“Render the hearts of this people insensitive, their ears dull, and their eyes dim, otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and return and be healed.” Isaiah 6:10 Otherwise – God’s plan includes punishment. Oh, did you think that God will always forgive? Have you been duped…
“for whoever does the will of God, this one is My brother, and My sister and mother.” Mark 3:35 Does – Where do your loyalties lie? Who do you treat as blood-relatives? Who is in your family? According to the Master, everyone who does the will of the Father is kin to you. Oh, and…
“And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.” Mark 3:25 Divided – The number of times this passage has been applied to the political realm makes it a very familiar saying, often quoted when someone is pressing for unity. But using it as a call for political…
And when His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him, for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.” Mark 3:21 Lost His Senses – Jesus was crazy. That is the conclusion of all those who knew Him since childhood. He said things that no one could believe. He…
And after looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” Mark 3:5 With Anger – There is no such thing as gentle Jesus, meek and mild. That characterization of Jesus exists only in children’s rhymes and picture books. When you read the…
He who mocks the poor taunts his Maker; he who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished. Proverbs 17:5 Taunts – Ninety-seven percent of people in America say that they believe there is a god. So what? For the vast majority of these people, the belief that there is a god has absolutely no impact…
He who mocks the poor taunts his Maker; he who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished. Proverbs 17:5 Mocks – Who would dare do such a thing? Who would ridicule, deride, insult or scorn the poor? Actually, most of us. Let me tell you why. First, the word for “poor” here is the Hebrew…
He who tills his land will have plenty of food, but he who follows empty pursuits will have poverty in plenty. Proverbs 28:19 Will Have Poverty in Plenty – In a recent survey of young adults between 17 and 25, the top priority for life by a wide margin was “become rich.” Second on the…
Behold, the soul of him is puffed up and is not upright, but the just shall live by his faith. Habakkuk 2:4 Faith – We all know the second part of this verse. Paul quotes it in Romans as the centerpiece of the theology of grace. “The just shall live by faith.” We don’t earn…
How blessed is the man who fears always Proverbs 28:14 Fears – This verse just doesn’t make sense, unless you know that the Hebrew word is pachad. Otherwise, we would have to figure out why a man who is always fearing is considered blessed. In our world, someone who is constantly in fear can hardly…
