1 Chronicles 16 Devotional By Pastor Lawrence Clearly, this is one of the red letter days in the history of Israel with the Ark of the Covenant being brought, in the proper manner, into the city of Jerusalem with great joy in celebration. The festivities would begin with numerous offerings unto the Lord for the Israelites to dedicate their lives unto God and to commemorate their covenant of peace with the Lord. King David then…

I Chronicles 15 by Pastor Mark Hudson In the section covering the return of the Ark from the Philistines that covers chapter 13 to 16, we read in chapter 13, a rather inglorious beginning.  To explain where the ark was and how this event in chapter 13 begins, here is a brief summary concerning the ark.  The ark was captured by the Philistines (I Sam 4:11) but the ark only brought calamity to the house…

1 Chronicles 14 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence After David’s unsuccessful attempt to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem that ended with the death of Uzzah and the new king’s deep humiliation in the previous chapter, the Lord now confirms David’s calling and shows why He has chosen him in the first place. Even though the Lord had abundantly blessed Obed-edom as long the ark remained in his household outside Jerusalem, He still had…

I Chronicles 13 by Pastor Mark Hudson The author of Chronicles (Ezra?) is concerned to show David as the true king of Israel.  The author is also teaching, preaching and encouraging a post-exilic community to return to Jerusalem and restore worship that God has ordained.  Therefore, the author is not merely covering history like an unbiased reporter (as if one exists).  The author is concerned to show why David is the legitimate King and how…

1 Chronicles 12 by Pastor David Groendyk One fun fact you may not know about 1–2 Chronicles is that they are actually the very last books of the Hebrew Old Testament. In other words, if Jesus were reading his Bible while on earth, 2 Chronicles would’ve been at the very end of the Old Testament before turning to Matthew. There’s a reason it was last. These two books cover the entirety of human history from…

1 Chronicles 11 Devotional By Pastor Lawrence One of the primary themes found in the book of Chronicles is loyalty to the true king of Israel as a sign of one’s loyalty unto God. So unlike in the book of Kings, the Chronicler omits most of the material surrounding the reign of King Saul which was rescinded by the Lord due to his own disloyalty to God. He also skips over the ensuing civil war…

1 Chronicles 10 by Pastor Mark Hudson Why study I Chronicles? I would like to provide a summary of a teaching by Philip Kayser from Dominion Covenant Church in Omaha NE I heard on sermon audio.  Why should I read or study this book?  After all there are 8 chapters of genealogies that begin this book.  That is no way to grab an audience! Chronicles is much different than Samuel and Kings.  This is not…

 1 John 5 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson First John is a helpful letter due to the if/then statements.  John will often say if … then.  He gives us categories to think through if a person is a believer.  If a person is an unbeliever and so on.  Notice the many ways John helps us with his many if/then statements.  Looking at the entire boo, one outline is found in Stephen S Smalley’s commentary in…

1 John 3 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence A child of God will naturally reflect the character of the family of God and particularly that of the patriarch of the household. Because the children have spent so much time with their father in the word, in prayer, and in fellowship, they will naturally begin to reflect something of his character even speaking in the same manner. Because God is pure, John says that everyone who is…

1 John 2 by Pastor Mark Hudson First John is an example of great profundity utilizing simple language. One outline (showing the section relating to our passage) is found in Stephen S Smalley’s commentary in the Word series: I Preface: the Word of Life 1:1-4 II. Live in the Light 1:5-2:29 a. God is Light 1:5-7 b. First condition for living in the light: renounce sin 1:8-2:2 c. Second condition: be obedient 2:3-11 d. Third…

1 John 1 Devotional By Pastor Lawrence Written originally to defend the true gospel against a new heresy entering into the church, an incipient Gnosticism that touted a secret knowledge that wasn’t available to all and that denied the bodily incarnation of Christ, John’s first epistle seeks to distinguish between the true fellowship of Christ’s church and those who seek to disrupt that fellowship in some way. He tells us in the beginning of his…

Psalm 150 by Pastor Mark Hudson Does one need to read a devotional to comprehend this Psalm?  Need? No.  But hopefully this may aid you in some small measure.  This Psalm, of course, ends the entire Psalter. A W. Robert Godfrey points out, “Thirteen times the call to praise is repeated.  (Learning to Love the Psalms p. 249).  As we have pointed out, from Ps 146-150, each Psalms begins with “Praise the Lord!” and ends…

Psalm 149 by Pastor David Groendyk As has been pointed out previously, Psalms 146–150 constitute one grand ‘Hallelujah!’ to end the book of Psalms. Psalms 146 and 147 highlighted why we should praise God, and Psalms 148 and 149 emphasize who does the praising, namely, all of Creation (148) but especially God’s chosen people (149). Verses 1–5 are simply a happy celebration of God, his glory, and his salvation! It looks very much like David…

Psalm 147 by Pastor Mark Hudson We are in the section of the Psalms that explodes with praise.  From Ps 146-150 each Psalm begins with the phrase “Praise the Lord” and ends with the same.  We all know that often people mock Christians by saying, “Praise the Lord” but I am thankful God has changed my heart so I want to say that.  When I utter that phrase, by God’s grace, I mean it. Derek…

Psalm 146 by Pastor Lawrence The last five chapters in the book of Psalms (146-150) are often referred to as the Hallelujah Psalms for each of these psalms begins and ends with the exclamatory phrase “praise the Lord,” which is the English translation of the Hebrew word “Hallelujah!” This psalm seems to serve a liturgical function in the corporate worship of the Lord for the psalmist first exhorts God’s people in the plural to worship…

Psalm 145 by Pastor Mark Hudson We continue to read and reflect on the most read, the most studied, and the book that has engendered more books, more speeches, more articles, more schools than any book ever. People all over the world read this book over and over.  Day after day.  Year after year.  And we get to read it in our own language on any device we have. John Stott divides this Psalm very…

Psalm 144 by Pastor David Groendyk The first 11 verses of this psalm are all spoken in a singular voice. King David is asking the Lord for protection, rescue, and action for himself. It’s very similar to Psalm 18, which David also wrote, both of which are psalms fit for a warrior, as Derek Kidner says. They’re bold, they’ve got war on the mind, they invoke God’s terrifying presence, and they confidently call for deliverance.…

Psalm 143 by Pastor Lawrence If you’ve read all of the psalms prior to this one, most of the phrasing that is used here by David should sound familiar to you, for he uses the same expressions on a number of other occasions, which is actually helpful for us in interpreting his meaning in this passage, since there are many other contexts for us to pull from. David is still being pursued by his enemies,…

Psalm 142 by Pastor David Groendyk The title of this psalm is similar to Psalm 57. Both bear in their inscriptions “in the cave.” Probably this points back to 1 Samuel 22 when David was on the run from Saul. Take a moment to read Psalm 57, then come back to read Psalm 142 and notice the similarities and differences in David’s two psalms both in terms of the language he uses and the tone.…

Psalm 141 by Pastor Lawrence This psalm doesn’t fit neatly into any of the major types normally used to categorize the psalms. It is very unique in it approach as David at first lifts up his cry to God for help which is typical of a lament, then transitions into what might seem like a wisdom psalm before ending on an imprecatory note. This psalm was likely composed by David when he was being pursued…

Psalm 140 by Pastor David Groendyk Psalm 140 is both a song and a prayer, and it is a lament from the psalmist regarding conspirators and enemies who are hunting him down. The ESV Study Bible helpfully points out a back-and-forth pattern to this psalm in which the psalmist asks for help, then expresses confidence, asks for help, then expresses confidence. The pattern can be prescriptive for us as we seek the Lord’s protection in…