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For what great nation is there that has a god near to it as the Lord our God is [to us] whenever we call to Him?– Deuteronomy 4:7 HCSB

God told Amos, “I hate, I despise your feasts! I can't stand the stench of your solemn assemblies. Even if you offer Me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept [them]; I will have no regard for your fellowship offerings of fattened cattle. Take away from Me the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice flow like water, and righteousness, like an unfailing stream...”[1] …  ( Click for more )

Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Turn Your face away from my sins and blot out all my guilt. - Psalm 51:7-9 HCSB

Jesus gave us the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector to demonstrate what true repentance and humility can achieve. The tax collector showed great sorrow and contrition for his sin and demonstrated it by his willingness to stand “far off” from the altar, indicating his understanding of how sin had effected his position…  ( Click for more )

Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Turn Your face away from my sins and blot out all my guilt. - Psalm 51:7-9 HCSB

Jesus has extended a loving invitation to the weary and the sin-burdened.[1] You may say, “But I have sexually sinned so much!” He is fully able to forgive even multiple sexual sins. May I remind you that Jesus forgave the penitent woman who had many sins burdening her soul?[2] Wasn’t the adulterous Samaritan woman saved and…  ( Click for more )

Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Turn Your face away from my sins and blot out all my guilt. - Psalm 51:7-9 HCSB

Yahweh Aman (Faithful God) is patient. He calls sinners to seek Him and promises them forgiveness when they repent. Of course, there is a limit to His patience. We are to seek Him “while He is near”. We must not presume upon His grace.[1]

Not only must the prayer for forgiveness be sincere, it must be accompanied by repentance…  ( Click for more )

Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, - Galatians 1:3-4 HCSB

Admission of guilt is never enough. There must be atonement – restitution. Halakha allowed the poor an alternative when they could not afford the usual sacrifice.[1] But what happens when the perpetrator can afford nothing? We are all Yahweh’s slaves. Some acknowledge it and others rebel to it, but we are His nevertheless. How does a slave, who is already owned…  ( Click for more )

But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them filth, so that I may gain Christ - Philippians 3:7-8 HCSB

Back in the eighteenth century, Eton college had a Latin grammar class which listed a series of words that all meant “of little or no value.” Some smart-aleck student put the words together and added the suffix “-fication”…  ( Click for more )

Marriage must be respected by all, and the marriage bed kept undefiled, because God will judge immoral people and adulterers. - Hebrews 13:4 HCSB

Cohabitation soared tenfold, from 430,000 in 1960 to 4.1 million couples in 1997.[1] It has replaced marriage as the dominant way male-female unions are formed in America. Yet it presents a major dilemma for pastors. How do we graciously tell a cohabiting couple that according to biblical standards, (1) they are living in sin, (2) and they are endangering their current and long-term relationship, without offending them and having…  ( Click for more )

Remember me, LORD, when You show favor to Your people. Come to me with Your salvation - Psalm 106:4 HCSB

It is not always selfish to pray for yourself. It is perfectly valid to do so if we pray with the intention of glorifying God with the answer to our prayer. Prayer can be likened to tilling and weeding a field. As you begin an endeavor, saturate it with prayer and see how much easier it will go. Either you will move forward with complete ease, or if you don’t, you will be compensated with the appropriate amount of strength and grace to get through it.

Prayer…  ( Click for more )

Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death. - James 1:15 HCSB

Situ was a long, muscular and powerful mamba. He felt as though he were invincible. He could move swiftly, climb trees, swim or even overcome large obstacles by lifting two thirds of his tremendous length by sheer muscular power alone.

He began to pay nightly visits to a farm that had a chicken pen, stealing eggs and sometimes even a small chicken. He had discovered a hole in the side of the wall through which he could squeeze his flexible body.…  ( Click for more )

Jesus replied, "I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." - John 3:3 HCSB

There once was a goat named Mbuzi who lived in the heart of Africa. Mbuzi was as vain as she was beautiful. One day, while looking at her reflection in a very still pond, Mbuzi decided she was far too beautiful to be a mere goat. She decided right then and there that she would become a lion.

Not knowing how to go about this, she decided to ask the wily Kachi, a chimpanzee that lived in a huge baobab tree in the heart of the jungle. After much thought…  ( Click for more )

But you, be on your guard! They will hand you over to sanhedrins, and you will be flogged in the synagogues. You will stand before governors and kings because of Me, as a witness to them. - Mark 13:9 HCSB

In the country of Chad, Christian missionaries established churches, started a seminary, founded several elementary and high schools, and built dispensaries. They did nothing to harm the people and everything they could to help them. But the Chadian church remained weak, hypocrisy was rampant and they were at a loss as to what to do about it.

