“I’ve put in all this effort for nothing,” sounds the cry of deep personal regret. Jesus warns His listeners in John 6 not to invest all of their energies in “bread” that will not satisfy for eternity. They had been sated the day before with the loaves and fish, so they quite naturally came back for more. There is a spiritual lesson in this scene that will challenge us to seek the true bread that ...  Read More

I ask in this devotional, “Is there ‘Christ wine’ in our gatherings?” The world was out of wine when Jesus arrived on earth. All that was being offered spiritually was cheap and did not satisfy. So, the nature of Jesus’ miracle at Cana is obvious. He had come to bring about conversion: “water to wine, sinners to saints” (cf. 2:10; “You have kept the good wine until now; EBC). The impact of the mir...  Read More

At the risk of placing a tune in your mind that you will not be able to erase all day, Steven Curtis Chapman’s song lyric, “Saddle up your horses, we’ve got a trail to blaze,” comes to my mind when I read this passage! Peter calls a hard-pressed group of believers to "saddle up" in faith amid hard times. Charles Spurgeon, the 19th century English preacher, once said, “I have now concentrated all m...  Read More

“Listen carefully” is an expression that people use to indicate that what follows carries some significance. When James wrote, “Don’t be deceived,” he employed an expression that was a “pointed” introduction to an important statement (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:9; 15:33; Galatians 6:7; EBC). If you are like me, you are familiar with this entire chapter, indeed the entire book, but you may be just a bit f...  Read More

The psalmist writes, “For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation” (149:4). Micah has turned his focus in chapter five to the siege of Jerusalem and the humiliation of Judah’s king by the Assyrian king, Sennacherib (2 Kings 18:13-15). We begin to see the first rays of sunlight, however, when he stretches his prophetic vision to the Babylonian exile and the coming...  Read More

Stay inside and hide because there are bad people outside! This rhythmic first sentence may seem to be extreme, but I ask if you have read 2 Timothy 3:1-5. It appears that Paul has compiled such a wide list of people to avoid that we are left with only ourselves—and even we, too, are beginning to look a little suspect! We will soon learn that we, and much of the non-Christian world, are not in Pau...  Read More

John Flavel has said, “Christ is not sweet ’til sin be made bitter to us.” The key word in Joel’s short prophecy is judgment—namely, God’s judgment! Joel employs a locust plague that had recently occurred in Judah to warn of God’s coming judgment when He will intervene in history to vindicate His righteousness. Israel would experience the terrible nature of His wrath (2:1-11), as would the entire ...  Read More

“Miscellaneous exhortations” is how one Bible commentator entitles the latter part of Philippians. Of a truth, this is an accurate exegetical rubric to place over 4:1-9, but the wealth of content in our focal verse begs for you and me to reclassify it as “Specific Needs for Christian Living Today!” In fact, I believe that Paul would say, “I want you to internalize and apply these variegated truths...  Read More

The oft-heard sage counsel whenever one signs a contract is to read the small print. This wisdom is not meant to harm us; instead, it is given to help us to flourish. There is some “fine print” in Ephesians 4 that we often skim over as we race toward the more recognizable parts of the chapter that often surface in sermons and Bible studies. We all enjoy hearing about spiritual gifts and equipping ...  Read More

Christ did not come into the world to please Himself but to serve humanity. This passage presents modern Christians with a strong call to a form of sacrificial service that they find to be distasteful, serving a weaker Christian brother or sister. Very often this attitude of surrender is lacking in church communities and the fellowship is weakened significantly as a result. This passage provides u...  Read More

Treasures often are found buried and are discovered through much sacrifice. The treasure of wisdom, however, is abundantly available and easily discernible if one follows the one True Guide. God gives wisdom, and this is good because it is a vital attribute of His world and holds the key to a successful life. Let’s learn about godly wisdom today. A distinct pattern with a definite purpose Duane Ga...  Read More

"And in this matter . . . who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have."2 Corinthians 8:10-11, ESV “They need not go away; you give them something to eat” were instructions that Jesus gave to his disciples prior to the feeding of the five t...  Read More