Contemplations
Heard by God
“For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee,” (Psalm 86:5). God’s promise to hear the prayers of His people brings comfort in the midst of life’s storms. Psalm 86:5 reveals a God who is good, ready to...
Our Divine Mediator
“Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.” (John 10:17) God’s eternal plan of redemption hinges on the singular role of His Son, Jesus Christ, as the sole Mediator between a holy God and sinful humanity (1 Tim. 2:5)....
Paths to Repentance
“Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain.” (Philippians 2:16) The road to true repentance is not traveled in isolation. Though it is a personal experience, God in His providence...
Harmonizing with the Word
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” (Colossians 3:16) In Colossians 3:16, Paul gives us an example of one way in which...
Twice as Bad
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.” (Matthew 23:15) In this passage in Matthew Christ denounces the scribes and Pharisees...
Come to the Waters
“Ho, every one that thirsts, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” (Isaiah 55:1) Scripture issues a universal and compassionate invitation to every soul experiencing...
Confessing the Madness of a Captive Mind
“In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.” (2 Timothy 2:25-26)...
The Only Refuge for God’s People
"And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation." (Genesis 7:1) The ark which God instructed Noah to build is a beautiful representation of the saving provision of God for His church...
The Worthiness of God
“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (Revelation 4:11) Charity is that grace by which God is loved as the chief good. This virtue fixes the soul on God...
The Work of Conviction
"And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked." (Exodus 9:27) One of the most painful works that God performs in the soul is the work of conviction. This is...
When the Soul Returns to Its Maker
“Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7) Man is not only a body formed from the dust of the ground; he is also a living spirit breathed into him by the Creator. And when the appointed...
The Remedy for Our Unclean Hearts
“That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (John 3:6) Scripture declares with sobering clarity that my nature, from the moment of my birth, is corrupted by sin. Psalm 51:5 says that I was “shapen in iniquity” and...
Prepared and Governed by God
“The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.” (Proverbs 16:1) This verse in Proverbs lays the whole work of grace at the feet of God. It states that even the inward preparations of the heart, as well as the outward expressions...
Following After Justice
"That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee." (Deuteronomy 16:20) God is a God of perfect righteousness. Everything He does is holy, wise, and just. There is no corruption in His...
Perfect Holiness And Justice
"The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?" (Isaiah 33:14) God is infinitely holy. There is no impurity in Him and no indifference...
The Angels Learn from Us
“To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God.” (Ephesians 3:10) The manifold wisdom of God is like an unlimited spectrum of colors magnificently displayed in ways no created mind...
The God Who Governs All
“Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.” (Isaiah 40:26) “Lift up your eyes on high!” God...
Chosen from the Beginning
“Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” (1 Peter 1:20) Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross was not a plan God put in place in response to the Fall. Rather, before the world was ever...
Holy Without Rival, Glorious Without Measure
“And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.” (Isaiah 6:3) The holiness of God, taken in its broadest sense, declares that He is utterly free from all imperfection. He is set apart from everything...
Sharing the Goodness of Our Heavenly Father
“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children.” (Ephesians 5:1) One of the highest honors for the Christian is to reflect the character of God. In the same way as a child naturally resembles their father, the believer is called to grow in likeness to the...
When the Earth Trembles, My Heart Is Exposed
“By terrible things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea: Which by his strength setteth fast the mountains; being girded with power: Which stilleth...
The Foolishness That Saves
“For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:21) The world, with all its intellectual triumphs, is still incapable of finding God through its own...
The Weight of Sin and Our Need for Christ
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) The Apostle Paul’s declaration in Romans 3:23 stands as one of the clearest summaries of humanity’s universal condition before God: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” In...
The Beauty of God’s Timing
"He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end." (Ecclesiastes 3:11) We are wise to recognize and respect the seasons God has set for our...
Gratitude for the Grace of Divine Love
“Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” (Romans13:8) Genuine Christianity embodies the love of God. And not just as one virtue among many, but the root from which all other Christian graces grow. This love...
Mercies Beyond This World
"And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom." (Luke 16:23) This account of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16 demonstrates the great difference between temporal prosperity and eternal blessedness. In this...
Creator and Preserver of All
“Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preserve them all; and the host of heaven worships thee.” (Nehemiah 9:6) The...