The missionaries had also…  ( Click for more )

"Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. You'll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can't produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn't produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you'll recognize them by their fruit.” - Matthew 7:15-20 HCSB

If you're planning to vacation in Zambia, beware of the street-corner…  ( Click for more )

Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts. - Psalm 90:12 HCSB

An ethics professor at Princeton Seminary asked for volunteers for an extra assignment. Fifteen students showed up. He divided the group of fifteen into three groups of five each. He instructed the first group of five to proceed immediately across the campus to a certain spot; if they did not get there in fifteen minutes, their grade would be affected. A minute or two later he instructed the second group to also proceed across the campus to the same spot; but they were given…  ( Click for more )

Be imitators of me, as I also am of Christ. - 1 Corinthians 11:1 HCSB

We are told, ad infinitum ad nauseam, that we must accept many points of view – that there may be one Truth but many paths that lead to it. Somehow, we have come to the twisted idea that to be truly Christian we should tell people that Judaism and Islam are equally valid paths. This is not only heresy, but also a serious marketing error.

First of all, when we accept into our fellowship non-Christian cults and religions, we are telling our people that these have a degree of legitimacy. We…  ( Click for more )

Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. – 2 Timothy 2:5 HCSB

I walked into our living room and watched a couple of my children playing a game called Spy Hunter. It involves a James Bond-like car that chases evil cars around and generally causes mayhem while saving the world. What drew my attention was a warning whoop that kept sounding. When I walked in and saw what they were doing, I couldn’t help but laugh. They were actually going through the course backwards! They were ignoring all…  ( Click for more )

The one who rejects Me and doesn't accept My sayings has this as his judge: the word I have spoken will judge him on the last day. - John 12:48 HCSB

On July 1,2004, a thin, downcast elderly man, with bags under his eyes and a graying beard, stepped into a courtroom. That simple act came at the cost of thousands of lives and billions of dollars. The man’s name was Saddam Hussein and he was the former president of Iraq. He stood accused of killing religious figures; gassing Kurds in Halabja; killing members of the Kurdish Barzani clan; killing many political opponents…  ( Click for more )

Look, his ego is inflated; he is without integrity. But the righteous one will live by his faith. Moreover, wine betrays; an arrogant man is never at rest. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol, and like Death he is never satisfied. He gathers all the nations to himself; he collects all the peoples for himself. Won't all of these take up a taunt against him, with mockery and riddles about him? They will say: Woe to him who amasses what is not his--how much longer?--and loads himself with goods taken in pledge. – Habakkuk 2:4-6 HCSB

The Lord God spoke to Habakkuk one day…  ( Click for more )

The LORD replied to Moses: "Whoever has sinned against Me I will erase from My book. Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about; see, My angel will go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will hold them accountable for their sin." - Exodus 32:33-34 HCSB

[1]When a person rebels against God, the Lord may pronounce a curse upon them and write calamity into their particular chapter of the Book of Life.[2] Thus, false prophets or false teachers, who not only personally rebel but also lead others astray, will not be recorded in the register.[3] …  ( Click for more )

So Moses returned to the LORD and said, "Oh, this people has committed a great sin; they have made for themselves a god of gold. Now if You would only forgive their sin. But if not, please erase me from the book You have written." The LORD replied to Moses: "Whoever has sinned against Me I will erase from My book. Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about; see, My angel will go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will hold them accountable for their sin." - Exodus 32:31-34 HCSB

When Yahweh’s people encourage one another to…  ( Click for more )

So Moses returned to the LORD and said, "Oh, this people has committed a great sin; they have made for themselves a god of gold. Now if You would only forgive their sin. But if not, please erase me from the book You have written." The LORD replied to Moses: "Whoever has sinned against Me I will erase from My book. Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about; see, My angel will go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will hold them accountable for their sin." - Exodus 32:31-34 HCSB

The idea of the Book of Life (“Sefer ha ch’aim”…  ( Click for more )

In the same way the Spirit also joins to help in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with unspoken groanings. - Romans 8:26 HCSB

Have you ever gone by a baby’s cradle and heard what the baby had to say? It sounds like just so much mumbling, babbling and general gibberish. If you were to gather all the most renowned linguistic scholars around that cradle and have them listen for an hour, they would not be able to make heads or tails of the baby’s mumblings.

However, let the child’s…  ( Click for more )

Bibliology – Communication

Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not give up. Instead, we have renounced shameful secret things, not walking in deceit or distorting God's message, but in God's sight we commend ourselves to every person's conscience by an open display of the truth. - 2 Corinthians 4:1-2 HCSB

The Messiah once taught, "You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are…  ( Click for more )

Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path. – Psalm 119:105 HCSB

Men are notorious for not reading instructions. They don’t want to read the map or ask directions. We laugh and many sitcoms have used this premise as the basis for a comic situation. “How foolish of him to be so arrogant as to think he can go it alone!” we think. What is it that makes us feel this way?

We learn as children that to learn something, we must ask someone older, wiser than ourselves. Ideally, this lesson would stick with us as we mature, but sadly, many of us…  ( Click for more )

A Davidic psalm. Give the LORD--you heavenly beings--give the LORD glory and strength. Give the LORD the glory due His name; worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness. The voice of the LORD is above the waters. The God of glory thunders--the LORD, above vast waters, the voice of the LORD in power, the voice of the LORD in splendor. - Psalm 29:1-4 HCSB

There is an understandable emphasis in devotional theology on listening for the “soft whispering voice”[1] of the Lord as we meditate upon His word.

However, I am concerned that too much emphasis on one…  ( Click for more )