Category Archives: Bible study

If Not You

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1 Timothy 1:3-11

Paul left Timothy in Ephesus and gave him the responsibility of guarding the truth against false doctrine and those who were teaching it. Makes me wonder who is guarding the truth today. Or are the things Paul warned Timothy about not applicable in 2025?

The thing is, I don’t think false doctrine is a result of evil men sitting around a table in a dark, smoke-filled room with Satan, coming up with strategies to derail the Gospel. I think it generally comes from good men wanting the Gospel to be inviting, fun, attractive, and accepted by all. What could be wrong in that, right?

I think these are probably praying men, but not listening men. They may tell God what they’re going to do for Him, without hearing what He wants from them. They use Scripture, but they don’t understand it.

The Church has used “church-speak” for so long the words have taken on false meaning without us realizing it.

“God is love,” has come to mean God accepts everyone.

“Don’t judge,” means what is right for me doesn’t have to be right for you.

“Enter his court with praise,” means worship ought to be fun, our demonstration equal to that of a football fan at the Super Bowl, an experience that leaves us with a euphoric, spiritual high.

Do you recognize the subtle falseness that renders such doctrine fruitless? How can we recognize the counterfeit? By studying the real thing. Our time in the Bible ought to exceed our time listening to sermons, reading commentaries and religious literature.

Bank tellers learn to recognize counterfeit bills, not by studying the counterfeit, but by studying the real thing so that they can recognize ANY deviation.

Do you want to guard the truth? Read your Bible. Read it again. Read it often. Memorize it. Think on it. Let it become so real to you that you can recognize ANY deviation.

Then what? Is it enough for you to know the truth? If we are to guard the truth we need to speak up. Question. Point out errors. Hold each other accountable for what we believe and say.

If not you – who?

Living in Poverty

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Ruth 2:1-7

What does it say that Ruth was so willing to go to work upon arriving in Bethlehem? She was an undocumented immigrant, penniless, homeless except for any property still in Naomi’s family name. But it doesn’t seem like she waited to see if the neighbors would provide, or if there was government assistance. She knew that if she was going to eat, she would have to go to work.

We could make this about financial poverty, food stamps and free healthcare. But I think there might be a more important lesson here.

Too many Christians are living in systemic spiritual poverty. They are taught to pray like their parents prayed, “Bless me, God. Heal me. Provide for my needs, God,” and expect spiritual hand-outs. But are they willing to do the work?

Do they spend quality time in God’s Word? Do they pray for more than themselves? Do they give, go, grow, obey. Are they the hands and feet of Jesus? Do they surrender their wills and have the mind of Christ?

James tells us that we might have faith, but if we don’t do something about it, our faith is worthless. I think that’s what spiritual poverty looks like.

The thing about living in financial poverty is it can become the norm after a generation or two. It can become a mind-set and an expectation.

The same is true for spiritual poverty. I guess what I see here in the book of Ruth is, God has a better plan. It’s a plan to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (from Jeremiah 19:11)

Are you living in spiritual poverty? Do you feel God isn’t hearing your prayers, not meeting your needs? Then, like Ruth, get to work. The blessings are just around the corner.

Proceed With Caution

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Ruth 1

Naomi was broken. There was nothing for her in Moab, and life for a widow with no sons in Israel promised only poverty and disgrace. Maybe she hoped someone would have pity and provide for her. But there was no guarantee. My heart breaks for her.

Not knowing what was ahead, how could she bring the daughters-in-law she loved into such dire circumstances? They had homes and families and means to flourish in Moab. It seems Naomi thought they would be better off going home.

Liz Curtis Higgs (“The Girl’s Still Got It,” WaterBrook Press, 2012) is way too hard on Naomi, and without reason. I see Naomi as a woman beaten down, drowning in sorrow, afraid and lost. I actually think Ruth saw her that way, too.

I think Ruth also saw that, for all her brokenness, Naomi was determined to go back to God. It was Naomi’s faith – as weak as it may have been at the moment – that drew Ruth to believing in Naomi’s God. Her beautiful vow of love for Naomi and her pledge to embrace God for herself sealed the deal. Ruth was all in – a believer leaving behind her past and forging ahead toward the One True God.

Scripture tells us after Ruth’s vow, Naomi stopped talking to her. It doesn’t say why. It doesn’t say for how long. If we are going to read something into that, I’m going to read that Naomi was overcome, speechless in that moment. She had no more argument, no more reason to keep pleading with Ruth to return home.

