“Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:8 Three Steps – Number One Draw – When James reflected on the desire of God, he thought of a passage in Isaiah: “because this people draws near to me with its…
“Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” Luke 5:12 Purity Outside Make me clean – The leper used the right word for his need. Katharisai. Cleanse. From our cultural perspective, we would probably have expected something else. Heal me. But in the Gospels, the words for healing are used of every disease…
“Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” Luke 5:12 Is He Willing? Willing – Few people who know anything about God doubt that He is able. After all, if He is God, He has the power to do whatever He wishes. The question that haunts us is not, “Is God able?” The…
“The king is not saved by a mighty army; a warrior is not delivered by great strength” Psalm 33:16 The Numbers Game Saved – When David wrote this verse, his heart must have been crushed. This is personal testimony, not a spiritual platitude. David’s greatest sin was not with Bathsheba. The immediate punishment for his…
“It is the LORD of hosts whom you should regard as holy, and He shall be your fear, and He shall be your dread.” Isaiah 8:13 Fear What Matters Fear – What you fear becomes your god. In the twisted logic of human thought, the things that we fear the most become the driving forces…
“And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it” Isaiah 8:12 What They Fear Fear – What makes you afraid? Something just popped into your mind. What was it? God has something to say to you about that fear. He spoke to his prophet Isaiah about dread and fear…
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you.” Isaiah 43:1 The Reason Why (2) Redeemed – Gealtika. “I have redeemed”, says God. The only reason that I am free of the “thou shalt fear” world is that God rescued me. I need this fact to sink deeply into my soul. Whenever my thoughts and behavior…
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you.” Isaiah 43:1 The Reason Why (1) Redeemed – The world has no answer for fear. It has lots of suggestions, but none of them is sufficient. In fact, the world is actually based on fear. It does not make sense without fear. And most of us buy…
“O LORD, we beseech You, do send prosperity!” Psalm 118:25 An Urgent Request Beseech – Not often, but important. Only eleven times is the word annah used in the Old Testament. Only three times in the Psalms. But it is an important word because it expresses the emotional intensity and urgency for a request. When…
“For His lovingkindness is great toward us, and the truth of the LORD is everlasting. Praise the LORD!” Psalm 117:2 Beginning and End Praise the LORD – Psalm 117 opens with a command to praise. Halelu. It ends with the same resounding note. A single word. Haleluyah. By adding the syllable “yah” the word adds…
