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Isaiah 12 is a hymn of praise. Isaiah prophesied to the southern kingdom of Judah and in one sense he is looking ahead to Judah’s return from exile in Babylon. That was the more immediate relevance for the original audience. When God delivers Israel from powerful oppressors by a mighty act, they cannot help but…

Matthew 9:35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. Matthew sums up the content of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee to this point. Jesus did three things as He traveled from town to town around the region: He…

1 Corinthians 10:10 And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel. 1 Corinthians 10:1–13 describes how the generation of Israelites who escaped from Egypt was blessed by God and yet continually grumbled and complained and fell back into sinful habits. God severely punished many of them, including the…

God’s approval of Israel’s utter destruction of the Canaanites raises the problem that becomes even more prominent in the Book of Joshua: How could a good and loving God order the slaughter of all the Canaanites? It’s one thing to kill all the enemy warriors. But how can God command the deaths of women and…

Luke 9:62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” What does Jesus want from us in the New Year? Total dedication, not halfhearted commitment. We cannot pick and choose among Jesus’ ideas and follow Him selectively; we have to…

Merry Christmas everybody! This coming Sunday is the day when many believers celebrate the birth of Jesus. This miraculous event is recorded for us in Matthew 1-2; Luke 2; and John 1. Mark’s gospel makes no mention of Jesus’ birth. Matthew and Luke give the most detailed Biblical accounts and these details are important. They…

Psalm 115:1 Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. If we could just get that fixed in our minds and live each day in line with it, God would use us to accomplish His purpose and we…

Of all the things Satan desires, what he wants most is our worship. Listen to what he said to Jesus: “All this I will give you,’ he said, ‘if you will bow down and worship me’” (Matthew 4:9). Satan promised Jesus “stuff” in order to get praise from Him; he will do the same to…

Matthew 4:1–11 describes Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. This series of events is also recorded in Luke 4:1-13 and is mentioned, without much detail, in Mark 1:12–13. After 40 days and nights of fasting, Jesus faces three temptations from Satan. Each one attempts to lure Christ into abusing His power; to take immediately what God…

This psalm celebrates Yahweh’s incomparable power (manifested at creation) and His supremacy over any other presumed divine beings. This psalm divides into two sections: verses 1-7a (call to worship); and verses 7b-11 (warning exhortation). This psalm follows a pattern similar to Psalms 50 and 81 – praise with final admonition. While celebrating Yahweh’s incomparable majesty…