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Hope amid hardship
Philippians 1:21–30 is part of the lectionary readings for the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, which is September 20th. Philippi was an ancient town that was originally called Krenides. This means “springs,” which was probably a reflection of its abundant water supply. The city was renamed by King Philip II of Macedonia when he subdued it around 356 b.c. Later, Philippi became a strategic Roman colony, since it was situated on a major road (called the Via Egnatia) that linked Rome with the continent of Asia. This Greek city was located about 10 miles north of the Aegean Sea and was coveted for its gold mines and fertile soil. During Paul’s…
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The Seven Feasts of Israel – Passover
These are the Lord’s appointed times, holy assemblies, which you must proclaim at their appointed time. (Leviticus 23:4 NET) 0
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Rescued by God
Exodus 14:19–31 is part of the lectionary readings for the fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost, which is September 13th. We learned last week that after the deaths of all the firstborn in Egypt, Pharaoh yielded to the Lord’s demands and ordered the Israelites to leave his land (5:2–12:31). God did not lead the Israelites on the shortest route between Egypt and Canaan. The shortest route to the promised land would have been along the Mediterranean Sea and would have taken only a few weeks. Essentially a military road of the Egyptians, this route went through Amalekite and Philistine country. Along this route were many Egyptian military outposts. God knew that if…
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A new beginning for God’s people
Exodus 12:1–14 is part of the lectionary readings for the fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost, which is September 6th. Previously, God revealed to Moses that He would harden Pharaoh’s heart. Even though the Lord would perform increasingly severe “signs and wonders” (7:3) throughout Egypt, the nation’s ruler would refuse to listen to Moses. Yet, Pharaoh’s stubbornness would only intensify the great “acts of judgment” (v. 4) the Lord would use to bring His people out of Egypt. Furthermore, these miraculous deeds would prove to the Egyptians that the God of Israel was the sovereign Lord of the universe (v. 5). It’s helpful to remember that Egypt was polytheistic, which means the…
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The Women of the Tabernacle
At some point after the Tent of Meeting was built, women were designated to serve at its entrance. There is very little mention of these Tabernacle Women in scripture save for two scripture verses and possibly a third, fourth, and fifth. The First Biblical Reference for the Women of the Tabernacle He made the large basin of bronze and its pedestal of bronze from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance of the tent of meeting. (Exodus 38:8 NET) And he made the laver of brass, and the base thereof of brass, of the mirrors of the serving women that did service at the door of the…
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Taking a stand for what is right
Exodus 1:9–2:10 is part of the lectionary readings for the twelfth Sunday after Pentecost, which is August 23rd. For the sake of brevity, this study primarily focuses on the narrative in chapter 1. Genesis reveals how Joseph was sold into slavery by his jealous brothers. Yet, in time, Joseph rose to prominence in Egypt and became the prime minister. When famine struck Canaan, Joseph’s brothers sought relief in Egypt. While there, they happened upon their long-lost brother and discovered that he was in a position to get them the resources they needed to keep from starving. Joseph forgave his brothers. And since the famine was continuing to worsen, he invited…
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Imagine There’s No Lennon
“Imagine there’s no heaven. It’s easy if you try. No hell below us, above us only sky…” I find the above one of the saddest thoughts ever put to music. Unfortunately this song has become the Humanist theme song. At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic and shutdown, a bunch of celebrities decided to sing this song acapella and share it with the world… for some reason. Why? It is a melancholy, hopeless song… at least on the surface. And John Lennon is dead. Imagine there is no heaven, no place where people finally find rest from a life of toil and struggle, pain and sorrow. Imagine there is nothing…
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Joseph, used by God to preserve a remnant
Genesis 45:1–15 is part of the lectionary readings for the eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, which is August 16th. Genesis 41:53-57 leaves the impression that life was busy and absorbing for Joseph, both personally and professionally. It became even more so as seven years of drought and famine began, for Pharaoh directed his starving population to go to Joseph for the food they needed to survive. The famine extended even to Canaan and affected its inhabitants. Moreover, chapters 42–44 reveal that as the situation worsened throughout the Fertile Crescent, Jacob was forced to send his remaining sons (except for Joseph’s full brother, Benjamin) to Egypt to buy grain for the family.…
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Book Review: “The Rage Against God” by Peter Hitchens
“In the names of reason, science, and liberty they [have] proved, rather effectively, that good societies need God to survive and that when you have murdered him, starved him, silenced him, denied him to the children, and erased his festivals and memory, you have a gap that cannot indefinitely be filled by any human, nor anything made by human hands…. [Yet] A new and intolerant utopianism seeks to drive the remaining traces of Christianity from Europe and North America. This time, it does so mainly in the cause of personal liberation, born in the 1960s cultural revolution, and now inflamed into special rage by any suggestion that the sexual urge…
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Joseph’s dream
Genesis 37:1–4 and 12–28 are part of the lectionary readings for the tenth Sunday after Pentecost, which is August 9th. The narrative concerning Joseph begins when he was a young man of 17. Joseph and some of his brothers were taking care of his father’s flocks (v. 2). The brothers had done something inappropriate while they were away from home tending the sheep. Joseph saw the wrongdoing and informed Jacob. Commentators take different views of Joseph’s action. Some censure him as a tattletale, while others commend him for acting as a conscientious son. Although the text doesn’t state it, the brothers undoubtedly felt bitterness toward their younger sibling because he…
