March 24, 2026

Job 4: 6 (NIV)

“Should not your piety be your confidence and your blameless ways your hope?”

Human suffering is not easy to explain.  Don’t always try.*

Job’s friends meant well. They rushed to be with him during his time of need. They tried to cheer him up – but like most of us, they were somewhat socially inept. We don’t know what to say in times of trouble but we very badly want to make things better for the sufferer. As if saying stupid things is really going to help!

If you read all of Eliphaz’s attempts to encourage Job, you will see that he was a proponent of the “reap what you sow” school of thought. He is convinced that Job’s misery is his own fault somehow – and if he's the one who broke it, then he should be able to fix it. If only Job were pious enough, he wouldn’t be doubting himself; if he were blameless, he wouldn’t be despairing.

As Christians, we walk a fine line between encouragement and false hope in our efforts to comfort a friend who is hurting. Yes, we must speak the truth in love – but do we know all the truth? Eliphaz had no idea that God and Satan were behind Job’s problems, but he had trouble admitting that he didn’t know everything. We encourage by listening and by offering biblical solutions, not by trying so hard to think of the right thing to say that we tune out the Spirit’s voice. At this stage of Job's crisis, Why this has happened is not the important question. "What are you going to do about it?" is.

The book of Job . . . teaches us the danger of speaking from an incomplete theology, of trying to analyze God's workings with only a narrow understanding of how he works, and what are the causes behind his actions in human life.*

March 23, 2026

II Samuel 12: 7 (NIV)

Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!”

Avoiding confrontation is not love. It’s either apathy because I don’t care enough to do what Jesus says or it’s fear because I’m more afraid of facing you than obeying Jesus.*

“Silence is golden,” is good to remember on those occasions when keeping your mouth shut is the wisest move to make. But sometimes, silence is yellow. Things that need to be brought to light are left unsaid because we are too cowardly to face the consequences. We don’t want to make anyone mad, or hurt their feelings, or lose our job – or be executed.

Nathan was a prophet who is mentioned throughout the story of David’s reign and even on into that of Solomon, David’s son and successor.  (“As for the other events of Solomon’s reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the records of Nathan the prophet?” II Chronicles 9: 29) It was Nathan’s God-given responsibility to rebuke King David for his despicable behavior – adultery and murder – and to deliver the message of God’s judgment. Was Nathan terrified? We shouldn’t think less of him if he was, for as someone has observed, “The odds . . . were a million to one that Nathan would have lost his head if he had confronted any other monarch with a charge of wickedness like that he skillfully leveled against the king of Israel.”*

We don’t have the benefit of receiving a direct order from God to help us determine when silence is golden and when it is yellow, but we have two advantages over Nathan: we don’t have the fear of death looming over us as a consequence of our words; and he did not have the Holy Spirit’s presence to give him discernment. 

Are you faced with such a dilemma? Does it seem that you have been chosen to deliver a message like Nathan’s? It’s not just the risk of hurt feelings or anger that makes us hesitate – there’s always the chance that we will be accused of being judgmental or that we are wrong or even that it’s not our place to speak up. Whatever is holding you back, earnestly seek God’s will and his assurance. Assess the situation; ask yourself, “What’s the worst that can happen if I speak up? What’s the worst that can happen if I don’t?” If one of those answers involves eternal consequences, I believe you have your answer.

A rebuke is more effective when the person delivering it truly cares about the well-being of others and isn’t just out to win the argument.*

March 22, 2026

Hebrews 10: 1, 14  (NIV)

The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming – not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. . . . [B]y one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

Sacrifices could offer temporary solutions, but only God could offer the eternal one.*

Suppose you have a credit card with an astronomical credit limit and you have maxed it out. Every month you make the minimum payment which, of course, gets you nowhere closer to paying it off. As a matter of fact, your creditors have decided to raise your limit so you can add still more charges to your debt. Along comes a wealthy and generous benefactor who pays off the entire amount. Now you are debt-free. You go through a “honeymoon phase” of gratitude for this kind person but it’s not long before you start charging again. Dare you appeal to your savior to come to your rescue again, month after month?

The credit card company is God. The debt is our sin; the minimum payment is the yearly sacrifices offered for sin under the law. The blood of the animals was never sufficient to pay off the entire debt – it just held the creditor at bay. The benefactor who paid your debt? That would be Jesus. By one sacrifice he has fully paid our debt and his blood is sufficient to cover it forever.

Yes, we can appeal to our Savior to rescue us again – and again.

Because of his death, no more sacrifice was needed. None better could be offered.*

March 21, 2026

Ephesians 6: 12 (NIV)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

When we pray, unseen things happen in the spiritual realm.*

Have you ever participated in a séance? I hope not. No doubt you have seen a movie or television show that featured someone trying to contact a dead loved one. I do not believe that dead people come back and communicate with us, but I do believe 1) that Satan is a deceiver and he can trick us into believing any lie that we wish to believe; and 2) there is a spirit world – an “alternate universe” – that we can’t see but which is heavily involved in our lives. It has all the ingredients for a good sci-fi flick – but it’s neither science nor fiction and it is too serious to be entertaining.

