Doing What Came Naturally

Doing What Came Naturally

1 Samuel 6:5 “You shall make likenesses of your tumors and likenesses of your mice that ravage the land, and you shall give glory to the God of Israel; perhaps He will ease His hand from you, your gods, and your land.” Observation: The Philistines had conquered Israel...

The Crowd Was Wrong

The Crowd Was Wrong

1 Samuel 4:5 “As the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth resounded.” Observation: This verse, taken alone, sounds pretty good. But the bigger picture is this: Israel had already been defeated in...

Humble of Heart

Humble of Heart

Ruth 3:1, 4, 9 “Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, ‘My daughter, shall I not seek security for you, that it may be well with you? … It shall be when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies, and you shall go down and uncover his feet and lie...

Our Sheltering God

Our Sheltering God

Ruth 1:6; 2:12 “Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the land of Moab, for she had heard in the land of Moab that the Lord had visited His people by giving them food.” “May the Lord reward your work, and your wages be full from the Lord...

Easy Deception

Easy Deception

Judges 17:5–6 “And the man Micah had a shrine and he made an ephod and household idols and consecrated one of his sons, that he might become his priest. In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” Observation: Micah was a...

Fellowship Restored

Fellowship Restored

2 Corinthians 2:10–11 “But one whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of...

Weighing What’s in Me

Weighing What’s in Me

Judges 11:11 “Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and chief over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord.” Observation: Jephthah didn’t have a promising beginning. He was the offspring of Gilead’s affair with a...

Sand Castles

Sand Castles

Psalm 49:10–12 “Even wise men die; the stupid and senseless alike perish and leave their wealth to others. Their inner thought is that their houses are forever and their dwelling places to all generations. They have called their lands after their own names, but man in...

Volunteering for Death

Volunteering for Death

1 Corinthians 15:31 “I die daily.” Observation: This simple statement comes during a discourse by Paul on death and resurrection—on the differences between those who have eternal life in Christ and will be given new and imperishable bodies in the resurrection, and...

Wimp or Warrior

Wimp or Warrior

Judges 6:12–13 “The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O valiant warrior.’ Then Gideon said to him, ‘Oh my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told...