Archive for May 2022

2 Samuel 3-4, Psalm 108, Mark 14:1-11, 2 Corinthians 12:11-21   Psalm 108: What do you do when you are facing challenges that are beyond your own strength? How do you not quake at the threat of difficulty, or become overwhelmed by the emotion of a scary issue or troubling turn of events? David says that his “heart…

2 Samuel 1-2, Psalm 107, Mark 13:32-37, 2 Corinthians 2:1-12 Psalm 107: “Whoever is wise let him attend to these things.” What things precisely? This psalm is a fairly lengthy one, but it has a simple and straightforward—and very important—message. The pattern goes like this throughout the psalm: A: Some do various foolish, sinful, rebellious, even evil, things.…

1 Samuel 29-31, Psalm 106:24-48, Mark 13:14-31, 2 Corinthians 11:16-33 Psalm 106:24-48: The litany of sins of God’s people continues. They refused to enter the Promised Land (106:24-27). They worshipped idols even in the desert (106:28-31). They even caused Moses, that meekest man on the face of the planet, to become bitter (106:32-33). They did not drive out…

1 Samuel 26-28, Psalm 106:1-23, Mark 13:1-13, 2 Corinthians 11:1-15  Psalm 106:1-23: Surely few, if any, would write a song like this one today, or include its emphases in their annual report! This psalm starts out traditionally enough (“Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever”), but…

1 Samuel 24-25, Psalm 105, Mark 12:35-44, 2 Corinthians 10  Psalm 105:  We sometimes think that “giving thanks” is mainly a personal or emotional activity. Some people are more thankful than others by temperament. Others of us need to learn to be thankful. But in either case we are dealing with something that is internal, emotional—albeit able to…

1 Samuel 21-23, Psalm 104, Mark 12:28-34, 2 Corinthians 9 Psalm 104: Once more we are being called upon to the “bless the Lord.” What it means to “bless the Lord” we considered yesterday. We said that “to bless God is akin to praising God; blessing God is a particular kind of praise of God. It is to…

1 Samuel 19-20, Psalm 103, Mark 12:13-27, 2 Corinthians 8 Psalm 103: To be blessed by God is to be the recipient of his benefaction. It is to be declared by him as being in a blessed or favorable state. The blessedness of the redeemed is described by Jesus in the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount in…

1 Samuel 17-18, Psalm 102, Mark 12:1-12, 2 Corinthians 7 Psalm 102: One of the great challenges of some songs, and some published prayers, is that they give the impression that life as a Christian is one long feast of rejoicing and celebration. But while a song of triumph has its place, triumphalism is rarely warranted. Even in…

1 Samuel 15-16, Psalm 101, Mark 11:27-33, 2 Corinthians 6   Psalm 101: A model prayer for any leader follows. David begins with praising God for his covenant love. All godly leadership is rooted in a personal relationship with God. Many leaders get into trouble when their leadership demands outstrip their spirituality roots. Make sure that you have…

Much high end research has been done defending the historical reliability of the Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge). These two papers are mere summaries of the work done by many scholars, but they may be helpful for some because a) they are brief, b) they are in simple straightforward language, c) they address a current (as well…