We left off part one of Jesus’ genealogy with Jacob’s family. Remember, he was renamed Israel after wrestling with God, and his twelve sons would form the 12 tribes of the nation of Israel. Jacob’s son, Judah, not the firstborn, I should add, and also not Jacob’s most righteous son, is next on our list….
Let’s be real. Genealogies can be boring. A long list of names seems meaningless to us. But what if, in learning to understand their purpose and who the people in these lists are, we learn more about the greatness of God and the plan He has for the world? What if we are able to…
Exodus 1:8-22, Matthew 10:28 The Israelites were becoming numerous in Egypt. The Pharaoh did not like this. He was worried that they would eventually be greater than Egypt and join Egypt’s enemies. So Pharaoh oppressed them more and more by putting slave masters over them and forcing them to do hard labor. Pharaoh’s plan backfired…
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may…
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV) There…
Luke 24:27—“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” In the West, we tend to read Old Testament stories to understand how to live moral or abundant lives. We look at David and ask how we can be like him, courageous in…
Are you guilty of skimming over genealogies when you read the Bible? Me, too! But here is why we shouldn’t. Genealogies are in the Bible for a purpose. There is important information we can gain from them that will help us understand God’s redemptive plan for humanity. This is especially important in the genealogy of…
Reading out of literary Context is the one mistake that, if corrected, would make the most significant difference in how people understand and interpret scripture. We live in a world of coffee-mug Bible verses, verses of the day, and scripture art. While I don’t have a problem with any of these things, when we only…
Prayer is an integral part of Bible study. We want to invite the Holy Spirit to guide us in our study, to reveal to us what we are to know about God and what it looks like to walk with Him. I must admit that sometimes I struggle with prayer much more than I do…
Are you new to reading the Bible? Or perhaps you’ve spent time trying to read the Bible with little understanding or impact on your life. When I started reading the Bible regularly out of desire rather than out of duty, I didn’t start by attempting to read the whole Bible or even an entire book….
