Recent Commentaries

James has already said a lot about prayer but now he puts a fitting climax to his letter with further instructions on the subject. Two of the greatest weak?nesses in the life of the average Christian today is prayer and praise (v.13). There is much need for prayer …

In this text it appears that there were those who were attributing hidden motives to Paul. His answer is that his whole conduct is dominated, not by shrewdness, but by the grace of God (v. 12). There were no hidden motives in Paul’s life. If we are honest, we will have to admit that we seldom do …

Why is the world in such a mess? The problem is not with God, but with man (vv. 1-3). This passage describes the wickedness of Israel and the wickedness of the whole world. God says there is something wrong with us. It is foolish for any of us to deny it, but that’s exactly what we do …

Moses gives instruction for a ceremony of covenant renewal that was to be followed when Israel entered the promised land. It seems that throughout Israel’s history it was necessary for God to periodically call His people to renewals of covenant commitment and obedience…

Gideon who came through the test of adversity with flying colors was not so successful in the test of prosperity. After his successful encounters with the enemies of the Lord he yielded to two temptations which brought devastating consequences …

In yesterday’s passage, judgment was declared on those who practiced idolatry and refused to worship the Lord (vv. 4-6). Today’s passage will focus on the more everyday type of sin, the kind of wrongdoing that is so easy for us to ignore. It was customary to summon people to a sacrifice …

After David had captured Jerusalem from the Jebusites and made it the capital of Israel and Judah, he was eager to make it the religious center as well. This could not be done, however, till the Ark of the Covenant was returned to a permanent resting place in Jerusalem. The Philistines had …

A person who trusts Christ is born of God and is able to overcome the world (v. 6). It appears that the term “water” is a reference to the baptism of Jesus by which His public ministry was initiated (Matt. 3:13-17). “Blood” refers to His death, by which His ea …

Moses had left his family with his father-in-law Jethro, who was the priest of Midian when he returned to Egypt. Now they all joined Moses in the wilderness (vv. 1-5). Jethro apparently had followed the happenings of his son-in-law, with great interest and when the Israelites ca …

It is important to remember that our perspective determines how we respond to the truth. If we see a car as only a racing machine we will fail to utilize all of its potential in carrying goods from one place to another. In the same way, if we fail to see all of the wonderful facets of…