Why Men Cannot Stand Before God
“The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.” (Psalm 58:3) Scripture makes it patently clear that those who persist in their sin cannot stand before a holy God … that is, they cannot be counted among the redeemed. And...
The Soul’s Journey to Spiritual Renewal
“And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.” (Revelation 5:6)...
Pleading for Courage
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels… And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world.” (Revelation 12:7-9) The Christian...
Fleeing From What God Has Condemned
"For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it." (Genesis 19:13) The destruction of Sodom is a sure testimony to the holiness and justice of God. The city that had long...
Redemption from the Curse
“Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13) Scripture teaches that the mediatory work of Christ includes both His active obedience in fulfilling the law...
Humility That Lifts Us Up
“I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalts himself shall be abased; and he that humbles himself shall be exalted.” (Luke 18:14) This simple statement by Christ recorded in Luke 18 not only signifies the...
Mercy and Truth Written Upon the Heart
"Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart." (Proverbs 3:3) The Lord requires that mercy and truth possess the heart and govern the life of His children. These inward graces must therefore be rooted in the...
From Humility to Honor
“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” (James 4:10) James 4:10 reveals a profound truth—that humility is the path to honor. This was modeled perfectly by Christ as Philippians 2:5-9 declares, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in...
Providence That Placed Me Where I Stand
“And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation.” (Acts 17:26) No one arrives where they are by chance. One’s birth, family, nation,...
The Joy of Entering Christ’s Presence
"His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord." (Matthew 25:21) The “joy of the Lord” that awaits the believer is beyond all...
Christ’s Connection to His Own
“For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.” (Hebrews 2:11-12) What a...
Christ Our Mediator as Prophet, Priest, and King
“And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things...
Christ, the Appointed Judge of All
"And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead." (Acts 10:42) Christ is not only the Savior of His people, He is also the appointed Judge of all mankind. The One who was...
An Undivided Heart
“And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.” (Luke 16:17) The words of Christ in this passage cause us to consider a phenomenal truth—that heaven and earth, which appear so fixed and enduring to our eyes, are not as permanent as...
Christ, the Way to Heavenly Glory
"And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven." (John 3:13) These words in John 3 direct our attention to the glory of Christ and the great salvation He purchased for His people. For the Son of God...
The Eternal Purpose of God’s Rest
“The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.” (Psalm 33:11) This verse reminds us that God’s plans are eternal and unshakable. No matter what happens in our world or how uncertain circumstances may seem, His purpose remains...
The Foundation For Lasting Prosperity
“Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a man; And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his...
Light That Finds the Heart
“For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:6) The same God who once spoke light into existence at the creation of the...
The Great I AM
“And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” (Exodus 3:14) When God names Himself to Moses, He does not offer an explanation or a comparison. He gives a declaration, “I AM THAT I...
Chosen in Christ Before the World Began
“According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.” (Ephesians 1:4) Before the foundations of the earth were laid, before the heavens were stretched out by the hand of God, before sin...
The Manifestation of God’s Glory
“Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” (Hebrews 1:3) Hebrews 1:3 offers a majestic...
Known by God – A Love That Endures
“But if any man love God, the same is known of him.” (1 Corinthians 8:3) In the parable of the ten virgins, five were left outside the door, unprepared when the bridegroom came. Their desperate plea, “Lord, Lord, open to us,” was met with a dreadful answer: “I know...
The Call to Reflect Our Heavenly Father
“Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) The command of Christ to be perfect as the Father is perfect urges the believer to grow beyond a simple profession of faith toward a conformity to the character of God in...
Alpha and Omega, Lord of All
“For I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:8) God, as He is in Himself, cannot be understood by us because there is an essential, infinite distance between...
The God Whose Years Never End
“But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.” (Psalm 102:27) One of the most soul-steadying truths of Scripture is the fact that God does not change. While everything around us is wearing out, shifting, declining, or passing away, the Lord remains exactly...
God’s Loving Discipline
“Remember this, that the enemy hath reproached, O LORD, and that the foolish people have blasphemed thy name.” (Psalm 74:18) God’s love is not indulgent or careless—it is holy, patient, and refining. Which is why His affection for His people is not measured by the...
Dwelling in Thick Darkness
“Then spoke Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.”(1 Kings 8:12) From the beginning of revelation God’s presence has been veiled in thick darkness, an overwhelming mystery that no man can fully understand. Scripture makes it clear that His...