Considering the Bible

Jesus in the Old Testament – Daniel – 7

2026-05-19

Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.

I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.

SEEING JESUS IN

Daniel

Sentenced to Death by an Unwilling Judge

Daniel 6:14 Then the king, when he heard these words, was much distressed and set his mind to deliver Daniel. And he labored till the sun went down to rescue him.

Matthew 27:24 So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.”

As those who were hunting for Daniel’s life finally delivered Daniel up to the king, they found the king an unwilling participant in his own laws and edicts.

Yes the laws of the Medes and Persians, once codified could not be rescinded or changed, and this was the strength of those who plotted Daniel’s destruction.

But it fell on the king himself to actually pass judgement on the “crime” Daniel perpetrated, and how it must have struck King Darius’s conscience and heart to think he was led into this trap through his pride and arrogance.

King Darius must have had his own “night with the lions”, after having failed to rescue Daniel, and then spent the night struggling with his thoughts.

Daniel 6:18 Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him.

This trap haunted King Darius, for Daniel was a trusted servant, one who deserved nothing remotely like this! And the king was the first to approach Daniel’s “tomb”, and it appears he had hope, for he called out to Daniel.

Daniel 6:20 …. The king declared to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?”

That night changed King Darius.

Centuries later, a Roman official by the name of Pilate also was forced to condemn an innocent man by the pressure of the people. He used multiple methods to rescue Jesus, but to his utter shock, the death was demanded, and the people used the laws of the Romans to make it happen!

Pilate might not have been changed by this event, for we only have the lightest of records that may hint he might have converted. Most historians think not, although it appears his wife did seek to follow the Crucified One.

Might she have prayed him into the Kingdom? Would that not be a trophy of grace?

Nevertheless, we see both Daniel and Jesus condemned to death by unwilling judges, having their lives snuffed out by those without authority pressuring those in authority.

The more things change, the more they stay the same!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Names of God – HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD – 281

2026-05-18

My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.

The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.

The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.

May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.

281

HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD

Matthew 21:9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

To come in the Name of the Lord.

What does that mean? What did it mean when these crowds shouted out “in the name of of the Lord”

In the Name of the Lord, we may understand the Lord’s…

IDENTITY

Did the crowds understand this Rabbi’s true identity? Were they openly confessing He was Emmanuel, God with us?

Some identified His person clearly and without hesitation.

Matthew 16:16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

As He was heralded by the crowd as coming in the Name of the Lord, His disciples must have been beaming. They had hitched their horse to a winner! Little did they understand the extent this Rabbi would go to display the heart of God, revealing the identity of our God beyond what we and they could have imagined. Jesus identified the True God as a sacrificially loving Servant to those who despise and would crucify Him.

Who could have identified God in such a way, providing to all such a glorious act of love to those who hate Him, even to death. None other than the One who came in the Name of the Lord. He revealed the identity of God in a manner beyond any of our imaginations.

In the Name of the Lord, we may understand the Lord’s…

CHARACTER

Surely, after watching His miracles, listening to His message and seeing His life amongst them fully on display, the crowd most surely associated this Rabbi as God’s prophet. The Rabbi lived a life that could not be condemned and though He was sentenced to death, it was through deceit and malice. His character was stellar, without a blemish, and perfect for a sacrifice.

1 Peter 1:19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.

Perfect, without blemish as a sacrifice.

In the Name of the Lord, we may understand the Lord’s…

AUTHORITY

Authority is the right to command an action without being challenged. Of course, the Lord is the Almighty, the One who spoke and galaxies began their existence, a small blue ball grew a garden and He granted life to two souls. He parted the waters, and defeated the enemies.
Jesus, as He came down to be with His people, continued exhibiting His authority, over and over again. We see Him exercising His authority over the laws of nature (calming the wind and sea), the laws of physics, (walking on the water) the laws of biology (healing the blind and deaf), and the law of sin and death (raising multiple dead people). He displayed His authority over and over again, yet not for Himself. Throughout His time with us, He did not exercise His authority for His own sake, from not in creating bread for His hunger, through to deliverance from His suffering.

The One Coming in the Name of the Lord truly exhibited God’s identity, character and authority more than any in the crowd could have imagined.

I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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1 Thessalonian Bits – 4:3

2026-05-17

A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 4:3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;

Let’s remember that Paul is reminding these dear folk of his instructions for life in this and following passages. And he starts this list, describing the sanctification believers are to follow after with the topic of sex.

I find that very instructive, as we live in a culture drowning in sex. A culture that has not only exposed everyone to every sexual temptation, but is perverting in every way the sexual aspect of our lives.

And what does Paul say regarding sex? Abstain.

Well not absolutely!

It is sexual immorality that the believer is to abstain from. Let me remind my reader that Scriptural passages speak of sex within a marriage is “to be rejoiced in” and a pleasure to be experienced between two people. The Proverbs get quite explicit in describing the sexual intimacies!

Proverbs 5:18-19 Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight; be intoxicated always in her love.

I will let me reader peruse the book of Songs, where Solomon speaks of his love, and sexual desire, for the object of his love.

So when Paul is directing the believers to abstain from sexual immoralities, he is directing them to be faithful to their wives as a first step. Entering an unfaithful union outside of the marriage bond is strictly forbidden per multitudes of Scriptural commands, but I think Paul is going further than simply informing them of this restriction.

I think this way due to the term he uses in describing the actions the believers are to follow. They are to abstain.

Now, when I hear the term abstain, I think – Don’t do it! Simply don’t get involved. It is like the old saying that I hear from some – “You can look but you can’t touch”.

As long as we “don’t do it”, we may feel we have obeyed this instruction from Paul. Yet the term “abstain” in the Greek seems to carry with it the concept of distance.

Strong’s Dictionary actually defines the term for us.

ἀπέχω apéchō, ap-ekh’-o; from G575 and G2192; (actively) to have out, i.e. receive in full; (intransitively) to keep (oneself) away, i.e. be distant…. (italics mine)

How should we understand this alternate idea? Does it allow for viewing of sexual immorality, as long as we “don’t do it”? I would suggest this might not be Paul’s intent. And the application for those of us in our sexually dominated culture may be quite extensive.

How do we choose the movies we watch? If scenes of sexual immorality come up, (and when do they not?), do we turn away, do we skip the scene or do we simply turn off the flick?

If we go to a party and the music starts, with the dancing becoming explicit, as we have seen become popular in days past, do we jump on the dance floor and participate, or do we turn away, even leaving the celebration? This particular case needs wisdom, as some responses to this experience may be perceived as a “holier than thou” stance. It may appear as a judgmental position that is not, in my opinion, a good witness!

How about when you are grocery shopping and the magazine covers show too much skin – whatever that may be in your estimation – do you turn away, do you seek to honor God?

Even as you are interacting in the office or the work site, there may be some who seek attention and provide temptation for the eyes. How can we be “distant” from the sexual immorality that may be offered to the eye-gate for consumption.

Paul’s command to abstain from sexual immorality is far reaching, and is not restricted only to those who are in a married relationship. It is a challenge for each of us as we seek to honor the God we love.

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Let Me Tell You a Story – I BELIEVE

2026-05-16

It was early Monday morning, and I was on the feeder road coming into the office, when the following passage came across the speakers.

Mark 9:22 And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”
Mark 9:23 And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.”
Mark 9:24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

You know, it is becoming somewhat consistent that as I am driving in the morning, listening to the Good Book, a passage lights up in my head, a thought is triggered and as I park my little beast, I come to realize that the Word has spoken to me once more.

