When religious restraints are removed, we find the moral conditions of a country going down. This fact just shows the basic wickedness of man when he is apart from God. Here we find a religious leader of Israel whose life should have been a shining example of purity taking to himself …
Israel practiced formal religion. Amos criticizes the people of Israel for believing that their religious practices could compensate for their self-indulgent and sinful lifestyle (vv. 1-5). He begins this section by referring to the wealthy women of Samaria, calling them “ …
Soon after the miraculous healing of the Centurion’s servant, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. It is thought that this took place in the mid to late part of the first year of Jesus’ public ministry. As he approached the to …
There is a good possibility that this psalm was written by David sometime during the rebellion of Absalom. David’s circumstances were serious, and he hardly knew which way to turn, so he turns to God in prayer. He asked God to keep his enemies from overcoming him because they opposed …
The Lord has made provision for man’s happiness, not through immoral entanglements but through the blessings of married life. Marital love with one’s wife is pict¬ured as enjoying one’s cistern or fountain. As a person would not get water from his neighbor’s cistern because he had his own …
Jesus shifts the emphasis from being worried about the present to being watchful concerning the future (v. 35). One of the best ways to have victory over hypocrisy, covetousness and worry is to look for the Lord’s return. Jesus taught His disciples that they should be ready b …
Jeremiah summarized the unrighteous kings as being like shepherds who were destroying and scattering God’s sheep (v. 1). The shepherds deserved punishment because of the evil they had done (v. 2). But if God removed them, whom would He appoint to regather His sheep? J …
In the last few verses of Psalm 116 the psalmist recounts how much he owes to God. 1. He makes a statement as it pertains to death. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death …
Jesus then rebukes the crowd for their lack of faith (v.36). They had the great privilege of seeing Him, and yet they refused to believe. It is evident here that seeing does not necessarily lead to believing. He goes on to explain that salvation involves both divine soverei …
This passage covers the transition between the ministry of John the Baptist and the ministry of Christ. We find John the Baptist with two of his disciples, Andrew and John (v. 35). After he pointed to the Lamb of God (Jesus) they left and followed Jesus (vv. 36-37). It appears that they …