GREATEST BOOK EVER
When I call the Bible the greatest book ever written, I am not using that phrase lightly. It is the single most printed, translated, and distributed book in human history, and it has shaped law, art, literature, education, and philosophy more than any other text. It is a library rather than a pamphlet—dozens of books […]
MINOR PROPHET WITH MAJOR ROLE
The Book of Jonah is widely considered the most familiar book among the prophets. Yet, Christians are generally unaware that the Book of Jonah is read in temple on the holiest day in the Jewish calendar year, Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement). Jews are generally unaware that Jesus calls His death and resurrection the “sign of Jonah,” the only miraculous […]
GOD IS IN WRITTEN IN EVERY DROP OF MILK
“You Made Me Trust at My Mother’s Breasts” Mother’s milk is as closely associated with life as anything we know. It is the first warmth, the first taste, the first lesson that we live because someone else gives. Psalm 22 dares to say God Himself is behind that moment: “You brought me out of […]
COME AND SEE
A major theme in the new Testament is “come and see.” We believe what we see with our own two eyes. Light becomes digital testimony inside our brain. Before we are a witness for others to hear, we are a witness for ourself. The New Testament often moves from “come and see” to “go […]
GENESIS 12:3 RIPPLES THROUGH HISTORY
What does it mean to be “chosen” by Adonai? What does it mean to be a “light unto the nations? What does it mean to “be a blessing to all nations?” It sounds like a lot of pressure, but Jews took it seriously. We believed we had a role to play. To say we paid […]
ANCIENT PEOPLE ECHO
ARE THE MEDES MAKING A COMEBACK? The ancient Medes (or their modern descendants, often identified as the Kurds) are seen as shadowed in the end-times destruction of “Babylon the Great”—a future symbol of global evil (Revelation 17–18). There is an ancient overlap: land and people. The first map is Iran. The map below shows an […]
TODAY IS PURIM. SO WHAT?
Daniel 4:17—“‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.’ Did you know that the story of Purim in the […]
PLAY ON A KINGLY NAME
This whole reflection began with a timely reminder. Over the weekend a friend and I flew out of town for a conference on how to study the Scriptures. The teacher walked us through tools and patterns I’ve worked with for years, but hearing them freshly laid out still sharpened my attention. The next day, that […]
THE WRECKAGE OF YESTERYEAR
Wars are often the wreckage of nations that refused to “stay in their lane”—nations that would not be content with the borders, limits, and responsibilities God in His providence assigned them. In much the same way, the wreckage in our personal lives is often not much different—broken relationships, restless hearts, and needless wounds tracing back […]