Let me try to explain.

As I read this passage many time previously, I considered this man’s faith to be like a factory packaged commodity, a generic, one size fits all type of decision or reaction to a person or to God.

Joe and Frank and Tom, along with this father all have the same pre packaged generic faith, and this understanding of mine made it difficult to comprehend the fathers plea to help his unbelief. My goodness – You said you had faith, why confess your unbelief in the next breathe.

Well there may be many reasons for this mans statements, but as I stepped out of my car, it occurred to me that this man’s faith was expressed for a reason – he wanted something.

Was the man admitting the weakness of his faith, that it was self serving and not God honoring? Maybe, but that may be assuming he understood Jesus as God, and I’m not sure he was there yet. One thing for sure, he had an agenda, and it was immediate! He would say anything to save his son. I know I would.

And even with this confession, with a faith that was not 100% pure, a faith that may be considered somewhat hypocritical, the Lord reached out to this family and delivered this man’s son.

So as I pondered on this incident, I started to do a bit of self reflection, remembering times when I exercised faith in the Messiah, driven by various motivations

a Self Serving Faith

It goes without saying that I identify with this man in the area of self serving faith. Seeking the Lord for my will, not thine. It is a low bar of spiritual maturity, but as the afflicted son’s father admitted, I too want to confess.

Help my unbelief.

a Fear based Faith

This faith is somewhat linked to my previous description, for to try to exercise faith due to fear is first of all, to be centered on myself, and secondly to consider the King has left His throne. How can any faith that is born out of fear, (if it can be called faith), be of any value when thought of in this light. He is on the throne, and He is the King. If I believe that, fear will not control me constantly.

A favorite verse that helps me when an overwhelming fear attacks my heart is in the Proverbs.

Proverbs 3:25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes,

I usually remember it as “Fear not sudden fear”, for the old KJV phrased it that way, and it has often calmed my heart, helping me exercise my weak faith in the Strong One.

A Truth based Faith

Truth. This motivation, or basis of belief has strong foundations (if the Word is the authority), yet it can be cold, hard and heartless. Pure unadulterated doctrine has been my passion for decades, yet I found I became a believer who hunted for error, who set unreasonable limits for others, while allowing gaping wholes in my own faith. This type of faith can blind the saint, puffing them us and making them offensive, off putting and ones to avoid. After all, a judge doesn’t attract guilty people!

Yet the Lord speaks of the One who is full of grace and truth, and for the remaining years I have on this blue ball, that mixture of grace and truth will be a goal to pursue. To express truth in a gracious manner is to mirror the Master, but it isn’t simply the message that comes out of my mouth. It is the life that is lived

a Love based Faith

I have a hard time relegating “truth faith” to a secondary position of faith in my mind, but as I am aging in the Lord, there appears to be a better faith, a cleaner, simpler, truer faith that I see on the horizon. It is a faith that is gracious, residing in truth – should I use the term “dwelling” in truth. It is a faith that is somewhat based on a life of walking with the Lord and experiencing His faithfulness, His goodness, His continual interjection into our lives for our good. A faithful ministry in each of our lives providing mercy in the midst of trial, bounty in the midst of difficulties, and rest in the times of stress and strain.

Yes, for a faith to be based in love is the best. And even in my description above, I was thinking of a faith that was fueled by my love for Him.

But ….. There is an even greater faith as I think on this topic.

A faith that rests in His love for us. That faith is unshakable, unrelenting and everlasting.

You know – I have spent over 1000 words to get to this core truth. John has told us this truth in seven simple words.

1 John 4:19 We love because he first loved us.

Yes – for a faith based on His love for us! The best faith, I would suggest. The best!!!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion

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Names of God – HE THAT WORKS MIRACLES AMONG YOU – 280

2026-05-15

My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.

The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.

The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.

May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.

280

HE THAT WORKS MIRACLES AMONG YOU

Galatians 3:5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith–

I am going to confess to those who follow and read my rants, that I am a cessationist. A hardcore cessationist? It is a conviction I have developed over the last four decades, in my studies and in outworking of those who propose the continuation of the gifts in this age.

Before I go any further, let me explain. To be a cessationist is to say that I do not believe prophecy, speaking in tongues, and apostolic healing have continued throughout the church age. These gifts to the church were provided to establish and authenticate the church, and once established as God’s Temple, was no longer required. We have the apostolic teaching, and the very present Spirit of the Lord with us each and every moment. The sign gifts are no longer required.

Is this a stance that should separate true brothers and sisters in the Lord? Absolutely not, for I know I have things in my life many may consider “blind spots”, areas that may need correcting or at least discussion.

Let each man have his faith, as long as it is in the Messiah!

Habakkuk 2:4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.

So when a passage describing the “One who works miracles among you” comes up in my reading, do I automatically refer that to the old days, to the times when God was establishing the church, authenticating His new Temple?

Yes and no. You see, I have lived under His leadership and care for over forty years, and have seen His gracious provision in many quiet miracles in my life. The restoration of my grandson from a drowning, to the timely supply of 87 cents needed to feed my first born for a night. I might claim there is no global need for miracles, no global need for signs, no global need for establishing the church. The church is here and the church is established globally.

But that does not restrict the Lord from providing miracles out of a gracious heart to His people. The time of providing authentication has passed. His Body is alive and active globally, triumphing over His enemies.

But for the individual saint, the one who is following hard after Him, or for that saint who may be struggling, considering his options and in a place of weakness, the Lord provides miracles according to His wisdom, according to His kindness and care for His people, according to His mercy.

Is He a God who works miracles among you? Definitely! Open your eyes and be willing to see the work of God in your life!

I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Conditional Security – Galatians 5:19-21

2026-05-14

Galatians 5:19-21

Galatians 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,
Galatians 5:20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,
Galatians 5:21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Paul has raked these folks over the coals.

From claiming they are listening to angels/teachers that are to be cursed (1:6-10), to retraining them in the fundamental teaching of justification by faith (2:15-21), to calling them foolish, and being bewitched (3:1), to describing the inability of the law to justify anyone (3:10-14), calling them slaves as opposed to their rightful status of sons (4:1-7) and decrying his heart for them in their errors (4:16-20), Paul was astounded at the condition of this church.

We have previously considered Galatians 5:4, where Paul comes right out and says they are severed from Christ. Severed! Attached at one time, and now severed!

Now we come to a passage that provides proof of the life these “believers” were exhibiting, with the fruit of the Spirit being evidence of the Spirit controlled life.

As an aside, to be Spirit filled, or led by the Spirit, or to walk by the Spirit is the equivalent of Spirit controlled! Any who claims to be Spirit filled and yet is not exhibit self control is suspect. Those who insult and abuse others in an effort to “show how spiritual” they are, are not impressing Paul, and should not impress us!

Paul begins to list a number of life characteristics that he describes as “the desires of the flesh”. The list is extensive and Paul indicates these “works of the flesh” are evident, easily recognized by those observing!

Works of the Flesh are evident!

sexual immorality
impurity
sensuality
idolatry
sorcery
enmity
strife
jealousy
fits of anger
rivalries
dissensions
divisions
envy
drunkenness
orgies

Paul provides such a list, so daunting and all encompassing. How many believers that may be reading are not susceptible to at least one of the vices above? To make matters worse, Paul opens up the list of problem vices with the general description of “things like these”

Oh my goodness! Is there no hope? If I fall into one of these vices, is it all over for me?

