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For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay no greater burden on you than these necessary things: that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality, from which if you keep yourselves, it will be well with you. Farewell. Acts 15:28–29 WEB. After Jesus ascended to heaven and the gospel began to spread, gentiles (non-Jewish...

Behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from the sky, and came and rolled away the stone from the door, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him, the guards shook, and became like dead men. The angel answered the women, "Don't be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, who has been crucified. He is not here, for...

Therefore don't be anxious, saying, 'What will we eat?', 'What will we drink?' or, 'With what will we be clothed?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first God's Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore don't be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for...

When they began to sing and to praise, Yahweh set ambushers against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were struck. For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. When they had finished the inhabitants of Seir, everyone helped to destroy each other. 2 Chronicles 20:22 WEB. A great army...

Yahweh appeared of old to me, saying, "Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love. Therefore I have drawn you with loving kindness." Jeremiah 31:3 WEB. There is an old saying that you can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar. Yet, when I was growing up in the Bible Belt, most of the things I heard about God were seasoned with vinegar. As in, "God loves you, but He will kill you...

In Chapter 10 of the Book of Acts, we meet Cornelius, who lives in Caesarea. This stunning Roman city, built on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, bustled with life and culture. With around 50,000 residents, it served as the home of the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate. Caesarea was truly a marvel of its time, featuring impressive aqueducts that brought in fresh water,...

Every man who strives in the games exercises self-control in all things. Now they do it to receive a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. I therefore run like that, not aimlessly. I fight like that, not beating the air, but I beat my body and bring it into submission, lest by any means, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified. 1 Corinthians 9:25-27 WEB. There are so...

Praise Yahweh, my soul, and don't forget all his benefits, who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your desire with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. Psalm 103:2-5 WEB. Years ago, I mainly worked in low-end jobs where the only benefit was having...

They heard Yahweh God's voice walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. Yahweh God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" The man said, "I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; so I hid myself." God said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you...

Also delight yourself in Yahweh, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to Yahweh. Trust also in him, and he will do this: he will make your righteousness shine out like light, and your justice as the noon day sun. Psalm 37:4-6 WEB. Once while performing a deed search on some property, we found a tax lien had been filed against us by the state for several thousand dollars....

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac. Isaac became the father of Jacob. Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron. Hezron became the father of Ram. Ram became the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon. Nahshon...

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and Yahweh's glory has risen on you. For, behold, darkness will cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but Yahweh will arise on you, and his glory shall be seen on you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Isaiah 60:1-3 WEB. Nightfall came faster than I was anticipating. It was a black night as I made my way through...

During Hurricane Hugo, I saw a barn fall from the sky and land in the middle of the road, but you couldn't see the wind that did it. You could hear it roaring, and the wind would almost blow you down, but it was invisible to the eye. Though we can't see the wind blowing, we can certainly observe its effects and feel the air movement on our skin. For example, you can see someone's hair blowing...

A man of God came near and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, "Yahweh says, 'Because the Syrians have said, "Yahweh is a god of the hills, but he is not a god of the valleys;" therefore I will deliver all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am Yahweh.' 1 Kings 20:28 WEB. When the Syrians first attacked Israel, they thought the God of Israel was a god of the mountains...

But some Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there, and having persuaded the multitudes, they stoned Paul, and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. But as the disciples stood around him, he rose up, and entered into the city. On the next day he went out with Barnabas to Derbe. Acts 14:19–20 WEB. After Paul and Barnabas healed a crippled man and preached the good news in the city...

Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in the field, which a man found, and hid. In his joy, he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field. Matthew 13:44 WEB. Jesus told a parable about a man who found some hidden treasure in a field. He joyfully sold all that he had so he could buy the land and make it his own. The man couldn't take the treasure without first purchasing the...

For my eyes are on you, Yahweh, the Lord. I take refuge in you. Don't leave my soul destitute. Keep me from the snare which they have laid for me, from the traps of the workers of iniquity. Let the wicked fall together into their own nets while I pass by. Psalms 141:8–10 WEB. A simple but effective trap design that has been used through the ages is the pit trap. Hunters dig a deep pit and place...

Moses answered, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor listen to my voice; for they will say, 'Yahweh has not appeared to you.' Yahweh said to him, "What is that in your hand?" He said, "A rod." He said, "Throw it on the ground." He threw it on the ground, and it became a snake; and Moses ran away from it. Exodus 4:1-3 WEB. Moses had a shepherd's staff that he carried around with him. It was...

Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go and do as you have said; but make me a little cake from it first, and bring it out to me, and afterward make some for you and for your son. For Yahweh, the God of Israel says, 'The jar of meal will not run out, and the jar of oil will not fail, until the day that Yahweh sends rain on the earth.' She went and did according to the saying of Elijah; and she, and...

In all types of sports, competitors may make mistakes, get frustrated, and even ruin the rest of their game. Sometimes, they get so focused on the goal they missed, the throw they botched, or the catch they dropped, that they let it affect their next play. This tendency has to be trained out of them. A key part of becoming a great athlete is learning to shake off mistakes and keep their focus...

Yahweh's angel came and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah, that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite. His son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press, to hide it from the Midianites. Yahweh's angel appeared to him, and said to him, "Yahweh is with you, you mighty man of valor!" Judges 6:11-12 WEB. Dust and chaff drifted through the air as Gideon threshed the wheat. He was hiding inside a winepress...

But he who is greatest among you will be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Matthew 23:11-12 WEB. When I showed up at a church workday event, the job that got assigned to me was scrubbing all the bathrooms: upstairs, downstairs, and down the hall. I did not remember the church having that many bathrooms. Though I was tempted to complain...

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Let endurance have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2–4 WEB. My Dad was born during the great depression of the early 1930s. They had no electricity or running water in the rural areas where he grew up. There was no refrigeration,...

But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives. In the end, he will stand upon the earth. After my skin is destroyed, then I will see God in my flesh, whom I, even I, will see on my side. My eyes will see, and not as a stranger. Job 19:25-27 WEB. The book of Job is the oldest in the Bible, except for the first ten chapters of Genesis. Wealth in this book was still measured in livestock. Yet, even then,...

Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it didn't fall, for it was founded on the rock. Matthew 7:24–25 WEB. When I was little and stayed with my mom for the summer, she took us to the beach. My brother and I built a giant sandcastle...

and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Then the herald cried aloud, "To you it is commanded, peoples, nations, and languages, that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. Whoever doesn't fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle...

Too often, we find ourselves playing it safe, staying on the sidelines, and hesitating to fully trust God with our lives. Maybe we choose comfort over stepping out to serve or avoid difficult conversations where we could share our faith. This approach can leave us with a watered-down faith - bland, colorless, and without the power that makes Christianity truly alive and compelling. It's the kind...

He went out, bearing his cross, to the place called "The Place of a Skull", which is called in Hebrew, "Golgotha", where they crucified him, and with him two others, on either side one, and Jesus in the middle. Pilate wrote a title also, and put it on the cross. There was written, "JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS." John 19:17–19 WEB. We read these familiar words but often fail to see their...

He heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars. He calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord, and mighty in power. His understanding is infinite. Psalms 147:3-5 WEB. When sharks sense blood in the water, they go into a feeding frenzy. They will attack the wounded and devour them, even if it is another shark. They get so caught up in this frenzy that...

For there is no distinction, for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans 3:22-24 WEB. It's easy for us, who are used to having positions, titles, and seniority in the workplace, to carry those ideas into the church. After we've been around the church for a while, we can feel we have earned our position,...