Once again, I take issue with what Mrs. HIggs (The Girl’s Still Got It; WaterBrook Press; 2012) reads into this. She seems to think Naomi was giving Ruth “the silent treatment.”

“Is she angry, fearful, exhausted? All of the above, judging by her body language.” (p 52)

Are you scratching your head after reading that? What about it do you question? Is it the fact that Scripture says nothing about Naomi’e body language? How can we judge what we don’t know?

After citing this book yesterday, I have to say I’m not sure I can recommend it as a reliable commentary on the book of Ruth. I see it as more fiction with some spiritual truth thrown in. It’s an enjoyable read, but not something to base your theology on. (My opinion).

However, a book like this can test your understanding of Scripture. Can you separate opinion from fact? Can you tell where assumptions are presented as truth? Please don’t read this book, or any book or blog or listen to podcasts and sermons, and simply accept it as truth without sifting it through Scripture yourself. I’m including this blog in that list of reading materials you need to test before accepting what is said.

So, I’m going to ask you to go back to the beginning of this post and read it again. This time look for my opinions stated as fact. What do you see? I may be right about my opinions. I may be wrong. Scripture doesn’t say specifically what Naomi was thinking or why she quit talking. Can you identify what I said that came straight from the mouth of God, and what came out of my own interpretation?

This is what I want you to get from this: If you choose to read books about the Bible, read the Bible. If you like to get different viewpoints on Scripture, read the Scripture for yourself. There are some great books out there. But there are some questionable, and some downright heretical books out there, too.

Proceed with caution. Don’t let someone think for you. Don’t let someone fashion your theology with assumptions and opinions.. Read the Bible. Read it again. Memorize it. Love it.

We call the Bible God’s Word because these are the words He wants you to read and learn from. I’m thankful for scholars who have studied the Bible and can explain context and meaning in ways I can understand. But they are not the final word.

God was very clear to say we are not to add to or subtract from what He inspired men to write. The Scriptures are closed. And they are enough exactly as they were penned thousands of years ago.

So go ahead, read those books. Take those classes. Listen to those teachers. But proceed with caution.

Hold Your Horses

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Genesis 39:1-6

If you wonder why God would allow Joseph to go through the hardships he faced, wonder no more. Warren Wiersbe in his study, Be Authentic suggests that if Joseph had been allowed to remain at home, the favored and pampered son, hated by his brothers he would not have been fit to fulfill the responsibilities of leading a nation. Joseph had to learn humility, service, hard work, and faith before God could use him in such a significant way.

Think about it. Even Jesus, after being baptized, took forty days in the wilderness before jumping into ministry. Paul didn’t get up from the dirty road to Damascus and start preaching. In fact, it seems he spent time in Arabia being taught by Jesus Himself (Galatians 1), then three years being an apprentice preaching in Damascus before he went to Jerusalem.

Remember John Mark? As a young man he failed completely in ministry alongside Paul and Barnabas. Years later, Mark became an important help to Paul. But he had to mature first.

I think churches make a mistake when they take a new believer and put him or her in positions of authority before they’ve had time to mature in their new-found faith. Sure, they are on fire for the Lord and it’s tempting to think that’s just what the Church needs. But the Church does NOT need ministry based on feelings. In fact, I would suggest that harms the Church more than it helps.

When Jesus gave us His last command, He told us to go and make disciples. He didn’t tell us to go and make converts. Making disciples takes time and effort. But without it a new believer stays an infant.

You don’t put a newborn baby behind the wheel of a car. Why? The same applies to putting a new believer in front of a classroom, or on the elder board, or making him pastor of your church. A baby doesn’t have what it takes to drive the car, and a new Christian doesn’t have what it takes to drive the ministry.

It took years of hardship, forced labor, tough lessons and a growing faith for Joseph to be ready to be used by God. Let’s, as mature Christians, have discernment enough to do the same for the new believer.

They may be excited about their salvation, all in, totally committed to Jesus. But sometimes you gotta say: Hold your horses! There are no shortcuts to maturity. The thing about growing in faith and knowledge of our Lord is that it doesn’t put out the flame, it feeds it. If you are afraid this excited young Christian will lose that excitement if you take time to nurture him, you either are not trusting God, or you don’t really trust the truth of their salvation.

If you are a new Christian, welcome to the family. Let me encourage you to find a mature Christian to come along side you, to hold you accountable, to teach you, mentor you, challenge and encourage you as you learn what being a Christian is all about.

If you are a seasoned Christian, be that person to a new believer. Seek them out. Spend time praying with and for them. Read the Bible with them. Ask and answer questions. Watch them grow.

