After Paul had been willing to stay at the task in Ephesus even with the dream of going to Rome on his heart (Acts 19:23), “about that time . . . ” That’s the way it happens. Just about the time you get out of your prayer closet and you’ve got it all worked out, everything breaks loose. Look at the rest of verse 23: There occurred no small disturbance concerning the Way [which was a first-century label for Christianity].
Read MoreCategory Archives: Bible Characters
Peace Amidst Unfulfilled Dreams
Today’s Scripture passage, which details events in the life of the apostle Paul, has a lot to teach us about finding peace in spite of our natural tendency to panic. I hope you will read it thoroughly. In these twenty-one verses it is not difficult to pick out three significant moments that normally bring anxiety. To begin with, in Acts 19:21 Paul is shutting down a very successful ministry in Ephesus.
Read MoreSay It Well
Paul was a misfit. When it came to a place like Athens, the crusty apostle clashed with the decor. Made no sense at all. The classic oil-and-water combo. A monotheistic Jew smack dab in the middle of polytheistic Gentiles. Narrow-minded former Pharisee surrounded by broad-minded philosophers. One idol-hating Christian among many idol-worshiping pagans. Outnumbered. Outvoted. Outshouted. But not outwitted.
Read MoreA Message for Misfits
Before he ever came to the plate, Jephthah had three strikes against him. He was an illegitimate child. Strike one. He was the son of a barmaid and a brute. Strike two. He was raised in an atmosphere of hatred and hostility. Strike three. Nurtured in an overcrowded cage of half-brothers, he was the constant target of verbal put-downs and violent profanity.
Read MoreLetters of Reference
September 12, AD 61—Dear Paul: We are considering a man to serve as a manager in the copper plant of our growing company, Corinthian Chariots, Inc. We are an aggressive, innovative firm with plans for expansion into major metropolitan regions like Rome, Athens, Antioch, and Jerusalem. We are looking for future employees who would fit into a visionary business like ours.
Read MoreDress Your Dreams in Denim
Some collegians think manual labor is the president of Mexico . . . until they graduate. Suddenly, the light dawns. Reality frowns. And that sheltered, brainy, fair-skinned, squint-eyed scholar who has majored in medieval literature and minored in Latin comes of age. He experiences a strange sensation deep within his abdomen two weeks after framing his diploma. Hunger. Remarkable motivation accompanies this feeling.
Read MoreThe Shadow of the Giant, Part Two
Yesterday, we visited David as he faced off against Goliath. Refusing to accept his brothers’ rationalizations or listen to the giant’s threats, David saw through the Philistine strategy and withstood it through sheer, solid faith. You know the outcome. With a well-worn leather sling and a smooth stone, and unbending confidence in his mighty God
Read MoreThe Shadow of the Giant, Part One
Goliath reminds me of the cross-eyed discus thrower. He didn’t set any records . . . but he sure kept the crowd awake! Day after day, he paraded along the slopes of the Valley of Elah throwing out threats and belching blasphemies across the creek with a basso-profundo voice like twenty out-of-tune tubas. He was not only ugly, he was huge, well over nine feet tall in his stocking feet.
Read MoreGod-Given Authority
King Nebuchadnezzar enjoyed the kind of power and privilege no single human had ever experienced. He built an empire that eventually swallowed two other great civilizations, Assyria and Egypt. At the time, no one man controlled more of the world than he. According to the man’s written testimony, Nebuchadnezzar became intoxicated by his own wealth and power.
Read MoreCrying Aloud from the Darkness
David’s depression most likely resulted from an unusually long period of stress. The superscript for Psalm 142, identifying David’s circumstances as “in the cave,” probably refers to the cave of Adullam. To appreciate the context, observe the first two verses of 1 Samuel 22: So David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam; and when his brothers and all his father’s household heard of it, they went down there to him.
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