“As it is written, ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’” (Romans 9:33 ESV). The apostle Paul quoted from Isaiah to show that Christ, the promised “stone” laid by God in Zion, had become both a
“In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet, and his disease became severe. Yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but sought help from physicians.” (2 Chronicles 16:12 ESV) King Asa began his reign with wholehearted trust in the Lord. In his earlier years, he cried
“But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him.” (2 Chronicles 13:10a ESV). Abijah, king of Judah and great-grandson of David, faced overwhelming odds. Though outnumbered 2-to-1 by Jeroboam’s army, he declared Judah’s trust in the Lord. His name means “Yahweh is my Father”—and in this moment, he lived
“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16 ESV). In this verse, Paul continues unfolding the privileges of those who are “in Christ Jesus.” One of the most precious is this: we are not only justified and adopted as God’s children, but we also have an inner
“For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us….” (Romans 8:3–4 ESV). The law is righteous,
“The fear of the Lord leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm” (Proverbs 19:23 ESV). Fear and rest do not usually go together. For fear itself produces anxiety. Yet this proverb describes the surprising relationship between fearing God and experiencing real rest. “Fear of the Lord”
“So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:11 ESV). The apostle Paul turns from teaching to exhortation in this verse. After explaining that we have died with Christ and been raised with Him, Paul calls us to consider this spiritual reality to be true of
“Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men” (Romans 5:18 ESV). In this verse, Paul draws a powerful contrast between the effects of Adam’s sin and Christ’s righteousness. Adam acted as our federal head—our representative before God—so when he sinned,
“…Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, ‘I have made you the father of many nations’…” (Romans 4:16–17 ESV). Paul emphasizes that Abraham is not only the father of the Jewish people but of all who believe by faith. Quoting Genesis 17:5, he highlights how God declared Abraham “father of
“They divided them by lot, all alike, for there were sacred officers and officers of God among both the sons of Eleazar and the sons of Ithamar… the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah.” (1 Chronicles 24:5,10 ESV). In 1 Chronicles 24, David organizes the descendants of Aaron into 24 priestly divisions to serve