“Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, ‘Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.'” (ESV – Read the chapter)
These two verses mark the end of the era of the judges in the history of Israel and the beginning of the era of the monarchy. This is both a sad and an interesting transition. It gives us an object lesson in how God can use our failings and still accomplish His plans in spite of them. In fact, He can even incorporate our failures into His plans such that it appears later they were always part of them even though they weren’t. Let’s look at how this is. Read the rest…
“And Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him. He said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed thousands, and what more can he have but the kingdom?” And Saul eyed David from that day on.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Saul was not simply angry here. If he were just angry he could have gotten over it and moved on. The fuller truth is that there was something deeper that was motivating his anger. Saul was envious of David. Read the rest…
In this third part of our series, Grace in Hard Times, we finally get a look at what God had to say to Job and his friends after all their questions and assumptions about who He is and how He works. The result feels hard at first until you look a bit closer. What we learn is that God’s job in running the whole universe is a lot bigger than we think and that if we’ll let Him do it, He’ll do it well. Keep reading to see how this unfolds. Up next: A look at how we can keep the rhythm of our lives adjusted to the right beat.
What If God Answered?
Do you remember the worst lecture you ever got from your parents? While I confess that I fall to it way more often than I should with my boys, my folks either weren’t much for lecturing or else I’ve forgotten all of them (which really isn’t very comforting news for all the wisdom parents depart to their children through the vehicle of a lecture…). Still, though, there are times when as parents we need to impart a great deal of important information to our children in a rapid-fire fashion. And, coincidentally or not, these times often happen in conjunction with something they’ve done that wasn’t perhaps totally on the up-and-up and when we are in a state of mild to extreme anger. Now, if that happens to come across as a lecture, is that our fault? Well…probably…but that much is not where I want to go this morning. I’ll come back to this idea in a second. Read the rest…
“And David said to the men who stood by him, ‘What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?'” (ESV – Read the chapter)
David understood something that the rest of the Israelite army, including Saul, failed to see. The conflict with the Philistines and specifically Goliath here was not simply a battle between two opposing armies. It was a spiritual battle between two opposing Gods. Goliath wasn’t just challenging Israel’s ability to field a suitable champion to face him in battle, he was challenging the efficacy of the God of Israel to oppose him in battle. Read the rest…
“Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Jesus was nothing if not a realist when it came to the kind of reception His followers should expect when they set out to advance the kingdom by proclaiming the Gospel to the unbelieving world. He made this abundantly clear: We should expect trouble. In these couple of verses He makes clear we should expect three different kinds of persecution. Read the rest…
The Nexus 