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I was reared in a home where “going to church” on Sunday morning was not a decision; it was a requirement, at least for the adults; kids went by default. We had no choice except 1) to stay home alone (not really an option), 2) to stay with a baby-sitter (absurd), or 3) to go where ever the adults went. So, we went to church. As I grew slightly older, I learned through osmosis (or some other scientific process - lol) that it was a sin for an able-bodied adult not to attend the worship assembly (i.e. go to church) on Sunday morning. I am quite sure that I never challenged…  ( Click for more )

"Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation." (1 Peter 2.11-12).

There are desires, and then there are desires! Paul, having been separated from the brethren at Thessalonica against his will, told them that he "… endeavored more eagerly to see your face with great desire." (Luke 22.15). Desire, even fervent…  ( Click for more )

"Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for 'God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.'" (1 Peter 5.5). The submissive spirit that this passage anticipates is absolutely key to achieving Peter's objectives here, but more importantly, this spirit is essential to pleasing God. God gives grace to the humble but "resists" (or is set in opposition against - jb) the proud. Now note the figure of speech Peter chooses: "Be clothed with humility."…  ( Click for more )

God determined the principle: “I desire mercy and not sacrifice.” (Matthew 9.13). This principle is as true today in the Christian Dispensation as it was in the two previous dispensations, the Patriarchal and Mosaical. God’s passionate desire to win man’s heart has never abated since the first sin of our forefathers and will remain just as fervent until the last tick of the clock shall have been heard. God, our beneficent Father, wants all men to experience repentance (2 Peter 3.9), a genuine change of our heart’s allegiance that places God in the…  ( Click for more )

"For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls."…  ( Click for more )

Once again we pause to set forth a too often forgotten biblical principle which transcends the ages. This principle is the genesis for the title of this entire series of devotional articles. Hosea penned the principle (Hosea 6.6) and Jesus found it expedient to restate it on at least two occasions (Matthew 9.13 and Matthew 12.7). Not only did He restate the principle, but He explicitly told some to “Go and learn what this means!” It was God who said, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice,” and it is this principle upon which we as God-fearing believers are dependent. …  ( Click for more )

The following passage reveals Pharisaic attitudes gone to seed!

“Now a certain man was there [in Jerusalem] who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, ‘Do you want to be made well?’ The sick man answered Him, ‘Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk.’ And immediately the man was made well,…  ( Click for more )

We begin by quoting Jesus as He quoted Hosea. “But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” (Matthew 9.13). We want to keep this passage foremost before our minds as we continue to search for its significance in our worship activities as believers and in our everyday lives.

To the Pharisees of Jesus' day, ceremonial uncleanness was equal to sin and was to be avoided at almost any cost. Perhaps this was the reason that in the Parable of the Good Samaritan, the…  ( Click for more )

“O Lord, open my lips, And my mouth shall show forth Your praise. For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart — These, O God, You will not despise.” (Psalm 51.15-17). This passage by David certainly has a connection to Hosea's statement that God desires mercy and not sacrifice. We will continue to explore the meaning of the term sacrifice in Hosea's statement, the same statement that Jesus cited on at least two occasions (Matthew 9.13 and…  ( Click for more )

When God said through Hosea that He desired mercy and not sacrifice (Hosea 6.6), what did He mean? Was He saying that sacrifice was against His will and hence, sinful? Or, is there a meaning that is consistent with the rest of the scriptures as to how God feels about sacrifice and mercy. Our task today will be to try to discover the meaning of this phrase from Hosea, a phrase that was later picked up by Jesus Christ and repeated at least two times (Matthew 9.13 and Matthew 12.7) during His ministry.

Perhaps a biblical account that predates Hosea by a couple of centuries will…  ( Click for more )

If we are to “...go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,'” (Matthew 9.13) then we are surely going to need to learn what the words mean that comprise the phrase. Today's message will take a cursory look at the word mercy in an effort to assist in learning what the passage meant to which Jesus referred.

