God’s people faced severe opposition in the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem after returning from Babylonian captivity, which is probably why they had not completed the task in the 90 years before Nehemiah. And once they started the monumental task, their enemies (particularly Sanballat and Tobiah) countered them at every turn. Nevertheless, Nehemiah recorded, “So we built the wall” (Neh. 4:6). Underscore the word…

At the dedication of the temple in the Old Testament, Solomon “stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly” and prayed to the Lord a most heart-searching prayer (2 Chron. 6:12-42). In this prayer, Solomon looked down through the ages to times when God’s people would fail Him in a variety of ways and would call upon…

Psalm 118 begins and ends with the very same words: “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!  For His mercy endures forever” (118:1, 29). What reasons do you have to “give thanks to the Lord”? They are numerous, no doubt! The very “day the Lord has made” is worthy of praise (118:24). But look at verse 21. “I will praise You, For You have…

If you set out on a caravan journey across a particular state and determined in advance that everyone would stick to a single interstate highway on the journey, would it be obvious if someone in the caravan wandered off of that highway? Of course it would! With everyone on the same direct path, it would be quite apparent when someone was not. And it would…

As Peter wrote about how ignorant individuals were taking Paul’s “epistles” and twisting them “to their own destruction,” he concluded his sentence by saying, “…as they do also the rest of the Scriptures” (2 Pet. 3:15-16). That is interesting for a number of reasons. First, Peter recognized the existence and collection of “the Scriptures,” which he had earlier affirmed were from the Holy Spirit…

Children grow up and they want to be liked…to be accepted…to fit in and belong. When that doesn’t happen, they often wonder, “What’s wrong with me?” Further, they sometimes will change who they are, how they behave, how they talk, how they dress, in order to be liked and accepted by certain people. Are adults much different? We all want to be accepted. So, when we…

We might hear someone say something and think, “I feel like that’s got to be right.” We might read a news report online and think, “I feel like that’s the right thing to do.” We might see a friend choose a certain path and think, “I feel like they’re ok in that.” We may be faced with a choice ourselves and think, “I feel like…

The Lord Jesus was teaching some things “openly” with which Peter was not comfortable (namely, about His suffering, rejection, death and resurrection), and so “Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him” (Mark 8:31-32). Can you imagine? Rebuking the Lord because of what He was teaching publicly? “But when [Jesus] had turned around and looked at His disciples” (no doubt to consider what…