“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Most people have two kinds of manners: Private manners and company manners. When we’re by ourselves we’ll let certain things go that we won’t when other people are around, particularly people whom we are interested in impressing. Read the rest…
“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…
“And the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and he said to me, ‘Say, Thus says the Lord: So you think, O house of Israel. For I know the things that come into your mind.'” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Ezekiel is announcing some pretty grim judgment here, but I just want to give a bit of attention to the end of this verse. “For I know the things that come into your mind.” You probably already knew or guessed this about God, but here it is explicitly stated. God knows what’s going on inside your mind. Read the rest…
“My eyes shed streams of tears, because people do not keep your law.” (ESV)
How do you feel about God’s commands? Here in v. 136 of Psalm 119, the psalmist has poured hundreds of words into his proclamation of his love for and devotion to God’s law. Here he lands on an idea that is worth considering for a moment. Again: How do you feel about God’s law? Read the rest…
“Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Over and over again in the prophets we see that God’s chief concern for the people was not that they got religion right, but that they got justice right. He complained about their offerings and sacrifices not because they weren’t done strictly according to the guidelines set out in the law, but because they pursued them without the accompanying set of behaviors (namely, a generous pursuit of justice for the least, last, and lost in their midst). Read the rest…
The Nexus 