Paul paints a vivid picture of the “dark side” of the spirit world. We are at war with evil, invisible forces, but we are not unarmed. Spiritual warfare requires spiritual weapons. At our disposal are the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness (verse 14). Our feet are outfitted with boots that are made for marching, thanks to the gospel of peace (verse 15). Thus armored, we lift up the shield of faith which deflects the flaming arrows aimed at us by Satan (verse 16). With the helmet of salvation on our head and the sword of the Spirit in our hand (verse 17), all that’s left for us to do is to pray. Pray in the Spirit, on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests; be alert and keep on praying for all the saints (verse 18).

In other words, it does no good to be armed to the teeth if your weapons have no ammunition! Prayer is the ammo that unleashes the only power capable of overcoming the spiritual forces of evil.

Prayer is the first and last action of a spiritual life.*

March 20, 2026

Acts 8: 4 (NIV)

Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

More often than not, intense persecution of Christians leads to a spurt of growth in the church.*

When you buy seed for your garden, it comes in little packages – unless you are a professional farmer, in which case your seed will come in a larger container. The seed doesn’t turn into something else while it’s still in its packaging but it will never grow into its potential until it’s scattered or planted properly.

Acts chapter 7 ends with the stoning of Stephen and the first mention of Saul. Chapter 8 begins with the bad news: “On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem . . .” Or is that bad news? If Saul hadn’t begun his campaign of terror, going from house to house and dragging Christians off to prison, the church would have stayed in its little seed-packet in Jerusalem and the gardens of the world would have been barren. Instead, all except the apostles fled throughout Judea and Samaria, preaching the word wherever they went.

Christians today seem to be taking the Great Commission pretty seriously. We are taking the gospel into the world, though we aren’t so welcome in some places. Many of our brothers and sisters in other nations suffer persecution for their faith, but from among them have arisen modern-day heroes of the faith. In the United States, where religious freedom has always been our right, we are starting to get a taste of what it’s like to be among the persecuted. Oh, right now it’s more of an inconvenience than a hardship, but it’s probably going to get worse before it gets better.

Jesus told us it would happen. He said not to be surprised if the world hates us. It’s not something I look forward to but persecution is often the means by which the gospel gets spread. It’s how our garden grows!

It is not biblical to desire persecution, but according to Jesus it is part of God’s plan, part of our cross-bearing.*

March 19, 2026

Luke 12: 51 (NIV)

“Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.”

If you seek peace, prepare for war.*

This is surprising news. What was it those angels said in Jesus’ birth announcement? Peace to men on whom his favor rests. Isn’t Jesus known as the Prince of Peace? His statement here doesn’t seem to match up to what we think we know about Jesus and peace.

I scanned some commentaries and found a lot of contrived conclusions, and some very wordy ones like these:

• “Christ came to make peace with God for men, and to give the Gospel of peace, and spiritual and eternal peace to men; but not external peace.”*  
• “The design of the gospel and its proper tendency are to unite the children of men to one another, to knit them together in holy love, and, if all would receive it, this would be the effect of it.”* 
• “It was the belief of the Jews that the Messiah would at once introduce a reign of peace and prosperity. Jesus does not wish His followers to live in a fool’s paradise.”*

I’m not saying these men are wrong – they are much smarter than I am. But so often we make things harder than they have to be. The angels said, Peace to men on whom his favor rests. That is not the same thing as Peace on earth. There will never be peace on earth – Satan has made sure of that!

We picture Jesus as “meek and lowly” but we forget that he was an agitator. You can’t have peace until you separate the hostile from the peaceful. Have you ever heard the saying, “If you want to make an omelet, you have to break some eggs”? That’s what Jesus did to obtain peace for us – and he paid for it with his life.

When necessary Jesus still disturbs the peace today.*

March 18, 2026

Mark 3: 14 (NIV)

He appointed twelve – designating them apostles – that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.

There is little done for eternal good by those who preach without having a real, personal relationship with Jesus Christ.*

From among his disciples, Jesus singled out twelve to be his elite inner circle. Up until this point, they had been – unknowingly - auditioning for the job. Now they’re being enrolled in Bible college to prepare them for their new career as preachers. They might not know it yet but the weight of the kingdom was resting on their shoulders.

Jesus would not send them out on their mission without some intensive training, but being with Jesus was the most crucial part of their preparation. I believe that we underestimate the importance of being with Jesus. Bible study and prayer and good works – these are all activities. Being with Jesus is about more than doing. We can’t become like Jesus if we don’t know him. When we are with him, we absorb his words, his character, his Spirit.

We may be discouraged with the state of the church today. We can tell ourselves that God won’t let his church die out, but then we wonder how can it continue like it is. I submit that as long as the world contains at least twelve men who have been with Jesus, the church will revive and thrive.

The church is here to stay because God has said he will accomplish with the church what he needs to accomplish.*