What Does the Bible Say About Capital Punishment?
If you are like me, you may be for the death penalty and believe that the Bible not only authorizes it but commands it. Nevertheless we should inject a word of caution here as we review the biblical evidence for the death penalty. The first mention of the [...]
The Power of the Sword
One of the age old questions that Romans 13 deals with is the Christian’s relationship to governing authorities. Romans 13:1-5 says, “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities…if you do what is evil, be afraid for it does not bear the sword for nothing”. In Jesus’ day, [...]
My favorite sports show on ESPN is a ten minute weekly session in which four commentators review the worst plays in the NFL during the last week. The biggest blunders, missed plays, penalties, fumbles, missteps, etc. are shown, and then the guys all yell out “C’mon Man!”. In case you missed it or don’t get [...]
This is the time of year when we all say “Happy new year!”. That has always had the connotation to me that people are eager to get this last year behind them and get a new start. It is as if we can, in a way, erase the past mistakes, and get on with a [...]
The Gospel of Mark was written between 58 and 63 AD to the Christians in Rome. The audience is primarily Gentiles because there are very few Old Testament quotations and Aramaic expressions are translated into Greek, and some Latin terms are used, also Mark used the Roman method of reckoning time. The church in Rome [...]
Unnatural Love
Novelists and poets have always delved into the mystery of love. Why are people attracted to one another? Why do people become best friends? A comedian described love as a sea of emotions entirely surrounded by expenses. Plato described love as “a grave mental disease”. Someone else said love is blind, it’s marriage [...]
Christmas in the Old Testament
Someone told me that the great philosopher, Plato, said that as one goes through life, he must find the opinions of great men unless he can receive a word from God. If he did say that, he is even smarter than I thought (of course he doesn’t know that). We [...]
A Good Story About the History of the World
Just suppose that there was a personal good God, and within Him were three distinct beings, and they lived in a perfect blessed communion. God created human beings to experience a loving relationship with this Trinity, and God created man in His own image. This began a [...]
All the Tea in China by Charlie Taylor
I was recently in China, and we drank hot tea at every meal, and it was quite good. The Chinese believe that their tea is the best in the world, and that it has definite health benefits. One of our hosts gave me a present of a can [...]
Can You Sing Lamentations on Thanksgiving ?
No doubt on the Sunday before or after Thanksgiving you sing the hymn, “Great is Thy Faithfulness”, but did you know where it came from? The prophet Jeremiah wrote it as he was weeping and lamenting over the fate of his city and his people of Jerusalem. He [...]
Jesus did a lot of teaching to different audiences in different places, but the Gospels record only four long multi chapter sermons theologians refer to as The Sermon on the Mount, The Bread of Life Discourse, The Olivet Discourse, and The Upper Room Discourse. Jesus’ teaching in those sermons was radically different from the religious [...]
Daniel 7—Vision of World Empires
Daniel chapter 7 is a revelation by God through Daniel’s vision of the four great world empires that would rule over the world. It concludes in the climax of world history with the second coming of Christ and the setting up of His kingdom. Daniel’s vision occurred around 553 BC which [...]
Living in a Lion’s Den Without Being Eaten
About 538 BC, the prophet Daniel was living in Babylon which had just been conquered by the Medes and the Persians. As a young man his beloved city of Jerusalem had been conquered and destroyed, and he was brought to Babylon as a slave to serve the then [...]
The Handwriting Is On the Wall
Last week we reviewed Daniel 4 which was the personal testimony of the great Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. At the peak of his reign God humbled him for seven years by dramatically removing his authority along with his reason. When God graciously restored his sanity, Neb. was humble and committed himself [...]
Daniel 4—the King’s Personal Testimony
According to Wikipedia, clay tablets were discovered in the ruins of ancient Babylon that give the history of King Nebuchadnezzar from his rule in Babylon from 605 BC until his death in 562. In one inscription it alludes to a difficult time in his life in which, “His life appeared of [...]
Daniel 3—When Life Heats Up
In Daniel, chapter 2, King Nebuchadnezzar was very impressed by Daniel’s revelation from the God of Israel that detailed and interpreted the king’s dream. In the dream the king saw a large statue with a head of gold that represented King Nebuchadnezzar and his kingdom of Babylon. The king rewarded Daniel [...]
Daniel 2—The Times of the Gentiles
In Luke 21:24, Jesus was teaching about the end times when He would return in glory, but He referred to the period of time when Jerusalem would be “trampled underfoot by the Gentiles” as the times of the Gentiles. I believe He was speaking of that time period that began [...]
Babylonians at the Gate—Daniel 1
In Daniel 1:1, we are told that “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim into his hand. Then the king ordered the chief of his officials to bring in some of [...]
GROANING FOR GLORY
Webster’s defines groaning as “a deep moan indicative of pain, grief, or annoyance; a sound uttered under prolonged strain”. I think everyone groans instinctively without knowing it. It’s that sound you make when your wife asks you to take out the trash or change the light bulbs. The sound she makes when you [...]