Then watch them be used by God at just the right time. One day that “Hold your horses” will be “Giddy-up!”

A Sure Foundation

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Genesis 1-11; Matthew 7:21-27

I finished Warren Wiersbe’s BE BASIC study today. (Be Basic; David C Cook Publisher; 2010). The first eleven chapters of Genesis are foundational to the Christian faith.

What do I believe about Creation, the sanctity of life, sin, the consequences for sin? What do I believe about God? Were Adam and Eve real people who lived in a real garden, walked with God, and spoke to a serpent? Did the flood really cover the whole earth? Did the different nationalities and languages start at Babel? And was Abraham a real man chosen by God to be the instrument by which we can know God and be saved from the consequences of our sin?

The answer to these questions are foundational to our faith. If we don’t believe what we read in Genesis, we make God out to be a liar. Who wants to put their faith in a liar?

You might say you believe in God while rejecting the God-breathed creation account. You might teach Sunday School or sing in the choir, yet doubt the flood really happened. You might say you have faith in God, but unless your faith is built on the God of Genesis 1-11, you might stand before Him one day and hear the words, “I never knew you.”

I would challenge you to read Genesis 1-11 and take an inventory of what you really believe about it. To build your faith on the absolute truth of these chapters is to build your faith on the Rock of the one true God. To believe anything else is a faith built on sand, and it won’t stand at the final judgment.

I agree with Wiersbe. It might be time to get back to basics.

Smart Enough

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Genesis 3:1-6

When you were young and your mother told you the red coil on top of the stove was hot so you shouldn’t touch it or you’d get burned, you had a choice. Some of us took our moms at her word and avoided the red coil. Some of you might be wearing the scars from the burn, or at least remember the pain you felt when you questioned the truth of what Mom said, and decided to find out for yourself.

One criticism of Christianity is that we simply believe the Bible as true without questioning it. The critics imply that we are not intellectual or just gullible or that we are missing out on the enlightenment of the universe (or some such nonsense).

Consider what questioning God’s Word did for Eve. Satan planted a seed of doubt. But instead of going back to the Word of God, she began to use her own logic. The seed of doubt grew to rejecting God’s Word, and to sin.

I will not apologize for believing the infallibility of God’s Word. I will not be intimidated by the intellectual sounding arguments of some. I will not even consider any other so-called truth.

I don’t need to touch the hot stove to see if what Mom said was true.

God, who created me, inspired His Words to be written down so that I can hear and accept the warning, so that I could hear and accept His grace. His Words are true because God is true.

I’m certainly not smarter than God. But I”m smart enough to take His Word for it.

In The Beginning God…

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Genesis 1:1

Happy New Year, 2025. Praying that God will be glorified in you, and that you will know the joy that comes from an honest relationship with your Savior. What a privilege we have to know our Creator as our friend.

This year, instead of reading the Bible through, I’ve chosen to do a topical series of studies written by Warren Wiersbe known as the “BE Series.” I’m starting with “Be Basic,” a study on Genesis 1-11. Not sure what this will look like, or how often I’ll post my thoughts. But my plan is to read the study along with God’s Word every day, journal my thoughts, and meditate on the beauty of Scripture as led by Rev. Wiersbe.

Today I was challenged to considered the first four words of the Bible: “In the beginning God…”

What does it mean to me that God is eternal? I can’t wrap my mind around “always existed.” I think I can imagine eternity future, never ending. But eternity past? How long did God exist before He created anything? What did He do all that time?

And there’s my answer. Words like “always,” or “future,” “ending,” “past,” “before,” and “time” are words bound by time. God exists outside of time. He exists in a perpetual “now.”

It’s not that He was or will be. It’s that He is. He just is. He even identified Himself as such when He told Moses, “I AM.” The disconnect comes with me, with my finite mind, limited understanding.

It’s like standing inches away from the Mona Lisa, gazing at it through a paper straw. If I tried to describe what I saw, or tried to imagine the whole, I would fail miserably. I would only be seeing the painting in part, I would not be able to understand the beauty of it. I would be limited by the lens through which I was looking.

Right now we can only know God in part. Our lens is like that of a paper straw. I love what I see through that straw, in nature and in His written Word. But if what I see of Him is limited by time and space, the whole of Him must be spectacular!

Even in my limited view of God, I see Him as all-powerful, all-knowing, kind, compassionate, faithful, true, righteous, and holy, singularly worthy of my worship. I can face the New Year with confidence, not because of who I am or what I’ve accomplished, or how determined I am to become a better person. I can face 2025 with confidence because of WHO GOD IS!

