 9:9

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“Then he said to me, ‘The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great.  The land is full of blood, and the city full of injustice.  For they say, “The Lord has forsaken the land, and the Lord does not see.”‘”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Ezekiel was prophesying during a hard season in the life of the people of Israel.  The good and faithful King Josiah had instituted incredible moral and spiritual reforms among the people.  But after his death, the people went right back to the paganism they had pursued before him.  This proved to be the final straw.  God sent Babylon to enact His judgment against the people. Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: Titus 2:7-8

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“Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

There are calls to Christ-like behavior all over the New Testament.  We see them in all kinds of different contexts.  And most of them seem to offer little more reason for this aim than that it is right and honoring of God.  Sometimes they focus on the benefit such behavior will bring to us.  But there are times I’ve been left wondering: What else is there?  Is there a reason to put so much effort and energy into this beyond the fact that it is right? Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: 2 Timothy 4:3-4

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“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

We live in this day now.  The power and influence of the church has been steadily eroding in the West for more than a generation.  A good argument can be made that this has been a progression that started back in the 19th century and has continued apace with only a few interruptions since. Read the rest…