Category Archives: God’s love

Discontent, rebellion, and the grace of God

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God led his chosen but stubborn people from Sinai to the cusp of the Promised Land, and then they believed a report that the people of the land were too strong. So they refused to go in. Months of discontent gave way to rebellion. They chose leaders to replace Moses and vowed to go back to Egypt. God’s people can be slow learners. Have you ever noticed that?

In Numbers 14, they heard the spies’ report and refused to enter the promised land. They mourned that they hadn’t died in the wilderness. God told them they’d have their way: everyone over 20 would die in the wilderness over the next 40 years, but their children would conquer the Promised Land.… Read the rest

Look, the Lamb of God! Why is that a revolutionary revelation?

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The first time recorded in Scripture that John the Baptist ever saw Jesus, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29, CSB). The next day, he said the same thing to two of his disciples, Andrew and John, when Jesus passed by them. The two left him to follow Jesus.

The scene has become so familiar that it’s easy to fail to notice how little John’s society was prepared to hear it. Not to mention ours.

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What does it mean that Jesus will winnow and burn chaff?

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John the Baptist burst on the scene with such power that people wondered if he could be the Messiah. He identified Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah.

In explaining what the Messiah would do, he didn’t refer to anything Jesus did in his earthly ministry. He pointed to Jesus’ post-resurrection work and used an agricultural image to do so. The message was plain to those who heard John, but it’s obscure to us today.

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Dwelling in the secret place of the Most High

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bedroom. secret placeHave you ever thought about the secret place of the Most High? It’s supposed to be the dwelling place for God’s people.

The bit of real estate you occupy is not your dwelling. At least, not in the biblical sense. Psalm 91:9-10 says, “If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent” (all quotations NIV unless otherwise noted).

In this day of “name it and claim it,” Christians who live in the path of a hurricane or other natural disaster might try to put faith in that passage to preserve their house or apartment.… Read the rest

Exodus: a roundabout road to victory

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God leads us, but his ways often seem to make no sense. Consider the exodus from Egypt. Israel left Egypt armed and in battle formation. But not as ready for battle as they may have thought. They could have taken a major trade route and gotten to the Promised Land quickly. That wasn’t God’s plan. Instead, they headed to the desert, apparently aimlessly.

I don’t know about you, but I always try to find the most direct route to where I want to go. When I’m driving somewhere, I get there quickly. When I’ve tried to reach life goals that way, it hasn’t worked out so well.… Read the rest

The redemptive purpose of fire in the Bible

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Fire serves as a powerful symbol in the Bible. Most people probably think first of hell. Probably everyone knows about the fire that consumed Sodom and the lake of fire in Revelation. But it means so much more besides.

Even in everyday life, fire destroys, but it’s also a useful tool. Think of a campfire. It destroys firewood. We use it for cooking, for warmth, to draw close to one another, to keep wild beasts away, and more.

Jeremiah 23:29 (NKJV) says, “Is not my word like fire,” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock  in pieces?”… Read the rest

God’s promise of shalom in a crisis

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Jeremiah 29:11 ranks high on the list of favorite Old Testament scriptures. As much as we love it, do we really understand how much it promises? “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (NIV)

“Prosper” translates the Hebrew word shalom, a word (a noun, by the way) so rich it has no good English equivalent. It usually appears in English translations as “peace.” In fact, many English translations of Jeremiah 29:11 say, “plans for peace” or something similar.

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Idolatry and redemption today

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IdolatryChristians readily agree with the statement that God is all-powerful, all-loving, and all-sufficient. But when trouble turns up, how many of us really know how to respond as if we believe it?

We turn to idols instead.

Our idols aren’t quite the same as those of the ancients, but they work the same way. We trust our own resources more than we trust God. Certainly God expects us to use our own resources much of the time, but we must not trust them. We must trust God. Otherwise, whatever we trust instead becomes, functionally, an idol, the god we truly worship.… Read the rest

Who is this Jesus? God’s campaign of shock and awe

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In Jesus, God came into the world as a baby. Who doesn’t like babies? Even the non-Christian world likes Jesus the baby. The modern church always seems comfortable with Jesus the baby, Jesus the kind man who was nice to children, Jesus the storyteller, even Jesus the corpse taken down from the cross.

But Jesus’ birth as a baby was the beginning of God’s sneak attack against sin, evil, the devil, and death itself. The supernatural Jesus makes everyone uncomfortable, even the church, even his closest friends.

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God: an ever present help in trouble

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God is our refuge, says Psalm 46, an ever present help in trouble. Everyone knows trouble. Some people know a lot of trouble:

  • Job loss and other financial distress
  • Relationship troubles, which can include various toxic relationships or the loss of loved ones.
  • Sickness and injury
  • Oppression and persecution
  • War and violence
  • All manner of natural disasters
  • Etc.

We commonly call the natural disasters “acts of God.” It takes robust faith to believe that God is our help in trouble.

… Read the rest