God’s Answer for God’s Promise

Scripture: "Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, 'Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.'   But Abram replied, 'O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son? Since...

Grace that Changes Our Lives

Scripture: "The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. Shouldn’t we expect far...

Future Restoration of Current Realities

Scripture: “Now I want to say something more about this city. You have been saying, ‘It will fall to the king of Babylon through war, famine, and disease.’ But this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I will certainly bring my people back again from all the countries where...

When God’s Will Isn’t Our Way

Scripture: "When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city:   'No one, not...

Don’t Spend a Lifetime in the Desert

Scripture: "Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the Lord, and when he heard them his anger was aroused. Then fire from the Lord burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp. When the people cried out to Moses, he prayed to the Lord and the fire died down. So that place was called Taberah, because...

An Invitation That Changes Everything

Scripture: "After this he went out and saw a man named Levi at his work collecting taxes. Jesus said, 'Come along with me.' And he did—walked away from everything and went with him.   Levi gave a large dinner at his home for Jesus. Everybody was there, tax men and...

Do You Know Who You Are?

Scripture: "Jesus said all this, and then went into hiding. All these God-signs he had given them and they still didn’t get it, still wouldn’t trust him. This proved that the prophet Isaiah was right: God, who believed what we preached? Who recognized God’s arm, outstretched and ready to act?  ...

The Bitter Before the Blessing

Scripture: "Then Moses led the people of Israel away from the Red Sea, and they moved out into the desert of Shur. They traveled in this desert for three days without finding any water. When they came to the oasis of Marah, the water was too bitter to drink. So they...

Hope for the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Scripture: "After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial. But now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful. 'Now Joseph will show his anger and pay us back for all the wrong we did to him,' they...

Miracle of His Nearness

Scripture: "Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns. A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him. Jesus led...

The Posture of a Believing Heart

Scripture: "He left there and returned to his hometown. His disciples came along. On the Sabbath, he gave a lecture in the meeting place. He made a real hit, impressing everyone. 'We had no idea he was this good!' they said. 'How did he get so wise all of a...

Strength to Stay

Scripture: "Each Sabbath found Paul at the synagogue, trying to convince the Jews and Greeks alike. And after Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul spent all his time preaching the word. He testified to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. But when they opposed and insulted him, Paul shook...