The Beauty and the Beast
I have a four year old daughter. She’s been watching Disney Princess movies since we brought her home from the hospital. At least that’s what it seems like. Of course, in my opinion, Easton is the greatest princess ever. But I digress. One Disney Princess movie stands out from the rest, besides Frozen, and that’s […]
Daily Readings in the Bible 1 Samuel 15-17
The most familiar story in the life of David is his battle with Goliath. References abound to David and Goliath in popular culture. You wouldn’t have to darken the door of a Sunday school class to be familiar with the story of David and Goliath. Goliath stood at least 9’6” tall. The armor that he […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Judges 19-21
“In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (Jud. 21:25). That’s how the writer of Judges concludes his book. Life without a king. Israel failed to remove their enemies from their land and disobeyed God (Jud. 1-3). That’s life without a king. Israel […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Judges 10-12
After the awful war between Abimelech and Jotham, Israel had peace under the leadership of Tola and Jair. But once again, Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord and worshiped idols. The Lord sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and the Ammonites, and they were oppressed for eighteen years (Jud. 10:1-9). […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Judges 1-2
The books of Judges is exhausting and exhilarating. It’s exhausting because the same thing happens repeatedly. It’s exciting because the Lord does extraordinary things through very ordinary people. The book’s theme can be found in its final verse: “In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Joshua 23-24
Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel at Shechem for one final address. He began by recounting God’s redemptive acts in Israel’s short history. Joshua wanted to make sure the people understood their history, their present, and their future. Had God not revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; worked mightily through Moses to bring […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Joshua 2-6
Moses was laid to rest on Nebo’s lonely mountain. Israel’s new leader, Joshua, stood on top of the mountain and looked toward Canaan. Israel’s time to take possession of the Promised Land had come. Moses had previously sent twelve men to spy out Canaan (Num. 13:1-3). Out of the twelve men, only Joshua and Caleb […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Joshua 1
Joshua is one of the great characters of the Old Testament. His original name was Hoshea, which means “salvation,” but Moses changed it to Joshua, which means “Jehovah is salvation” (Num. 13:8,16). We might add that the Greek form of Joshua is Jesus (Matt. 1:21). This is significant in the drama of redemption. Moses, representative […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Deuteronomy 30-32
For forty years the people of Israel wandered the wilderness. The Lord, during that span of time, graciously provided for their every need. He provided water when they were thirsty, and manna when they were hungry. Furthermore, their shoes and clothes didn’t wear out despite the conditions of the environment, and length of time (Deut. […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Deuteronomy 23-26
The children of Israel were a privileged people. They were the only nation that could claim to be the people of God. God made provision for Gentiles to become Hebrews, if they were willing to submit to circumcision (Ex. 12:48). There was, however, a distinction between living as a Hebrew and worshiping as a Hebrew. […]