My friends, it is critical, at least in my thinking, that Paul is describing the outcome of two types of life. One of dependence on the Lord Jesus, of waiting and listening, learning from the One who is meek and lowly, One who is forgiving, good and patient.

The other life Paul is describing is the life that depends on the fulfillment of the law based on their own efforts. The Law is not (never was) the focus of the truly faithful, but a teacher, showing us how weak and disobedient we naturally are. To trust in that school teacher, and to refuse the One who the schoolteacher is pointing to is truly foolish.

Paul provides this list to give the believers in Galatia a check list, or a guide as to the root of their actions. Bad actions means a bad root! The next list, describing the fruit of the Spirit, not only describes only the highest of good characteristics in a person, but attributes the effort and work of producing the fruit to the Lord. They are not the works of our efforts, or the fruit of our labor. They are the natural out growth of our commitment to learning of the One who leads us.

Paul finishes this passage with a warning.

I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

To reiterate, when Paul mentions “do” in this verse, he is describing a continual practicing of these horrible characteristics.

As believers, maturing in the faith, we all fall into periods of weakness or times when we struggle with some of these works of the flesh. To actively pursue these characteristics, or to ignore the warning signs these evidentiary works provide us is to find ourselves the subject of Paul’s warning. He warned them once. He warns them again in the passage. Hopefully the warning took and many in the Body of Christ repented of their dependence on the false teachers in their midst, and the Law for their salvation.

Trust in the Person of the Messiah, and refuse any teacher or spirit that pulls you back to a performance/law based life. Follow Him, and in the following, find joy, peace, love and the fulfillment of the law in your life.

Romans 8:3-4 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

To be Christian is great! May His name be praised for all His mighty works.

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Life of David – 39.04

2026-05-13

The Lord’s Covenant with David

As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.

Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.

2 Samuel 7:11b-17

11b Moreover, the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house.
12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men,
15 but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you.
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’”
17 In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

We continue in the passage describing God’s efforts, His plans to build a house, an empire for David, through his lineage. What started out as a well intentioned dream to build a temple for God, becomes God’s plans to build the church through the Son of David.

A continual refrain throughout this passage is the “foreverness” of the kingdom God will establish through the line of David.

But David would have to pass away, enter into death, prior to the realization of this kingdom. And so he entered the grave for a thousand years, waiting to see his Son arrive on the scene. Waiting after multiple sons came and went on the throne, eventually becoming corrupt and worthy of the discipline spoken of above.

This covenant with David (the Davidic Covenant) spoke of the Lord’s training of David’s lineage, and though privileged highly, would not escape the need for discipline when the king sins.

It is not a given that all David’s sons sin, for the passage speaks of discipline “when” those in the house of David sin. As a lineage that had the inherent capacity to veer from obedience to the Father, this inevitably became a reality in each of David’s sons.

Until One came on the scene who obeyed. He obeyed the law, fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law, and was not required to suffer for His own disobedience. Yet He suffered, a terrible beating, a whipping that should have in itself killed the Man, and then the humiliation and suffering of being nailed to a cross, experiencing the taunting, the ridicule, the helplessness of His experience, the abandonment!

He was disciplined “with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men”, but not for His own iniquity, for He was spotless. His suffering was vicarious, in our place, for our rebellion and sinfulness.

Yet there is a portion of this passage that makes me stop and think.

When Nathan is told that God “will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son” gives me no pause. Surely there was never a father /son relationship that was clearer, cleaner and consistently based from love than that of the Father and the Son.

What shocks me is that the next verse speaks that the father’s “steadfast love will not depart from him.”

A verse to consider that may impact this promise.

Matthew 27:46 …Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Even in the Father’s abandonment of the Messiah on the cross, as the Messiah cries out to His Father of abandonment, are we to consider this equal to the Father removing steadfast love from Him.

Can this abandonment, this turning of the Father away from the Son while He carries our sins, can this be combined in the heart of God. Can the Father turning from the Son, and the Father’s everlasting love for the Son be one and the same? Is the love of the Father large enough, complex enough, committed enough to allow pain to enter the Son for the sake of the outcome?

Hebrews 12:2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

The depths of God’s love for His Son is beyond us, and will always be beyond our understanding. Thankfully we do not need to understand everything that happened that horrible day. We simply need to accept the truth of the One who hung for our sins, and that rose from the dead, providing us salvation and security!

He is the Great Son of David, the One who has established the forever Kingdom God promised David.

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Jesus in the Old Testament – Daniel – 6

2026-05-12

Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.

I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.

SEEING JESUS IN

Daniel

A Righteous Life

Daniel 6:13 Then they answered and said before the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or the injunction you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day.”

Those of the king’s court, buttering up the king, had him sign a decree of worship for the king, and then leveraged this specific decree into a weapon against a man they could find no dirt on.

Daniel was of such a stellar character these men, peers within the court of the king, those who rubbed shoulders with Daniel, or knew those who knew him, understood Daniel’s righteous living, his righteous character, his stellar relationship with the king and could only lay a trap out of His allegiance to the God of Israel.

Of course this is the lynchpin of all traps that the righteous “fall” into, and once fallen into, find the Lord is sufficient to provide the strength, the wisdom, the patience and the outcome that honors Him the greeatest.

For Daniel, this trap was known by him, yet he went home and did that which had moments ago had become illegal, to the point of a death sentence.

A righteous life is not a life that considers the outcome of an action, other than how it affects the God we worship.

Daniel’s obedience in his prayers are but a shadow of the complete obedience of the Savior, of His utter disregard of the consequences His decisions would have on His own earthly existence, seeking only of pleasing the God of Israel, His Father above.

One difference between Daniel and the Master is that Jesus actually described the manor of His death, the method His enemies would use to cause His death and the motivation of those who pursued His death.

Daniel may not have been surprised by these circumstances. Jesus actually described His entrance into death!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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1 Thessalonian Bits – 4:2

2026-05-11

A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 4:2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

Paul is the proverbial teacher, teaching his people what he is going to teach them, teaching them the subject matter, and then reminding them of what he taught them.

For our verse this morning, Paul introduces the subject of the next set of verses, informing them (and us) of his general teaching of the responsibility of believers in their walk of faith. Before we get to Paul’s repetition (for them, not us) of his teaching, I think it wise to remind each believer of the value of repetition.

For a young convert, the repetition of Godly teaching in a grace filled, loving Bible believing church is critical. Beyond that, the reading of the Word is to be repeated over and over in our lives, being constantly reminded, and thereby strengthened by the grace of God and His mercies.

After a period of establishment in the faith, the repetition of hearing and or reading of the Word continues to be a lifeline to the truth for the maturing believer. There is never a time when a believer can safely walk away from the Word, thinking he has acquired sufficient information. After all, the Word is not simply a book to provide information but the message of a loving Father to His children.

Paul instructed Timothy to remind his people

2 Timothy 2:14 Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers.

Peter was of the same opinion, going so far as to say he will always remind his people of truth.

2 Peter 1:12 Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have.

But what is it that we are to be reminded of? For Paul, he was speaking to a small body of believers that were fully committed to the Lord, and he would begin in the next few verses getting somewhat specific – at least for their consciences!

