Posts from 2022 (Page 8)

                  “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Consider your ways. Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD’”.                                                                                                                                                                 – Haggai 1:2-11                 Sheshbazzar, “the prince of Judah,” was the first governor Cyrus appointed over Judah when he allowed the Jewish exiles to go home in 538 BC (Ezra 1:8–11). We know nothing about him other than that he…

              “The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”                                                                                                                     Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV There is a beautiful verse in the Old Testament book of Zephaniah that talks about God singing over his people; and it is the only place in the Bible where this thought is expressed in this unique way.  Prior to…

                  “I will stand my watch and set myself on the rampart and watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am corrected”.                                                                                                                                                      —  Habakkuk 2:1   NKJV             God says: Never ignore your struggle with how I do things. Ask every question that rises in your heart as you live in this world. But prepare yourself to struggle even more with My response. You must stumble in confusion…

                  “ Now I will break their yoke from your neck and tear your shackles away.”                                                                                                                         – Nahum 1:13 God wants to break and destroy those things which afflicted his people and are a bondage to them. There is a similar prophecy in Isaiah, “In that day their burden will be lifted from your shoulders, their yoke from your neck; the yoke will be broken because you have grown so fat” (Isaiah 10:27). God longs to see his…

                  Micah isn’t exactly a household word. Too bad. Though obscure, the ancient prophet had his stuff together. Eclipsed by the much more famous Isaiah, who ministered among the elite, Micah took God’s message to the streets. Micah had a deep suspicion of phony religion. He saw greed in the hearts of the leaders of the kingdom of Judah, which prompted him to warn the common folk not to be deceived by religious pretense among nobility. In true prophetic…

                  Obadiah’s name, meaning “worshipper of Yahweh,” offers an interesting counterpoint to the message of judgment he pronounced on Edom, Judah’s neighbor to the southeast. As a worshipper of Yahweh, Obadiah placed himself in a position of humility before the Lord; he embraced his lowly place before the almighty God.             That God sent a man named “worshipper of Yahweh” to the people of Edom was no mistake. Edom had been found guilty of pride before the Lord (Obadiah…

  The story is told of a very generous farmer.  Approached by his friends one day, they asked him, “We don’t understand you.  You give more than the rest of us, but you always seem to prosper more than us.  How is that?”  The farmer replied, “I keep shoveling into God’s bin, and God keeps shoveling more and more into mine, and God has the bigger shovel.” James Reston was a syndicated columnist for the New York Times for more…

                  Out of all the prophets, we probably know the least about Joel.  We also have trouble indicating the time frame in which it was written, because unlike the other book of prophecy, Joel gives no information of his time frame.  There is no mention of being with other prophets and there is also no mention of any kings that would have ruled.  A possible explanation might be due to a period in Judah’s history when they had no…

                     Ever heard an angry toddler yell that? He’s determined to accomplish something on his own and refuses your help. As parents, we chuckle and watch those fierce little ones in amusement, knowing we could help if only they would let us. In some ways, we’re all like toddlers. We insist we know better than God. We don’t need His help, His guidance, His input. The Israelites were guilty of this, too. Despite all that God had done…

                  How important is the daily study of God’s Word to my life? What benefit is there of having a thorough understanding of God’s laws? How does a lack of knowledge of God’s Word affect me? These are questions that we can get answered as we look at the ministry of the prophet Hosea to God’s people. Hosea prophesied to the northern kingdom of Israel during a time of economic prosperity for God’s people, but a time of spiritual…

                  How much does God love me? To what degree is God still willing to demonstrate His love to me despite my many failings? Through the prophet Hosea, we learn of God’s great love for His people. The prophet Hosea ministered to the northern kingdom of Israel during the days of the reign of Jereboam the son of Joash. From an economic standpoint the nation was enjoying a time of prosperity and growth (cf. 2 Kings 14:23-29); however, from…

  DISCUSSION                                                        Prayer is a major part of the Christian faith, yet most Christians feel like their prayer life is inadequate.  One of the reasons why most feel as though their prayer life is not what it should be is because we don’t receive an answer as fast as we would like.   The prophet Daniel is known for his prayer life.  Even in the midst of the threat of being…