Jeremiah 29:4-7 are the words of God's prophet to the people of Judah, exiled to Babylon: “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and …

Psalm 19 speaks to what theologians refer to as general revelation and special revelation as it describes what God has made and likewise authored. General Revelation refers to God's visible handiwork as seen in His creation, His Devine fingerprints upon all He's made--from galaxies and supernovas to molecular structures and nuclear physics. Special…

In Luke 16:19-31, Jesus peels back the veil of what happens when people die. Some believe His story to merely be a parable; others do not. But Jesus told it and we needn't second guess its validity. God's Word supersedes all our cultural beliefs, superstitions, and sensational tales--both for this life as well as the life to come. Jesus' story is a…

The Scriptures give us a few glimpses into heavenly scenes from guys like Isaiah and Ezekiel, not to mention from the Apostle John in the book of Revelation. While these visions are extraordinary as they describe angelic beings and heavenly creatures that make naked baby angels seem cartoonish, their commonality are descriptions of the majestic glo…

In writing to the church in Corinth where some began to doubt the resurrection of Jesus (not to mention their own) the Apostle Paul pens the following in 1 Corinthians 15:17-20: "And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! And if o…

As Jesus mounted a donkey and rode into Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday, Luke 19:41-42 reveals: "And when He drew near and saw the city, He wept over it, saying, 'Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.'" (ESV) Besides seeing Jerusalem as it was that day (and far in…

1 Peter 3:13-16 says: "Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do t…

Some say, "You can be so heavenly minded, you're not of any earthly good." But C.S. Lewis says it better in his book, Mere Christianity: "If you read history you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world th…

1 Timothy 2:5-6 says: "For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time." (ESV) We hear the word, ransom, but what exactly does it mean? When someone is held as a captive by an enemy or someone is taken hostage or kidnappe…

2 Corinthians 4:6-7 says: "For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us." (ESV) In Genesis, at creation, God spoke light into e…