Generally, the greatest subject of remembrance is revealed by the apostle Paul in his last letter to Timothy. He boils it all down to One subject

2 Timothy 2:8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead…

Even the Lord Himself directed the disciple that deserted Him to feed, to tend and (then again) to feed His sheep, to remind them of His teachings and then to simply follow Him

John 21:15 …”Feed my lambs.”
John 21:16 …”Tend my sheep.”
John 21:17 … “Feed my sheep.
John 21:19 … “Follow me.”

Remember Jesus Christ today, and if you have a chance, remind someone of Who the Messiah is. We have clear instruction that this will not displease the Father!

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Let Me Tell You a Story – Alice

2026-05-10

I was in grade six, trying to be cool, hanging in the back of the classroom with Terry, Randy Mary Dawn and Rhonda. It was a Friday lunch time, prior to being released from lunch, when Terry asked Rhonda if she saw Alice Copper on TV the night before.

“”Oh ya’, it was great”, as she beamed. She had been waiting dall the day before for itay. ‘

“How bout you Carl, did you see Alice last night?” Of course I hadn’t, but for the sake of coolness, I simply lied to my crew.

“O ya man”, I grinned. “She was great!”

She? Laughter rolled throughout our little corner, as everyone realized I how much of a dweeb I really was. At that moment, something snapped in me, something deep down that said no one would ever catch me in musical ignorance again!

For the remainder of grade school, through high school and into college, I spent nights and weekends learning about music, about the famous bands, about the obscure bands, about the up and coming bands, of the bands that everyone knew of and the bands no-one knew of. I became an LP junkie, spending any money I could find on the new by some artist I had heard on Magic FM 94. I eventually became the goto guy for music at the weekend parties, providing s of cassettes to play. Cassettes? Only cassettes were provided, for every album I bought, I recorded it once, and never pulled it out of the album cover again. I was (and am) a bit anal about some things!

Peer pressure, or peer acceptance is a powerful motivator.

It was just last week when my wife and I were on the way home from a trip, listening to the last part of Matthew, when the narrator spoke of the disciples r. Wifey looked over at me and said we would have done the same.

And Alice came to mind.

time when around me ca certain mindset. When my friends laughed, I heated up and I walked away I curled up inside and began to pull away from “hanging” with my friends. It was just one , and I ould have laughed it off with my friends, but the pride of life was , and it bit me hard. So hard that it would impact my entire life.

Similarly, the disciples fell into a crucible of pressure that forced them to react, and to run, only moments after they had committed their undying love for the Master.

As my wife has said, we all would have done the same.

My reaction to the Alice guffaw was to dedicate the next decade of my life to the unfulfilling quest of musical knowledge. If only I had simply picked up an instrument to learn to play it, but alas, I took the easy way out. But my dedication to this goal was defined in my life within a moment, in the back of the classroom, with four of my friends and a bunch of laughter ringing in my ears.

For the disciples, it was a much more serious circumstance. Their Master was being hauled off by the authorities, with one of the crew being the betrayer. Yes – one of them off one of the mighty enemies ear servant But the shame, the failure, the embarrassment, the abandonment – the pain must have dwelled deep in the men.

For years and years the disciples had to live with this failure, but it produced in them a devotion that drew them closer to the Master, closer to the truth, and farther from their pride.

Have you let your failures, your times of embarrassment or periods of shame become a motivator to know Him better, to realize He is the One who knows our weakness’s and still loves us?

Every difficult time we experience, we can learn from, shar our weakness with othersour failures

Even if Alice s a g!

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Prayers of an ol’ fool – Convictions

2026-05-09

Psalm 34:6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.

As many who follow may know, I have had the privilege to know the Lord for over 40 years. During those decades, He has proved Himself to be a faithful, kind and loving Savior. And as I have learned to lean on Jesus, He has shown Himself to be a merciful Savior, never wavering, even in some very dark times.

This topical series will try to provide a snapshot of an ol’ fools prayers, the weakness and selfishness of his prayers, and the ever increasing goodness of God in His responses the those prayers.

I hope my witness to the goodness and faithfulness of God will be an encouragement to those reading, and will spur us all on to a deeper, more consistent time of being in the Lord’s presence.

Please visit with me as I tell the story of a faithful God and His care for an ol’ fool. Though David considered himself a poor man, I freely admit, I am just an “ol’ fool” looking to the Lord.

Convictions

We were at a point on our lives, having to leave mission training due to lack of support, where we were unsure where we were to head next. We asked the Lord, and then requested each of the churches we had established relationships with to pray for direction for our little family. Most churches agreed to pray, but one church that we had visited the year before, in Rouyn-Noranda, called us back. Come up to work in the ministry up here. The pastor, Richard, was a brother we knew from our days in London Ontario.

After the initial invitation, we understood we would be assisting Richard in building up a protestant church amongst the good people of this Quebecois town. Little did we know that once we were on our way, Richard decided to move south to London Ontario to further his education. This decision caused a full blown hollowing out of the church congregation, for many of those in the church also left once Richard, the pastor, announced his relocating to London.

When our family of four arrived in Rouyn-Noranda, we were directed to a rental home by our pastor friend, and proceeded to unload our stuff from the U-haul we rented. Before he left, Richard told me he would drop by in the morning to help me get set up with the provincial government offices. Government offices? That seemed strange to be a priority, but we had just travelled from south Ontario into northern Quebec, and the trip had us a bit frazzled.

True to his word, he showed up in the morning, and took me down to the provincial offices, setting me up to receive welfare/unemployment.

Ok – bells started ringing off in my head. At this point, I don’t recall if Richard had informed me of his intentions to leave the city, or that the church had shrunk down to one small family and an elderly woman, but to look to the government to support the work of the Lord seemed so foul, so offensive. At that moment in that office, I asked for a rescue, a deliverance from being dependent on the government.

Bad news continued to be provided in the next few days, and the situation we had entered started to become clearer. We were a family of anglaise in the middle of a francophone society, without a church to support us, without a mentor to guide us, without any believers we could confide in.

Most of that first week is a blur in my mind now, other than the continual disappointments we were informed of. I immediately began to look for work, and as the Lord is the great provider, I found two jobs to support the family for the next two years. Yes we had committed to two years in this church and we were determined to keep our word.

Flyer delivery in the mornings, and transport truck unloading after that. Both of these “career choices” allowed me to experience the temperature drops of the city we lived in, falling to -40 F in the winter. But we were able to survive, and we saw our two little boys begin to grow up. We experienced the birth of our third child in Rouyn-Noranda, (which is another answer to prayer for later), but found the work to be very challenging.

Additional prayers the Lord answered in relation to the work in this church will be offered in future installments on this series, but for this post, I want to thank the Lord for providing the support we needed as we sought to serve Him in a strange land amongst a foreign people.

He provided work for a “dirty anglaise” to keep his family fed and warm during our time in the church. He answered our prayers for support, giving me enough work to bring home the bacon! Yes we entered into a difficult situation, yet he protected our little family and provided me an opportunity to work amongst those we lived among.

He is good.

Thanks for joining and Considering The Bible with me. Your thoughts are always welcome, and I look forward to hearing of the faithfulness of God in your lives.

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Names of God – HE MAKES THE CLOUDS HIS CHARIOT – 279

2026-05-08

My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.

The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.

The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.

May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.

279

HE MAKES THE CLOUDS HIS CHARIOT

Psalm 104:3 He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters; he makes the clouds his chariot; he rides on the wings of the wind;

He rides His chariot.

