July 2, 2015
King Hezekiah was one of the greatest kings in Judah. In 2 Kings 18:5, he was described as one who “trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.” The only foolish event attributed to his reign happened near its end, as he invited emissaries from Babylon to see all of the wealth within Jerusalem, thus foreshadowing Babylon’s future overthrow of the city. Yet, despite this prideful lapse in judgment, Hezekiah remains one of the greatest kings to sit on David’s throne. Evidence of his reign still remains today, as the water still flows through Hezekiah’s tunnel into Jerusalem. My wife, Robin and I have waded through this manmade tunnel which attests to ancient man’s genius and to the credibility of the Bible which describes its existence.
July 1, 2015
After the Assyrians had overthrown the Northern Kingdom of Israel, they set their sights on the Southern Kingdom of Judah. But as their armies gathered outside the city of Jerusalem, they overplayed their hand by belittling the name of God in their threats. So, God heard the prayer of King Hezekiah of Judah and delivered Jerusalem untouched from Assyrian hands. God did this for the sake of His own Name and for the sake of the remnant within Jerusalem who still honored Him.
Is there a remnant who still honor God’s Name in your city today?
June 30, 2015
Have you ever fallen asleep during a sermon? Eutychus did and it nearly cost him his life. Fortunately for him, the Word came to him a second time and he awoke from the dead. Whether it was Paul’s overlong preaching, for he preached “even till daybreak,” or it was Eutychus’ lack of receptivity remains unclear. But one thing appears certain. Eutychus stayed awake for the rest of Paul’s sermon.
June 29, 2015
A riot broke out in Ephesus because the followers of the “Way” (A 1st-century description of Christ-followers) were accused of causing a decline in the sales of Diana figures made by the local silversmiths. The teachings of Christ had begun to influence the citizens of Ephesus and the region of Asia Minor to the point that it even affected their spending habits. Several Christians were dragged into the 25,000 seat Ephesian theater by the rioting mob. When one of the Christians named Alexander tried to make a verbal defense, the mob shouted him down. It’s difficult, if not impossible, to offer a reasoned defense of Christianity to a frenzied mob. Yet, today the city of Ephesus with its sexually perverted temple to Diana lies in ruins, while the followers of the Way continue.
This should cause us to take heart when today’s Diana worshipers are shouting so loud.
June 13, 2015
015 – Traveling to Uganda today. No OYB posts until I return on June 29th. Jonathan Combs is posting in my absence.
June 12, 2015
Faith must be tested. It must pass through life’s furnace, so that impurities may rise to the top and be removed. As Peter wrote, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7). May your faith be found authentic and pure to the praise of Jesus our Lord!
June 11, 2015
When persecution caused the church in Jerusalem to scatter, the gospel was spread to other nations. What was intended to stop the message, instead spurred its growth. Jesus had commanded his disciples to “be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), but they apparently needed a little help leaving home. Will God have to allow our discomfort to get us to move out for Him?
June 10, 2015
Patience is the fruit of the Spirit that makes us “slow to anger.” The Greek word for patience might also be translated “long-suffering.” Or it might be understood in modern terms as having a long fuse. Are you easily angered? Do you have a short fuse? Ask God to give you the fruit of patience, which makes us slow to anger.
June 9, 2015
That every massive stone used in the building of Solomon’s temple was “finished at the quarry” was an astounding feat. For a worksite of such magnitude to be absent any hammering or chiseling would be just as amazing today as it was then. Both the designer and the builder had to be exacting in their precision and skill in order to accomplish this. Some stones weighed as much as 100 tons, yet they were perfectly honed and fitted together. The temple site may have been quiet, but there must have been much noise at the quarry as each stone was hammered and chiseled out, shaping it perfectly for God’s house. The apostle Peter tells us that God is building a new house and we are like “living stones being built into his spiritual temple” (1 Peter 2:5). God is both the Architect and the Builder of this spiritual temple (Heb. 11:10). Sometimes He is noisily chiseling away on us in the quarry and at other times He is quietly putting us into place. Yet, it is God who builds His house and we who are being perfectly fitted for it.
June 8, 2015
The God-given wisdom of Solomon attracted the nations to Jerusalem to hear him. He was considered the wisest man on earth. But Solomon ultimately succumbed to a lust for riches, sex, and power. Yet, in his early years, he was a foreshadowing of Jesus, the Son of David, Son of God, who is the Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God (1 Cor.1:24). We catch a glimpse of God’s purposes in the early days of Solomon’s reign, but the fulfillment is in Christ. One day, all the nations will recognize Him as King of kings and Lord of lords, as the very wisdom of God displayed.