Unique to Luke’s Gospel is the mention of two characters who play a small but profound role in the events surrounding Jesus’ birth. These two saints, Simeon and Anna, had been faithfully committed to serving and worshiping God. They knew that God had promised a Messiah who would come to save and restore his people and […]
The Gospel of Luke invites everyone to place their faith in Jesus Christ, the King who defeated death with his love. Over and over again, Luke shows us that the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, entrance into God’s kingdom, is an offer made to the entire world. But Luke doesn’t stop there. His […]
Addressing the people of Israel, the prophet Isaiah rightly foretold of God’s impending judgment coming against the nation. They were to be destroyed, ripped out of their homeland, and forced into exile, “thrust into thick darkness” (Isa. 8:22). Yet this darkness ultimately was not referring to their physical exile but their spiritual exile, their separation from God […]
Continuing to describe the practical outworking of being filled with the Spirit, namely, “submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Eph. 5:21), Paul applies the gospel to the relationships between children and their parents, as well as slaves (employees) and their masters (employers). In these relationship, believers are radically called to be obedient, kind, gracious, […]
“Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” (Ps. 121:4). Traditionally sung by pilgrims traveling up to the temple in Jerusalem, this Song of Ascent declares the faithful, vigilant, keeping power of God over his chosen people. But can we Gentiles sing and apply this Psalm today? If we aren’t making pilgrimages to Jerusalem, celebrating Jewish feasts, or even […]
Having urged us to walk worthy of our calling, to put off the old man and put on the new, Paul now commands us to walk as children of light. For those who were once darkness but were now light and partakers of all the promises of Christ through the gospel, what fellowship can light have darkness? But not only has the […]
The old self, that Paul is encouraging the church to put off and be replaced by the new man, was one completely defined and corrupted by deceitful desires (Eph. 4:22). Having been deceived by Satan to chase after the lusts of the flesh, the pleasures of this world, and the pride of life, we chose to find our […]
Of all the psalms in the Old Testament, it is Psalm 110 that is the most often quoted and alluded to by the authors of the New Testament. This enthronement psalm is centered on and fulfilled by Christ, who, having taken on the form of a servant and humbling himself to death on a cross, was […]
For those who have placed their faith in Christ Jesus, whose lives are now hidden with Christ in God, God is our shelter, our refuge, our fortress. He is our Champion. He fights for us, defends us, and delivers us. Not only is he overruling all things for our good and commanding the hosts of […]
The good news of salvation in Christ Jesus is not only that we have been reconciled to God but that we have also been adopted into his family. We are now “fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Eph. 2:19). In view of this glorious calling, we are to walk in a manner worthy […]
Having confessed his sinfulness and rebellion against God, David continues to fall upon the mercy of God now in supplication – asking the God would purge him from his iniquity and cleanse him from all unrighteousness. But why does David so desperately seek forgiveness? Why does he repeatedly entreat God to wash him, to create […]
As Christians, how are we to handle fear, anxiety, and doubt? In a world where evil often appears to triumph, where pain and loss are common realities, how are we to deal with feelings of worry and uncertainty, our fear of death and suffering? The Psalmist provides an answer to this question by providing us with two […]
Just as we were once characterized by our spiritual death and alienation from and hatred of God, his immeasurable power in the gospel of grace has miraculously brought us from death to life for good works: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in […]
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked” (Eph. 2:1-2). So begins one of the most well-known and comprehensive gospel summaries in all of Scripture. Paul, writing to the Ephesian church, is determined to explain the immeasurable power of God that is at work in those who believe: just as Christ has been […]
As we read through Ephesians 1:3-14, seeing and savoring all of the wonderful spiritual blessings that are ours in Christ Jesus, we are presented with a stunning description of the Triune nature of God and the specific work of each Person in the Godhead. Moreover, this passage also encompasses all history, all people, and all things from eternity past to eternity […]