This word “chariot”, is only found in the Word once, in this verse and no where else in the Old Testament. It is from a root word that speaks of riding, and the implication is that the One on the chariot is riding, even driving the chariot.

Also, the common chariot during ancient Israel’s days was that of a one man cart, hooked up to a horse, or a couple of horses, with a front wall protecting the soldier, giving him a a somewhat caged area to stand in while riding.

It was a form of transportation that was utilized primarily by soldiers, entering into the battlefield to wage war.

In this set of verses that we have dwelled on in the last few posts, we see a picture of a King who is in His lofty chamber. A chamber that is near His people.

We also saw that the King was surrounded with those bent totally to His will, those that are “happy” even taking on less than desirable services for Him as He wishes. For the sake of those He is near.

In this short phrase, we see a King who is on His chariot, riding, even driving the chariot. My assumption is that He is entering into battle, as He is on His chariot, entering in a war that has the destiny of those He is near to at stake.

Each of these descriptions of the King speak to the actions He has entered into for those He is near to, for those He wants to be with, to minister to and in this case, fight for.

His chariot is of the clouds, and from that point of view, He can see all that is going on in the battlefield below. He has the information required to make accurate strategic battle plans, that will surprise the enemy, completely defeating those who enter into battle with Him.

There will come a time when the clouds will no longer be His chariot, where we will see the clouds break open, and the King will abandon His chariot to ride on the victors horse, a white stallion that will complete the battle.

Revelation 19:11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.

Even so Lord Jesus – Come.

I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Conditional Security – 2 Corinthians 6:14-18

2026-05-07

2 Corinthians 6

14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
15 What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever?
16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
17 Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you,
18 and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”

Let’s remember that Paul birthed this church, ministered in this church longer than in many of the churches he was associated with. If Paul could claim to know those of his churches, the Corinthians would be the top of his list.

He is not writing to believers he had never met. No no no. These were people that he lived amongst, prayed over and struggled spiritually with. His first epistle was basically a letter of shock and correction, as to the issues that the Corinthians allowed in their midst.

Now, in this epistle, he is defending his apostleship from those in the Corinthian church that are defaming him, false apostles that are providing the fleshly Corinthians excuses to indulge in their wants.

Paul pleads with his people, and eventually pulls out the stopper. Get off the fence. The Corinthians can not partner with the enemy and consider themselves right with God. He calls believers the temple of the Living God, not only in this passage but twice in the previous letter.

His first reference to the temple of the Living God is referring to the congregational body as the temple of the Living God.

1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?

His second reference is to the physical body of each believer, being the temple of the Living God.

1 Corinthians 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,

The Corinthians were taught of this privilege and in our verse this morning, Paul reminds the Corinthians of this truth, starts to ask some tough questions.

What partnership has righteousness with lawlessness?
What fellowship has light with darkness?
What accord has Christ with Belial?
What portion does a believer share with an unbeliever?
What agreement has the temple of God with idols?

Paul is really drawing a line in the sand, and I want to remind my reader of the context this passage is found after.

The previous verse speaks of Paul

2 Corinthians 6

11 We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians; our heart is wide open.
12 You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections.
13 In return (I speak as to children) widen your hearts also.

The Corinthians need to make a decision. Paul is closing his plea to the believers regarding his apostleship, and to whom the believers are to listen to. He has opened his heart to them, speaking things of his suffering and his experiences that have been reluctantly provided for the believers to consider.

Now they need to decide. Righteousness or lawlessness. Light or darkness. Christ or Belial. Believer or unbeliever. Temple of the Living God or idols. They, and we, cannot have both.

Considering the context, it appears Paul is not mincing words. The false teachers are the enemy, and to bend the ear to them is to join with them, restricting their affections to the apostle Paul, and his message.

These believers, at least some if not many, having turned to the false apostles, whom Paul called angels of light earlier in the letter, are now on the outskirts of the church, with the invitation from God that if they repent, He will welcome them back.

These believers are being called to reject the false teachers, go out from amongst them, and return to the Living God. They were in a very precarious position before the Lord and Paul needed them to know of the danger!

For us this morning, one truth stands out! Let us not be drawn away from the truth of the apostolic teaching the Lord has provided us by listening to fancy pastors, showy personalities, humorous teachers, or lecherous men who make excuses for sin. These agents of the enemy will pull us away!

The written Word, with the enabling of the Spirit of God is sufficient for the believer to remain in the Temple of God. Teachers that seek to draw us away fron the Temple will attack the authority God gave His apostles, and the teaching they left us.

Is the Word and His presense sufficient for you?

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Life of David – 39.03

2026-05-06

The Lord’s Covenant with David

As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.

Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.

2 Samuel 7

8 Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel.
9 And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth.
10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly,
11a from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies.

The Lord is continuing to speak to Nathan, telling His side of the story after the king and the prophet both assume He wants a massive, impressive temple. It makes sense doesn’t it, for the Lord to want a house that will impress all the nations and the people of Israel.

No, not from the Lord’s point of view. The Lord is about to illuminate Nathan in relation to David and the people of Israel. And it is all about the Greater David. But I am getting ahead of myself.

This initial portion of the great prophecy of David’s Greater Son, begins with the work the Lord has performed in David’s life, taking him from humble beginnings and making him a prince over His people. Because of the Lord’s work, enemies fell before David, and Israel’s second king will become a man of renown, famous not only in the major religions of the world, but on the national scale, a historic figure.

Through David, the nation will be secure.

Note that the security promised is not necissarily immediate. When I read this passage, I assume the promise will be within David’s lifetime, or at least within his immediate son’s life. But it is important to understand that a son, in the Wordm may refer to a grandson, or a greatgrandson, or any of his lineage. Solomon was a son. So was Joseph. And so was Jesus.

Why do I belabor this point? The prophecy speaks of the future, and it may be months, it may be years, it may be decades or it may be centuries before the promise is realized.

So when Nathan hears verse 10, where the Lord’s promise includes the appointment of a place for my people Israel and that He will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more, it sounds awsome. The Lord continues with the promise of violent men not afflicting them, as formerly.

This is incredible news for Nathan to communicate to David. The assumption is for the promise to be immediate. Let me remind you that although there was a short period under Solomon that the nation enjoyed a security and peace, it was short lived, and the earthly kingdom split apart. Violence continued through Davids reign, Solomon’s reign, through the Babylonian captivity and past the time of Jesus.

That is for those who were of national Israel. For those of the remnant, the faithful, those who followed after the Lord, the promise was real even if physically the promise seemed to be unrealized. Centuries passed and a Teacher arrived, One who would appoint a place for God’s people, and plant them that they be disturbed no more.

For the One who would effectively complete this promise for the people of God was the very One who became the place of residence and rest for the people of God. He is that place where the believer is planted, and where the believer is no longer afflicted by evil men, without the protection of the Master’s permission.

We will go on in our next passage finding out that the Lord not only reminds Nathan of His work in David’s life and his reign over Israel, but more importantly, declares the line of David to be an eternal dynasty, a house of David that will be reigned over by His Son.

It is truly amazing that the promise given to a king in Israel over 3,000 years ago has developed into the full blown expansion of the Body of Christ, the New Testament church where believers find securty and peace in the Son, and have a place of rest under His reign.

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Jesus in the Old Testament – Daniel – 5

2026-05-05

Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.

I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.

