Exodus 6 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson The exodus is a God-centered, theological event.  If you know American history, you know the exodus is referred to by many groups as they seek release from bondage.  There are certainly parallels with many non-Biblical events but notice how God-centered the Exodus is:…what I will to Pharaoh v. 1; I am the Lord v. 2; I appeared to . . . v. 3; I also established my covenant…

Exodus 5 Devotional by Pastor David Groendyk After Moses performs his miracles in front of the people of Israel and convinces them that God really has heard their cries at the end of chapter 4, I’m sure it’s no stretch to say that the people did not expect what was coming in chapter 5. Pharaoh hardens his heart to the request of Moses and Aaron and refuses to let the people go. But the careful…

Exodus 4 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence In the previous chapter, when the Lord had revealed himself to Moses in the fiery bush and had called on him to be a prophet, Moses had come up with a number of excuses on why he was the wrong man for the job.  First, he suggested that he was just a “nobody” who had no business confronting the Pharaoh, but the Lord God gave him a sign to…

Exodus 3 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson The beginning of this great chapter is the slavery the Israelites endured in Egypt.  If you were there, you would conclude that God has left you.  This was cruel servitude and there seemed no way out.  This slavery went on for years.  Years of cruelty, grueling work, desert heat, and as much hope as freedom.  If you were a slave, you could have not known the truth of…

Exodus 2 Devotional by Pastor David Groendyk Following the book of Genesis, the book of Exodus shows us that our Creator God is also our Redeemer God who keeps the covenant promises he made to his people. Already we’ve seen that Israel has become fruitful and multiplied greatly (1:7), just as God said they would. Now we see the beginnings of God rescuing his people from their enemies. Chapter 2 is the origin story for…

Exodus 1 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence          The book of Exodus picks up where Genesis left off with the sons of Jacob, also called Israel, living in the land of Egypt.  By this time, Joseph and his brothers have all passed away, so too has the king of Egypt, and now a new pharaoh has arisen who did not know Joseph nor respect Israel.  Even though Joseph was the noble instrument used by God to…

2 Timothy 2 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence In this chapter, Paul gives a charge to Timothy, the young evangelist serving in Ephesus, and compares his life of ministry to a number of other callings in life, first to a soldier, then an athlete, a farmer, and later on a general worker.  In reference to the calling of a solider, Paul commends a couple of things to Timothy.  First, that he ought to be willing to…

II Timothy 1 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson If you believe in and teach doctrine, do you think you can also be loving? Some people hear the words doctrine, confessions, tradition and they feel rigidity, a detached aloofness, and a person who does not care about people. The kind of people that say that do not pay enough attention to the Bible. I want to show that Paul was one of the most doctrine oriented…

Lamentations 5 by Pastor David Groendyk This book closes with the whole of the community crying out to God for restoration. These people have been brought very low, but it’s also brought them to the place where they need to be—a place of prayer. Let’s consider just the last four verses of this chapter and how it teaches us to cry out to God for mercy after being brought low by sin and suffering. Verse…

Lamentations 4 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson           If you don’t know the Bible well, you may not realize the range and the depth of emotions the Biblical authors explore.  If you read the Bible as a literary expert, when you read Lamentations, Job, and the Psalms you would realize what a literary treasure this book is.  This chapter is a lesson on mourning and grief.            Biblical authors take time with grief.  Maybe because…

Lamentations 3 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence Bowlin    In the first sixteen verses of this chapter, Jeremiah continues his lamentation identifying himself closely with the nation of Judah in her sin and misery and retelling in very vivid language what the Lord has done to them in his wrath, as if it were done to him personally.  For example, he says, “He has made my flesh and my skin waste away…he has made my chains…

Lamentations 2 by Pastor David Groendyk If we don’t slow down while we read through the book of Lamentations, we’re liable to miss some of the nuances between different chapters. Each chapter in this book is a different song describing a different aspect of the fall of Jerusalem. Chapter 1 highlighted the terrible state that the city of Jerusalem was in after Babylon destroyed it. Chapter 2 highlights the fact that God himself was the…

Lamentations 1 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson We live in a relatively happy-clappy church age so I love the fact that the Bible has an entire book called Lamenting.  Okay, Lamentations.  But this is a book set aside for reflecting on life in the minor key.  If you read the entire Bible, and especially the Psalms, you will find people that are grieving, mourning, and experiencing sadness and loss.  North American Christians don’t know much…

1 Timothy 6 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence          The apostle Paul begins this chapter examining the conduct of bondservants toward their masters.  He says that they are to “regard them as worthy of all honor.”  Notice, here, that Paul isn’t merely addressing their outward behavior toward their masters, but even their secret thoughts toward them.  How we regard other people can be seen by how we look at them, but it is actually determined by…

1 Timothy 5 by Pastor David Groendyk Today’s chapter has more basic instructions for how the church should function, and the key word here is “honor”. Every relationship in the church ought to be characterized by mutually showing one another honor and respect, in whatever way is appropriate for that person. First of all, Paul gives general commands for how everyone in the church should treat everyone else. Older men are to be treated as…

I  Timothy 4 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson           Solid Doctrine or good deeds?  If you asked most North American Christians which is more important, most will say good deeds.  A cry in the previous century was `Life over doctrine.’  It sounds great but it is not great.  That emphasis, which is ironically also a doctrine, is unworkable.  `Life over doctrine’ is a doctrine.  Without a Biblical, appropriate emphasis on doctrine you develop your own…

1 Timothy 3 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence Bowlin After explaining to Timothy in the previous chapter that he doesn’t permit a woman to teach or have authority over a man, the apostle Paul moves on to the subject of qualified men who are permitted to have authority within the church.  In vv.14-15 he tells Timothy that he is writing these things to him, now, in case his arrival at Ephesus is delayed so that the…

1 Timothy 2 by Pastor David Groendyk You could summarize this letter written by Paul to Timothy as basic instructions for the church. One of the topics Paul touches on repeatedly is watching out for false teachers. Just a quick scan of the book and section headers shows us that subject in (at least) chapters 1, 4, and 6. Interspersed between these sections on false teachers are other instructions for what a godly church should…

Jeremiah 52 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence Bowlin This final chapter in the book of Jeremiah seems to be taken almost entirely from a narrative section in the book of 2 Kings.  The first three verses of Jer. 52 are exactly the same as what is found in 2 Kings 24:18-20, and then the six following verses, are, again, exactly the same as those found in 2 Kings 25:1-6.  The remaining verses of this chapter follow…

Jeremiah 51 by Pastor David Groendyk This prophecy that Jeremiah speaks is his last, and it is surely one of his greatest. The theme verse for this chapter is verse 5a: “For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken by their God, the Lord of hosts.” God has not left his people behind to wallow in despair, but, in fact, he will vindicate them by taking out vengeance on Babylon. Vengeance and vindication characterize this…

Jeremiah 50 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson Now God’s judgment comes to Babylon. We have seen God judging the surrounding nations. But Babylon has been THE nation discussed in this book. Since this is a long section, here are some observations about the chapter overall. From the Word Biblical Commentary, “The oracles concerning Babylon in 50:1-51:58 compose almost half of the material in the collection of oracles concerning the nations in Jer. 46-51 (104 verses…