Contemplations
God’s Standard of Justice and Love
“The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.” (Psalm 37:21) Human society has always been marked by greed, covetousness, and the endless pursuit of gain. Of course, Scripture confronts this reality head on, not only...
The Everlasting 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) The wisdom of Solomon in Ecclesiastes reaches into the heart of every...
The Path to Sanctification
“Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:”(Colossians 3:5) The believers in Colosse were young converts navigating the difficult terrain of...
The Believer’s Inner Struggle
“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like: of the...
Returning to the Almighty
“Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart. If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacles.” (Job 22:22-23) The path to restoration with God is plainly stated in...
Despising a Gracious Father
“Do ye thus requite the LORD, O foolish people and unwise? is not he thy father that hath bought thee? hath he not made thee, and established thee?” (Deuteronomy 32:6) Moses poses a searching question to the hearts of God’s people, “Do ye thus requite the LORD?” The...
Salvation by Mercy Alone
“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.” (Titus 3:5) Scripture declares time and again that salvation does not arise from works of righteousness that we...
By the Word of God
“For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water.” (2 Peter 3:5) The apostle Peter addresses a deliberate blindness that marks the hearts of ungodly men. He does not...
All Things Made by the Word
“All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.”(John 1:3) This testimony concerning the Son of God is that all things, without exception, owe their being to Him. Nothing exists independently. Nothing came into being apart from His...
The Word That Spoke All Things into Being
“By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.” (Psalm 33:6) Scripture repeatedly declares the majesty of God. For example, none other than Almighty God could create everything from nothing simply by the word of...
A Resolution Against New Year’s Resolutions
“And the Jews’ Passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep,...
What Is Different About This Baby?
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6) Babies are born every day, each one a...
The Power to Perform Miracles
“But lift up your rod and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.” (Exodus 14:16) The Old Testament is filled with occasions where God demonstrated His power through miracles....
Evidence of God’s Infinite Power
“Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.” (Psalm 147:5) Evidence of the power of Almighty God abounds all around us, as every aspect of creation we observe and enjoy in our world is a result of the counsel of His will and effect of His infinite power. God ascribes...
What Does It Mean to Know the Infinite God?
“Can you discover the depths of God? Can you discover the limits of the Almighty?” (Job 11:7 NASB) The questions Job poses in this passage are rhetorical, of course. So the answer is a resounding “No!” Only God understands Himself in a perfect manner because He is...
Where God Dwells
"For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." Isaiah...
Why Be Thankful?
"In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (1 Thessalonians 5:18) One of the great privileges of parenting is guiding a child toward growth. Parents know that challenges and discipline, though unpleasant at times, are...
Transcending All
"The LORD is high above all nations, His glory above the heavens." (Psalm 113:4) The natural man exalts himself, believing in his own strength, intelligence, and ability to shape his destiny. He puffs out his chest and calls himself a self-made man. Yet such thinking...
God’s Purpose in Affliction
"Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; for how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another." (Isaiah 48:10-11) Scripture makes it clear that...
Boast in the Lord
“… just as it is written, ‘Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.’” (1 Corinthians 1:31) The narrative in 1 Kings 16 recounts a tragic period in Israel’s history detailing the reign of a series of wicked kings who led the people deeper into idolatry. Among them, Ahab...
Reflecting Him
“Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let Thy glory be above all the earth.” (Psalm 57:11) God made all things for His own glory, and mankind is no exception. “God’s life is his power of working all things according as seems good to himself after his own counsel...
God Rejoices and Creation Responds
“Let the glory of the Lord endure forever; Let the Lord be glad in His works.” (Psalm 104:31) Five times in Genesis 1 God pauses in the act of creation to declare His work “good” (Genesis 1:4, 12, 18, 21, 25). It is clear in the creation account that God takes delight...
Strange… and Yet Wonderful
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.” (2 Timothy 3:16) How many times have we read a passage of Scripture and walked away puzzled, wondering why certain verses were included in God’s eternal Word? Some texts may seem obscure to us, even strange, and yet Paul...
The Danger in High Places
“Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did his father David… he removed Maachah his grandmother from being queen mother, because she had made an obscene image of Asherah… But the high places were not removed.”(1 Kings 15:11-14) Asa, king of Judah, was a...
A Jealous God
“You shall have no other gods before Me… For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.” (Exodus 20:3, 5) In man’s pursuit of happiness and meaning, the message of the world is clear—follow your heart, chase your dreams, fulfill your desires. But this idea runs in direct...
Real Freedom Isn’t Free
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1) In a world full of opportunities, it's easy to be captivated by the allure of what many call “freedom”—financial freedom, time...
The Great Promise-Keeper
“If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.” (2 Timothy 2:13) When God makes a promise, He fulfills it perfectly. He is all-knowing and all-powerful, and nothing can stand in the way of His purposes. But what makes His promises all the more...