SEEING JESUS IN

Daniel

Willing Sacrifice

Daniel 6:10 When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.

John 10:17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.

Daniel knew. He knew his death sentence had been signed, and the the king had been duped into legislating his death by envious men he oversaw.

Remember, Daniel had been elevated to the position of overseer of the wisemen. He had authority over these men and thought the law could not be changed, one option for Daniel was revenge. He could have went to the Kings house, berated King Darius, exposing the evil of those who entrapped him, and caused an uproar within the royal court. He too could provide a law, in like manner, for the king to sign, and to exact some justice upon those evil counsellors.

But he didn’t go to the king’s house. He went home, as was his practice. He went home to enter the very trap these evil, envious men laid for him. He remained faithful in his practice of worship towards Jerusalem, towards his homeland, towards the God who had called and equipped him. And by being faithful, willingly entered the death trap.

How can we not see the Lord Jesus in this act of willingly entering circumstances that would lead to His own death. Envious men had been plotting against the Lord from the start, and the Lord had frustrated their plans numerous times. But on that night when Judas provided assistance in identifying the Master to a group of soldiers, He entered a death trap not unlike Daniel.

One difference though. Daniel was rescued from death, for God secured the lions from touching him. Jesus suffered, bled, was nailed to a cross, and hung to die.

Daniel was pulled from the pit, having never entered a physical death, but providing us a picture of the reality of the Lord’s resurrection.

Daniel was a willing sacrifice, and was rescued from death. Jesus was a willing sacrifice, and was rescued through death.

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Names of God – HE MAKES HIS MINISTERS A FLAMING FIRE – 277

2026-05-04

My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.

The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.

The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.

May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.

277

HE MAKES HIS MINISTERS A FLAMING FIRE

Psalm 104:4 he makes his messengers winds, his ministers a flaming fire.

Our last post sat on the previous verse, and I took the opportunity in that verse to consider the type of writing we encounter in the Psalms. Picturesque, image producing word phrasing that appeals to our imagination.

The psalmist spoke of beams on the water, and hearkened to the image of a great chamber of God’s finding it’s foundation on the water.

Here, we find that the created beings called angels, are at His beck and call, being His angels and His ministers. Those that when we encounter, tend to continually tell us to “fear not” since they are so incredible, so intimidating and so otherworldly, in their original state.

And yet they are His servants, His ministers, waiting to be of service to Him.

Coupled with the previous verse, we find the Lord in His upper chamber, in a place of solitude and calmness, established on the waters, His created world, overseeing those He created and ready with servants to provide Him service.

Is it that He needs help in the management of all things? Absolutely not, for He is the Almighty God, eternal and all knowing. The servants, His ministers speak of His Royal Court, of His authority within His creation, of His otherness, that He is above even those that are beyond our own imagination!

The psalmist saw a majestic vision of the glory of the Lord, of the residence of the Lord on the waters, and of His servants, His created angels at the ready to perform to His pleasure.

Hundreds of years later, a man wrote a letter to the people of the Hebrews, and provided them (and us) some clarity on this verse. He specifically defined who the Lord was in this picture.

Hebrews 1:7-8 Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.” But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.

As the Psalmist describes the One in the chamber, the One who is on the waters, the One who has His servants ready to do His bidding, whether as flames of fire or mighty winds, we find that the author identifies this One who rules amongst us.

The entire book of Hebrews is a treatise on the superiority of Jesus. Chapter 1 speaks of His ruling over the angels, of Him not being of the angels (as some may propose) but of Him ruling over them from His throne, ruling over His created angels from an eternal throne!

The author of Hebrews reveals to us the Psalmist’s God.

His name is Jesus and He makes His ministers a flaming fire..

I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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1 Thessalonian Bits – 4:1

2026-05-03

A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 4:1 Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.

Consider the humility of the apostle Paul. He has been singularly appointed to be the apostle to the gentiles, to release the gospel of Jesus on the masses, while the original apostles work amongst those who should know better.

Paul, a man who was a force to be reckoned with, that led the charge to kill and stomp out that false religion sprouting up amongst the followers of that false prophet. This man was a go getter, and when he was arrested by the Lord on that road to Damascus, everything changed. Was he still strong willed, a force to be reckoned with? Yes of course, but now under the reign of the Patient One, Pauls metamorphosis is evident as we see him interact with those he ministers to.

He asks them to walk properly and please God. But watch out. Now he is getting forceful with his adherents. He urges them!

What happened to that force that took the bull be the horns and caused things to happen? Where is that man that force his will on others, even his will of death on others?

He asks. He urges. Come on Paul. Crack the whip!

But such is the servants life. A life of seeking the best for others, of appealing to the heart and not the mind, of reaching out in love as opposed to forcing by fear.

I realize I may have mentioned this passage before in previous writings, but consider 1 Corinthians 16:12

1 Corinthians 16:12 Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to visit you with the other brothers, but it was not at all his will to come now. He will come when he has opportunity.

Here Paul goes out on a limb “strongly urging” Apollos to do his will in visiting the Corinthians. Yet Apollos walked. WHAT? Was not Paul the Apostle of the Freaking Apostles? Apollos should have bent the knee immediately to Paul’s wishes, but he had the freedom to choose otherwise. And Paul allowed this to take place.

Amazing! This freedom amongst the apostle is hard to fathom.

But I have gotten distracted from the core of this verse a bit. Note that Paul is admitting the Thessalonians are walking well, but he is seeking greater love, more compliance to the will of God, greater pleasure for the Father with His children.

And to consider the very idea that our walk may be pleasing to God. That very concept blows me away. That our frail efforts, broken intentions, weak obedience and soft desire for His will actually may please the eternal One.

My friends – this should cause us great amazement if we consider this response of God. The God who has provided us all things, provided us His very Son, and yet finds pleasure in us.

But alas – before the head expands to bursting, it is good to remember that the Father finds pleasure in His children as they reflect the Greater Son, the Lord Jesus. Our efforts are as nothing to the Father if we are off the vine, away from the life of God.

John 15:5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

My friends – please God. Follow Jesus!

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Names of God – HE LAYS THE BEAMS OF HIS CHAMBERS ON THE WATERS – 276

2026-05-02

My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.

The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.

The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.

May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.

276

HE LAYS THE BEAMS OF HIS CHAMBERS ON THE WATERS

Psalm 104:3 He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters; he makes the clouds his chariot; he rides on the wings of the wind;

This is ridiculous. Didn’t the psalmist understand basic physics. The concept of loading and bearing capacity, of distributed loading to allow for structural stability.

Water, unless restricted within a form, or completely enveloped in a leak proof container, is the most unstable, unreliable material to construct a chamber on. To make matters worse, as the Psalmist was describing this chamber, he used a word that often referenced an upper chamber, a roof chamber, a secluded area for reflection and solitude. We may describe it as a loft.

Ok, so to continue on with the absurdity, if the structure was constructed on water, having the room elevated above the foundation only makes this “chamber” more unstable. One good wave and over the structure falls!

And great will be the fall of it.

That is if we think literally, woodenly and without the influence of the poetry that is so rife within the Word. Passages such as this one was completely out of my understanding when I refused to consider some (much?) of the message as figurative, messages that produce pictures in the mind and imagination. Now, don’t start thinking that I am suggesting the Word is only figurative, that passages can be interpreted willy nilly, or by any standard. I am still of the opinion that the Word interprets itself beautifully, and this passage is a fine example.

