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Almost all of us live two lives: what other people see on the outside and what is really going on inside. In school we learn what outward signs of attention will please the teacher. At a job we learn to “put up a good front” whenever the boss happens to stroll by. As if putting…

Although it weighs in at only three chapters and punches well above its weight, Nahum ranks as one of the least preached books of the Bible. As a citizen of the southern kingdom of Judah, the prophet Nahum felt the force of the Assyrian Empire. But God had Nahum deliver a message concerning the greatest…

Jonah 3:10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened. Say the name “Jonah,” and most people think of a storm at sea and a prophet in the belly of a whale. With such an exciting…

Summary of Isaiah 45:1-13: Cyrus’s many victories, and the power and wealth he gained through them, were all planned by God. God was preparing the way so that Cyrus could conquer Babylon and release the Jews. Throughout these events, Cyrus did not know God and was unaware that God was using him to carry out…

The book of Obadiah has the twin distinctions of being both the shortest book in the Old Testament and the only one that substantially duplicates part of another book. At 21 verses, it is only 1.7 percent as long as Jeremiah, the longest prophetic work, and it extensively parallels Jeremiah 49:7-22. Why is Obadiah so…

The book of Philemon is the briefest and most personal of Paul’s letters. Paul, inspired by God, is writing to a friend to ask a favor of him – a big favor, for a person’s life depends on the outcome. Like most respectable citizens of the day, Philemon owned slaves (historians estimate that as many…

Jude 3 Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. The word “contend” implies that Christians have something worth fighting for. When we have…

There are 5 books of the Bible that are only one chapter long: Philemon, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, and Obadiah. Over the next few Sundays our lessons will come from these 5 books. Last week we looked at the book of Second John and this Sunday’s lesson will be from Third John. 3 John…

Itinerant preachers were the means by which Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire. They looked to local churches to aid in their mission by providing hospitality. The problem was that some of the people seeking room and board were false teachers, expounding erroneous doctrines; others were just free-loaders, pretending to be ministers of the word…

Isaiah 43:25 I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake,and remembers your sins no more. If God forgives for His own sake, should we? Perhaps yes, but we should forgive primarily for His sake because He forgave us (Colossians 3:13 Forgive as the Lord forgave you). The context of…