I can stand on the truth of, “In the beginning God…” because it’s THAT God I depend on.

Stay On The Ship

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Acts 27

I was talking to my pastor yesterday about how easy it can be to believe a lie. If you take time to listen to people who reject God, you being to understand their point of view. That can be a good thing, and I hope we are all investing ourselves in people we love and who are rejecting God. But when our understanding of their viewpoint becomes acceptance, we have a problem.

Paul was heading to Rome to be tried for bogus crimes the Jews made up to get rid of him. The ship he was sailing on got caught in a hurricane-force storm that pummeled them for weeks. The soldiers did everything they knew what to do to save the ship from being torn to pieces. They naturally feared for their lives, so Paul encouraged them with a word from God:

But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost, only the ship will be destroyed. Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar, and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.” So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. (Acts 27:22-25)

In other words, stay in the ship and God has promised me you will be saved. Some of the sailors panicked, however. In their minds, and from what they believed about ships and storms, they determined the better option was to escape to land by lifeboats. They began to lower the lifeboats with the intention of abandoning the ship, in opposition to the Word of God.

When Paul saw what they were doing, he said to the centurion guarding him:

Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved. (Acts 27:31b)

So the ropes were cut, the lifeboats dropped empty into the raging sea. And although the ship was lost, not one of those men lost his life.

I think the moral of the story is the Word of God. Do you believe it or not?

We must sift everything we hear through the words God spoke. We must shape our world-view, our morality, our stand on what is right and what is wrong, our definition of sin and its punishment, our understanding of grace and mercy and love, through the lens of Scripture.

We all hear things from time to time that sound reasonable, maybe even scriptural. And maybe we think: “Ok. I can see their point. Maybe they have something there.”

BUT WAIT!

Before you go any further with that thought you better ask yourself: what does Scripture say? Not just a random verse taken out of context. What does God really say, how did it play out in the lives of the Old Testament Jews, how did Jesus embody the words spoken by the prophets?

Dear ones, there is one Truth. Anything that veers from that Truth is merely opinion and is nothing to stand on. Anything that is not Truth is a lie.

There is one salvation. There is one ship. To attempt to save yourself any other way is death.

I can confidently say that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one goes to the Father without going through Jesus. I can say you must be born again. I can say that faith comes through hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

I can tell you that Scripture is God-breathed and it is the first and final authority.

I can say those things unapologetically, having built my life on the truth of it, because those words are in the Bible and the truth of them is demonstrated in those precious pages, and in my life.

Again I ask you concerning to the Word of God: do you believe it or not? Your life depends on your answer.

I’m Excited

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The Gospels

Every time I start reading the Gospels I get excited. After nine months of reading the Old Testament, I finally arrive at what the prophets, the Law, even the lives of the Jewish people pointed me toward – Jesus!

As hard as it is to read parts of the Old Testament, I still love it. I love looking for pictures of Jesus in the day-to-day lives of the Jews, through the words of the prophets, and the poets. I think it’s an amazing part of the Bible and there is something to learn on every page. It provides the backdrop and helps us understand the significance of what we are about to read in the New Testament. – Jesus!

The fulfillment of every word from Genesis to Malachi – Jesus!

I love reading the Old Testament. But I can’t help but get excited when I turn the page to the New. What a privilege it is to get to know my Savior through the eyes of people who knew Him!

I pray that God will open my eyes, draw me closer, challenge, convict, strengthen me, and reveal Himself a bit more as I spend the next three months in the New Testament.

I’m excited!

Someone to Confide In

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Psalm 25

Do you have someone you can confide in? Some you can tell your most intimate thoughts and feelings to, and have the confidence to know they will not betray you with that information? I hope you do. And I hope you are that to them as well.

Now here’s what blew me away today. Are you ready for this?

The Lord confides in those who fear him, he makes his covenant known to them. (verse 14)

Wow. God confides in us?

To me, that speaks of the precious, intimate relationship I can enjoy with God. But I never thought about it as a two-way street. Sure, I know I can go to Him and pour my heart out and be confident that He hears. I know I can trust Him with my most intimate thoughts.

I guess the question is: can He trust me with the same?

When I read His Word, do I listen to His heart? I can’t have a real friendship if I don’t. Intimacy isn’t the responsibility of just one party. It takes two to be intimate. It takes two to make a friendship.

If God confides in those who fear Him, can He confide in me? Do I fear, respect, honor, and obey Him so that He knows He can trust me with His heart? You don’t confide in, share your heart with someone who disrespects you or who doesn’t value you.

And, evidently neither does God.