The psalmist is describing the lofty chambers the Lord resides in in the heavens, chambers that can not be touched by mankind, chambers that are not restricted by our physical laws, by forces such as gravity or actions such as waves or wind.

But Carl, he speaks of the chambers “on the waters” How should we consider this reference? Is it a reference to the water we experience in a lake or the ocean. I say yes, for this very mixture of the non physical beams of His chamber supported by our physical environment (the waters) speaks of His omnipresence, His very closeness with those He created.

His is a chamber of solitude, a restful place for His person, yet He is on the waters, in our surroundings, amongst those who, for the most part, do not realize or appreciate His company.

Yes our God is He who lays the beams of his chambers on the waters, He is One who chooses to be in His loft amongst us, and not afar off, distant and away.

He is near, even beside us, in His chamber. And He has provided a way into His chamber, through a curtain, by the blood of His Son.

Hebrews 10:20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,

I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Considering Your Curiosity

2026-05-01

Don’t let the title fool ya. This is your friendly neighborhood blog “Considering the Bible”, but for this morning I am going to ask for a wee bit of feedback from those who follow this blog, from those who read occasionally, or even from those who merely trip into this blog by providence.

You see, I have been writing this blog for 76 months, or 334 weeks, or 2,345 days. Wanna know how many hours? Don’t ask! Remember I am a numbers guy!

Nevertheless, I am truly enjoying my journey’s through the Bible, and was curious if my readers would offer me their feedback.

Currently, I am enjoying two book studies (Psalms and 1 Thessalonians) one life study (Life of David) three topical studies (Names of God, Conditional Security and Jesus in the Old Testament) and one personal prayer series, testifying of how good the Lord is to an ol fool like me.

Let me know if one or more of these series have been of benefit to you in your walk with Him.

Thanks again for following, reading and being a part of “Considering the Bible”

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Conditional Security – Matthew 13:38-43

2026-04-30

Matthew 13:38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,
Matthew 13:39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.
Matthew 13:40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age.
Matthew 13:41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers,
Matthew 13:42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew 13:43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

I sometimes fear, as my thoughts wander around in that hollow space above my neck, that some may read this series and understand each post as an effort to induce a fear of loss, or to communicate a risk in the walk of faith, or to produce an uncertainty in the heart of the believer. After all, to speak of the conditionality of our security in Christ it may be understood that our relationship implies some weakness in our God, some inability in our Father’s work, or some lack in His planning.

If this is your understanding, please be reassured the love of the Father, and the salvation of the Lord Jesus is as secure as the breath we breathe, stronger than the grave and greater than all our enemies.

The message to be understood is the challenge before us as weak, blind and beggarly people to continue to seek Him, to look to Him for our strength, to keep our eyes on Him, to trust Him and to rest in Him. He is all and everything we need, and to walk away from that is to put ourselves in dangerous territory. His mercy extends beyond our understanding, and His kindness continually reaches out to our hardened hearts. But we do have the option to jump from His care, to apostacize from His loving call, and to abandon all hope in running from the hound of heaven.

The passage we breach this morning is a tough one, a passage where some in “his kingdom” will be gathered out and thrown into the fiery furnace.

Matthew 13:41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers,

Jesus is speaking a parable in this instance, and I am of the opinion, as if that matters, that He is directly speaking of the theocratic kingdom of Israel as He presents this parable. Some in the kingdom (national Israel) will not be spared.

Although there are very many questions I would love to delve into regarding what “his kingdom” refers to, what the fiery furnace is speaking of, and a discussion on “weeping and gnashing of teeth”, I will refrain for later posts. (And after I have thought, prayed and studied much more!)

But for now, it is the general message that some in the kingdom will be removed that has alerted me and is why this passage is associated with the topic of conditional security in my mind.

There were some that the Lord may have been speaking to during this parable that were sure of their kingdom status, their belonging to rule of God, and yet the Lord has the nerve to say they will be yanked out, and tortured in fire!

Note that the passage refers to some in the kingdom as weeds, son’s of the evil one in verse 37. Yet in verse 41, the Lord simply refers to “all causes of sin and all law-breakers”. Now obviously the weeds are included in this judgement, but this last phrase possibly allows for more than just the weeds.

Possibility of more than just the weeds. Yes this is not explicitly stated, yet there is a possibility that those who feel safe may not be.

As I am thinking through this passage and all the implications, all the unknowns and all the questions rising in my mind, I cannot help but resort to one passage in Hebrews that provides a comfort, a place of security that each believer can rest in.

Hebrews 12:14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

Seek the Lord in your life. Hear His voice and strive to do His will. Run from any “cause of sin” in your life, from any law breaker that seeks to influence you.

Be the righteous that will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father, that will reflect the glory of the Lord in the daily grind of life, being kind as the Father is kind, being merciful as the Father is merciful, being patient as the Father is patient.

Jesus summed it up so well, for the life of the righteous is not a life of a false security, but of an active life of love towards our enemies, being kind to the ungrateful and and the evil!

Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

The Message is a paraphrase I especially like to listen to, as it turns a phrase often and it catches something in my mind, like a spur under a saddle. Luke 6:35, 36 is such a passage in the Message.

35-36 “I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You’ll never—I promise—regret it. Live out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when we’re at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind.

Simple and direct. Our Father is kind. You be kind.

Replace “kind” with any characteristic you rejoice in, that our Father has expressed through the crucifixion of His Son, and be that.

Did I not mention this series was intended to be a challenge. This passage is a challenge that is beyond our strength, and as we look to Him, seek Him, striving for peace and holiness, you will shine in his kingdom!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you would like to receive daily posts from Considering the Bible, click on the “Follow” link below

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Song Squawk – Think Twice

2026-04-29

In the mid nineties, I had a little red Buick and a big ol’ bass box in the trunk, and would listen to “Christian Rock”, cranked to 11.

(What did you say? Huh? Can you say that again, I didn’t hear you….)

I have gotten away from that genre for many reasons, the least of which may be a loss of hearing, but some songs have stuck with me over the decades.

The artist’s I listened to sought to reflect Scriptural teaching for the most part. They ranged from “preaching” pop culture religion to significant theological teaching. As I listened to the lyrics, I found some to be quite challenging.

To be honest, I listened because I could justify the rock beat with “sanctified lyrics”.

Occassionaly I will post a song, supply the lyrics and make a comment or two. If you decide to listen to the tune, turn the speaker down unless you are already deaf. Some of the songs tend to have a certain “volume” about them!

This post will consider the song

Think Twice – by Petra

It is amazing that I have missed providing the original Christian rock group – at least in my mind – until now. Petra was cutting edge in the contemporary Christian market and was world wide known for their faith based songs.

This particular song was based on 2 Timothy 2:2

You can think of times
When you had the right chance
You could make a choice
When nobody could see
You could think of ways
Of defending your deeds
Justify the way
That you wanted to be

Wait just a minute
Wait just a minute

Hey, did you ever think twice
Something inside says stay away
Hey, did you ever think twice
When there’s still time
You can go the other way
Hey, did you ever think twice
If you don’t bother
Gonna pay the price
Hey, did you ever think twice

You can think of things
That you wanted to try
You can think of things
That you wish you could see
You could go a way
That would seem so right
Thinking of a place
That you wish you could be

Wait just a minute
Wait just a minute

Hey, did you ever think twice
Something inside says stay away
Hey, did you ever think twice
When there’s still time
You can go the other way
Hey, did you ever think twice
If you don’t bother
Gonna pay the price
Hey, did you ever think twice

Face to face with sin
You better think again
You better think again
Take another look
For a second time
And give a second thought
To where you draw the line

Wait just a minute
Wait just a minute

Hey, did you ever think twice
Something inside says stay away
Hey, did you ever think twice
When there’s still time
You can go the other way
Hey, did you ever think twice
If you don’t bother
Gonna pay the price
Hey, did you ever think twice

Hey, did you ever think twice
If you don’t bother
Gonna pay the price

Hey, did you ever think twice

Take a listen!