The Beauty of the Lord
“One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4) What makes a mountain vista or a morning sunrise beautiful...
Unrelenting Goodness
“The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.” (Exodus 34:6) One of the greatest errors Christians make is to forget that God is not like us. When we sit in traffic, we grow impatient. After a long day, we’re...
Resolving to Glorify God in 2018 and Beyond
“Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31) We are bound to time, and our lives are often marked by the passing of years—births, milestones, transitions, and endings. When a new year begins, it’s natural...
God Never Lets Go
“I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.” (John 10:28-29) At the height of Solomon’s...
Life, Liberty, and the Price of Freedom
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1-2) The story of American...
The Word of God
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) Though God in His infinite glory is beyond the grasp of our human senses, He graciously reveals Himself to us. From the majesty of the heavens to the pages of Scripture, and...
The Veil is Gone
“But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:13, NASB) Before the cross, the veil hung heavy between man and God—a solemn reminder of our sin, our distance, and our unworthiness. The Most Holy...
Are You Missing the Message of the Cross?
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) When we think of the message behind the cross of Christ, most of us would agree that it speaks to the depths of God’s love for...
The Fit Adoration of God by Jonathan Edwards
How do you know you are not a hypocrite? "Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows: for every one is an hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his...
Redeemed by God by Stephen Charnock
Have you considered what it means to be redeemed? "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers," (1 Peter 1:18). God has given us the...
Cause For Praise
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations. (Psalm 100:4-5, NKJV) Once we grasp an understanding of God that...
True Worship of the Most High God by Joshua Moodey
When men worship any other person or thing than the one only, living and true God, when they have and serve any other god before or besides the true God; and this is gross idolatry and a breach of the first commandment. When they worship the true God but...
How Should We Measure Ourselves?
“For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.” (Romans 12:3, NASB) As a general rule, we...
Growing in Christ Through Prayer by J.I. Packer
"But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen." (2 Peter 3:18). J.I. Packer said, "Hallowing God’s name requires praise for the goodness and greatness of his redemptive work, with...
Christ Considered in Heaven by Charles Spurgeon
"Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them." (Heb. 7:25). Charles Spurgeon said, "Christ the King is gone from earth. He is seated at his table in heaven,...
Looking to Christ with a Pure Heart by Lewis Bayly
"Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me." (Psa. 51:10). After you have received the Lord's Supper, the several duties which you must perform from your own soul:—First, you must be careful that forasmuch as Christ now...
Adore God’s Divine Power by Thomas Ridgley
"Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite." (Psa. 147:5). Christians must adore Christ as a God of infinite power. "Thine is the power," as the Lord's Prayer states. Thomas Ridgley said, "Dominion without power will not be...
Christ Adored by William Ames
"He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things." (Eph. 4:10). Christ ascended so that he might dispatch such other things that still remained to be done for us. Now such were his intercession, and...
Contemplating the Godly Who Adored God with Their Life by Thomas Manton
"Demetrius has a good testimony from all, and from the truth itself. " (3 John 1:12). Thomas Manton gave this account of a godly woman who exemplified her faith in walking with God: The duty I owe to the memory of a great sister in Christ obliges me to...
God Knows
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9) We’re in a mess – a mess that carries major implications. For as much as we don’t like to hear it, we are deceivers by nature and have been ever since that...
The Psalms Useful for Adoring God by Thomas Ford
"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms." (Jam. 5:13). Thomas Ford said, "It is ignorance of a man’s self, and the ways of God, to think any Psalm is unsuitable to any man’s condition, if he is especially a...
Adoring God’s Providence by Matthew Mead
"Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him." (Psa. 33:8). Admiration and wonder is the Christian's delight! O how full of riddles and mystery are the providences of God! How few of the designs of his...
The Logos of God to be Adored by Louis Berkhof
"For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus," (1Tim. 2:5). The union of the two natures in one person is a mystery which we cannot grasp, and which for that very reason is often denied. It has sometimes been compared...
Religious Affections in Adoring God by Jonathan Edwards
"Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth." (Psa. 96:9). The holy nature in the saints and angels in heaven (where the true tendency of it best appears) is principally engaged by the holiness of divine things. This...
Asking God for Great Things in Prayer by Samuel Rutherford
"He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him, He shall see His face with joy, For He restores to man His righteousness." (Job. 33:26). Samuel Rutherford once said, "We would, in seeking, asking, praying, in adoring God in Christ, enlarge our own...
Adoring God in Spiritual Worship by John Wilson
"Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." (1Tim. 1:17). John Wilson rightly said, "People often have misapprehensions of God, his nature, essence, and will." God is a most pure and...
True Knowledge of God by John Calvin
"...that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death," (Phi. 3:10). It is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he have previously contemplated the face of...