The word mercy is not unique to either the New Testament or to the Old. It was used frequently in the Old Testament scriptures as well as in the teachings of Jesus. In addition, several people who met Jesus asked Him to show mercy toward them.…  ( Click for more )

The principle that Jesus stated was not new. From of old it had been true that God desired mercy and not sacrifice (see Hosea 6.6, Matthew 9.23, and Matthew 12.7). Jesus merely emphasized the principle and made application of it to those who would condemn Him for consorting with “...tax collectors and sinners.” Of course, the particular class of Jew who questioned His social conduct was the Pharisees, a self-righteous sect that seemed to delight in flaunting their spiritual superiority! Our message continues today as we extend our look at Jesus' words as quoted from…  ( Click for more )

If there were someway to miraculously cause everyone to pay attention to a particular text, I would will it to be so with today's text, Matthew 9.13. I know that my efforts surrounding this verse are just that, they are my efforts, and as such, are limited to my own human frailties. However, I would suggest that there is something moving and majestic about this passage that makes it worthy of long and prayerful attention by even the most devout and studious lover of truth.

First, we quote the verse in context: “As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting…  ( Click for more )

"For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men, as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.." (1 Peter 2.15-16). This expression "cloak for vice [evil]" occurs but once in the New Testament. The term is used here in a prohibitive way, i.e. believers are told something that they ought not to do. A close examination of this text will reveal some interesting and helpful results.

A "cloak for vice" simply stated is a cover-up for evil. The thing that ought not…  ( Click for more )

"But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. And above all things have fervent love for one another, for 'love will cover a multitude of sins.' Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." (1 Peter 4.7-10). The phrase of emphasis here is: "And above all things have fervent love for one another."

Peter states unequivocally why love is so important "For 'love will cover a multitude of sins.'"…  ( Click for more )

Yesterday we read how a man that was blind from birth was given his sight by the Lord Jesus (see John 9). Today, we will read where this same Jesus took away the sight of a man who had been able to see all his life. On the surface, this might seem a paradox, but behind it all was the Lord’s intent to give a tremendous blessing to both of the men. Our study today will focus on this second man and the sequence of events that brought about his life changing blessing.

“As he [Paul, the apostle to be] journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him…  ( Click for more )

“Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' Jesus answered, 'Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the…  ( Click for more )

“Therefore the sisters [Martha and Mary] sent to Him, saying, ‘Lord, behold, he whom You love [Lazarus] is sick.’ When Jesus heard that, He said, ‘This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’ Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.” (John 11.3-5).

It is interesting that the two sisters, both of whom were the objects of the Master’s affection, simply identified their brotheer to Jesus as “…he whom You love.” They spoke as if Lazarus were the…  ( Click for more )

Do you think you know the world’s most deadly poison? Well, I’ll admit right up front that this is sort of a trick question. You see, the world’s most deadly poison is not one which affects the central nervous system, or the cardio-pulmonary system, or the digestive system, or the liver, or the kidneys, or any other physical organ; the world’s most deadly poison is one which affects the mind and hence the soul.

Actually, there are many, many instances of mind poisoning in the scriptures, but one is explicitly identified by that phrase. Consider the following:…  ( Click for more )

We know what He [God] will do because we know what He did! That is the crux of Paul's argument as he affirms that “...all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8.28). What did He do? He proved His love beyond all human expectations or potential! The proof that He yet works incessantly on our behalf lies in a knowledge of how He worked in the past!

I am convinced that God will labor just as hard for one soul as He will for a million. His love is without dimensions when it comes to His creation.…  ( Click for more )

The past is, from a purely human viewpoint, the best predictor of the future. In the world in which we live, the future of things (such as housing sales, the weather, a baseball team's performance, entertainers, automobile reliability, human behavior, etc., etc.) that matter to us are predicted using the past.

The past is not a perfect predictor, but it is the best that we have. The disclaimer that appears on investment portfolios (“Past performance not a guarantee of future performance”) spells out in no uncertain terms the uncertainty of using the past to predict…  ( Click for more )

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.” (Romans 8.28-30).

The question of the moment (at least within the focus text), is this: “How do we know that all things work together for good?”…  ( Click for more )

Thank God for Unanswered Prayers was a huge number one country hit for Garth Brooks in the 1990’s. The entire basis for the song is the fact that we just don’t always know what is best for us, even in our prayers. Beyond that, it is also an indisputable fact that God always knows what is best. That is precisely Paul’s point in Romans 8.26 when he says, “For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought…” If we knew how to pray perfectly and we knew what to pray for, we would have much of the battle won. However, we are human! We do not know…  ( Click for more )

Our focus text reads: “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” (Romans 8.26-27).

With fear and trembling we enter this brief study! We enter it this way for a number of reasons. First, we enter it with such awe because of the specific subject matter (i.e. God, the Spirit,…  ( Click for more )