Let me know what you think of the lyrics, and of the tunes!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion

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Jesus in the Old Testament – Daniel – 4

2026-04-28

Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.

I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.

SEEING JESUS IN

Daniel

Chief Governor

Daniel 2:48 Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.

Revelation 19:16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

I have chosen to title this post “Chief Governor”, even though the ESV translates it as Chief Prefect, mostly due to my ignorance. I had to verify what a “prefect” was. I find out it is simple a synonym for governor, and though I am sure the ESV had good reason to translate it as prefect, I think we can work with governor for this post.

Daniel, as one of the many wise men chosen amongst the foreigners brought into Babylon, takes on the impossible challenge on not simply interpreting a kings dream, but of determining the content of a dream, and to interpret the dream

Daniel 2:5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins.

The king was setting out a challenge to determine if any of the so-called wise men had any connection with a higher power, a revealing spirit, or a message from on high. The wise men before the king, though able to rise in ranks due to administrative talents or of knowing the right people, certainly had not faced a challenge such as this.

They knew they were in trouble! It was impossible. They admitted the challenge was too great, and the only way to determine the dream was through the “gods”.

Daniel 2:11 The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”

These wise men were setting up the stage for Daniel to enter the scene. The wise men reiterated the impossibility of a mere man to provide the information, but the king was resolute. Give me the information or die!

Daniel 2:12 Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed.

So the stage was set for Daniel to enter the scene, and the motivation of saving their own skin was provided. They had to search far and wide to find a wise man, – anyone – to get the data, and meaning of the dream for the king.

We know the story, and Daniel stepped up. Not only to save his skin, but to reveal the God of Heaven.

This incident, this miraculous provision of God to four young Hebrew men set Daniel on course to high office within the Babylonian empire. Daniel was the man of the hour, and he made sure the king knew of the source of his wisdom.

Daniel 2:27-28 Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries…

Upon Daniels success, glory rained down on him, becoming not only a governor, but a chief governor, or as some may call him a chief prefect.

Above and beyond Daniels wisdom, a Rabbi hundreds of years later also provided information from on high, and was honored, at least for a time, by those who heard Him. A fickle honor was provided to Him for a short time, as was for Daniel. Like Daniel, He was granted a position of honor. For Jesus, the honor bestowed in His ascension was to the throne of God, a position, not of simply becoming a chief governor of a regional kingdom for a short period of time, but the King of all of creation, for all of eternity.

Chief Governor? Yes but much more, as He is the King of Kings.

Jesus is King!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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Names of God – HE GIVES RAIN ON THE EARTH – 275

2026-04-27

My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.

The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.

The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.

May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.

275

HE GIVES RAIN ON THE EARTH

Job 5:10 he gives rain on the earth and sends waters on the fields;

No matter where you look in the Word, God continually shows up as a giving God. From the “natural” giving of rain, to the supernatural provision of the Son of God for our life, God is a giving God, a God of provision, of grace, of abundance and of life.

For those souls who ignore the Word, or may just believe what others say of it, or assume the message of the Lord is only one of demands, commands and requirements, I would encourage them to crack the Book and find the Father of Giving. To be of a different opinion regarding the Father is to exist in a life of denial, and lies.

The Lord, as He entered our world and taught us simple truths, reminds us that God is an indiscriminate giver, the God who cares not for who receives the gift, but gives both the sun and the rain to both the evil and the good.

Matthew 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

He is One who pulls from His storehouse and provides for all, for those who ignore Him, for those who deny Him, for those who defame Him and for those who call for His crucifixion. He gives rain to all, and though Job (and the Lord) refers to the general grace of physical rain falling on the earth to provide sustenance for us, the Word also uses it as a metaphor for His work amongst us and in our lives.

Isaiah 55:10-11 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

God’s Word is as rain falling on the earth, with a purpose of providing for those in need. Isaiah is not listing all the religious requirements for those who hear the Word, but of provision of life, of the Word’s accomplishments in our lives, and of the Words success in our hearts.

I spoke of those who have ignored the message of the Word earlier, and of the need to crack the Book, to find the Father and to live in the love of the Father. For those who may think of God as a demanding ogre, a killjoy, an authoritarian of oppression, you need to consider the truth of our passage this morning.

God gives rain on the earth. It is a simple truth, an obvious truth, but in considering this simple provision, the honest soul will come to the conclusion that God is a giving God, One whose nature is to provide.

God is a Giver of Rain. If this is a difficult truth to accept for you, the continual and abundant giving nature of our God, I submit you are listening to the lies of the taker.

John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

The one who steals, kills and destroys will only defame the Great Giver, distract us from His goodness and direct our eyes from this truth.

Crack the Book, find the Giver of Rain. Sit before Him. Understand His nature of giving and let Him provide life to your thirsty soul. Humble yourself before Him and receive from the One who Gives Rain on the Earth!

I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.

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1 Thessalonian Bits – 3:13

2026-04-26

A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 3:13 so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

In our last verse, we hear Paul praying that the Lord would increase the love of the Thessalonians for both the saints and sinners they lived amongst. Truly Paul is seeking a noble end for the Thessalonians, a righteous life before God. The Scriptures are clear, for to love is to fulfill the law of God.

Romans 13:10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Having reminded us of the prayers in the previous verse, we enter verse 13 with two words.

“So that.”

Paul, by starting this verse, (or at least continuing his prayer) using “so that”, is indicating a purpose in the call of God to increase in love towards saint and sinner! You see, God’s life of love is not simply a quality of life, great as it is, or the attainment of a goal in life to please both God and man, but also a means to an end for our own souls.

A life of increasing love toward saint and sinner establishes our hearts blameless in holiness. Paul is seeking a state of being for the believers before God, and the method is through love.

Now, we have considered the concept of blamelessness in this blog a number of times, but for brevities sake, blamelessness does not imply sinlessness. Nor perfection. A blameless man is one who has corrected mistakes, sought forgiveness, lived properly amongst others, and when he falls, repairs any damage to those impacted.

As we walk with the Savior, we will naturally become more sensitive to any relationships with those we come in contact with, willing to give not only the tunic but the cloak also.

Matthew 5:40 And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.

In giving though a self sacrificial love for others, our own lives will be established in holiness. This fruit of the love we exercise towards others grows within us as we seek to serve both God and man through the Lord Jesus and His leading. Integrity of the soul becomes a gift back to the Lord, a treasure we can experience and a characteristic we will guard in our lives. Blamelessness in holiness becomes a desire that develops a constant review of our lives, seeking to keep short accounts with both the Lord and those we know.

Paul had high goals for the Thessalonians, and his prayers showed not only his love for them, but the expectations of the apostle regarding his people.

He loved them.

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a Self Serving Faith

a Fear based Faith

A Truth based Faith

a Love based Faith

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Convictions

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