Isaiah 28:12, “This is rest; give rest to the weary; and this is repose.” If we long to enter more fully into the rest that Christ gives, let us follow Him in pouring ourselves out to give rest to a sin-weary world — as He has given to us.
Psalm 119:28, “My soul melts away for sorrow; strengthen me according to your word!” The fact that this is in the Bible means that the saints will sometimes endure soul-dissolving sorrows….and that when this happens, our sovereign, sorrow-bearing Lord is sufficient for us in it.
Matthew 11:29, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” + Psalm 23:1-3 Short Thoughts: Our souls will find rest in green pastures and beside still waters when we learn from our Master to bear the
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Leviticus 24:15-16, “Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin. Whoever blasphemes the name of YHWH shall surely be put to death.” Short Thoughts: The implication is that, for those who do not step out from under the covering of YHWH’s name through high-handed rebellion, *someone else* will bear their sins…. Long Thoughts:
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Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and…” Fear. Of course you know that Jesus actually says that we cannot serve both God and money.
Revelation 22:2, “The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” Short Thoughts: May our words and deeds be like leaves from Calvary’s Tree of life, by which the nations are healed of sin’s curse and death’s shadow and made to know their God. Long Thoughts: This passage is, of course,
Revelation 22:3-4, “…the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in [the city], and His servants will worship Him. They will see His face…” The face of God will be eternally (and increasingly) beheld in the Lamb who was slain and yet lives forevermore; the cross of Christ blazes at the
1 Peter 1:16, “…it is written, ‘You shall be only, for I am holy.’” Holiness is not primarily prim abstention from evil, it is primarily passionate adoration of excellence (which will naturally lead to certain abstentions). The holiness of the Triune God is His own infinite devotion to Himself within Himself. Our holiness
Leviticus 21:18, 23, “For no one who has a blemish shall draw near, a man blind or lame…shall not go through the veil or approach the altar, because he has a blemish.” Short Thoughts: Under the Old Covenant, the holiness of YHWH barred any priest with a physical defect from drawing near to
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Hosea 11:10-11, “They shall go after YHWH; He will roar like a lion; when He roars, His children shall come trembling from the west…and I will return them to their homes, declares YHWH.” Matthew 27:50, “And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit.” John 11:52, “[Jesus died] to
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Matthew 6:8-9, “…your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” Short Thoughts: When we pray this, we are asking for the beauty of God’s identity—as He has made it known in the crucified and risen Son—to illuminate and saturate
Psalm 139:23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart, test me and know my anxious thoughts! See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Short Thoughts: And if we are in Christ, we have nothing to fear from the searching eyes of our Lord….let
Psalm 115:4,8-9, “Their idols are…the work of human hands…Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them. O Israel, trust in YHWH!” Short Thoughts: The human soul—from the inside out—will become like that in which it trusts. Longer Thoughts: The key thing to see in the text
1 Corinthians 2:2, “…I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” And in knowing Christ Crucified (and risen) we know every good, true and beautiful thing. To know the identity of God in the crucified and risen Son and make Him known; to enjoy Him and help others
Revelation 19:7-8, Let us rejoice and exult and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure…” …with garments washed white in the blood of the Lamb (7:14) No long thoughts on
Matthew 3:17, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Short Thoughts: And all who are trusting Christ as their life, have entered into this same fellowship as beloved sons and daughters, with whom the Father is well pleased. Long Thoughts: By virtue of the Christian’s union to God
Leviticus 16:21, “And Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat…” (Also, Is.53:4-6). Short Thoughts: Christ is the
Hebrews 9:27, “…it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” Short Thoughts: Shining like the dawn (or blazing like a furnace) on the horizon of ever human life is an inevitable, unavoidable, impending and ever approaching encounter with the living Jesus Christ. Long Thoughts: Once again, this morning’s
Romans 9:25, “Those who were not my people I will call ‘my people,’ and her who was not beloved I will call, ‘beloved.’” Short Thoughts: Anyone who bows their soul to the risen Lord has been transformed from the core…no longer “not beloved,” but “beloved,” no longer in exile but welcomed home. Long Thoughts:
Luke 1:52, “He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate.” Short Thoughts: Through the crucified and risen Son, God shatters the foundation of every human power and lifts the humbly dependent to Himself. Long Thoughts: This picture was actually based on Psalm 107:40-41, 43….however, once I’d finished in
