The Shepherd – Psalm 23:4
The Shepherd – Psalm 23:4 Read More »
Isaiah 16:10-11, Jeremiah 48:31,38
Jeremiah 48:31,38, “I wail for Moab; I cry out for Moab…I weep for you…for I have broken Moab like a vessel for which no one cares, declares YHWH.” Isaiah 16:10-11, “I have put an end to the shouting. Therefore, my inner parts moan like a lyre for Moab, and my inmost self for Kir-hareseth.”
Isaiah 16:10-11, Jeremiah 48:31,38 Read More »
Deuteronomy 8:2
Deuteronomy 8:2, “And you shall remember the whole way that YHWH your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that He might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart.” This dynamic is true throughout the Bible, but we see it in clear focus here—namely, that testing reveals
Hebrews 2:9
Hebrews 2:9, “…so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.” The idea for today’s verse picture was planted as I listened last week to a talk by poet/philosopher/priest Malcom Guite. During his presentation, he mentioned that he already knew what his death would be like because he’d seen
Deuteronomy 5:15
Deuteronomy 5:15, “…you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and YHWH your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore YHWH your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.” Usually the rationale for keeping the Sabbath is tied to the six days of creation
Ephesians 1:19-20, 2:6
Ephesians 1:19-20, 2:6, “[that you might know] the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might that He worked in Christ when He raised (ἐγείρας) Him from the dead and seated (καθίσας) Him at His right hand.” “[God] raised us up with Him (συνήγειρεν) and
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Isaiah 11:6,9
Isaiah 11:6,9, “The wolf shall lie down with the lamb….They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of YHWH as the waters cover the sea.” A few thoughts…. First, the Branch is, of course, Jesus Christ (Rev.5:5). He is the Shoot
Mark 12:27
Mark 12:27, “He is not God of the dead, but of the living.” Those who have the Father of Jesus as their God cannot truly die. Why? Because death—true death—is not severance from the body or severance from biological function (biological function being only the “shadow of life” just as its cesssation is the
1 Corinthians 4:7
1 Corinthians 4:7, “What do you have that you did not receive?” I was reading some of Martin Luther’s theology this weekend and this passage was mentioned as foundational to his understanding of the human condition. Our existence itself, the very fact that we are, is GIFTED to us. This is not a new
Psalm 86:4
Psalm 86:4, “Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O YHWH, do I lift up my soul.” Only one who has swallowed up death and secured eternal life can gladden the souls of the dying. No write up today. I need to keep hammering away at Everlasting Arms! I’m only a few
Mark 10:43, 45
Mark 10:43, 45, “…whoever would be great among you must be your servant…For even the Son of Man came not to be served But to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.” When God enters time and space He defines all things by Himself. Yes, ALL things must now draw
Proverbs 17:3
Proverbs 17:3, “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and YHWH tests hearts.” The crucible and the furnace melt the metals down to liquid so that the dross and slag that were inseparably fused within and throughout the pure metal rise to the surface and can be skimmed off. It
Psalm 139:8,12
Psalm 139:8,12, “If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!…even darkness is not dark to you…” Descending to the depths, Jesus invaded our darkest night with the fellowship of His presence; rising from those depths, He pierced the Sheol of our affliction with the light of final hope.
Psalm 9:10
Psalm 9:10, “…those who know your name put their trust in you.” As I’ve said many times in different blog posts and articles before, the “Name” of God denotes His character or identity. When David talks about those who know YHWH’s name, he’s not referring to those who can pronounce the name, or those
Malachi 3:2 + John 3:18
Malachi 3:2, “…He is like a refiner’s fire…” John 3:18, “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” As I was reading through Malachi 3 this morning it struck me that John the
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Galatians 2:20
Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
2 Corinthians 5:14-15
2 Corinthians 5:14-15, “For the love of Christ compels us, because we have judged that one died for all, therefore all have died, and He died for all that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who for their sakes died and was raised.” We might see Paul’s logical
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2 Corinthians 4:6
2 Corinthians 4:6, “For God, who said ’Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” At creation, God’s Spirit hovered over the abyss and His Word gave form to chaos. So too at our