Whenever I have an opportunity to teach, I gravitate toward passages of lament. Maybe it’s because I spent too much time listening to fashionably sad music in the 1990s. Whatever the case, it’s the psalms of lament that capture my attention. The cries of “How long, O Lord?” sometimes speak to my heart more deeply than the shouts of “How majestic is your name.” They resonate deeply. They remind me that I’m not the only one who wonders about such things: why can evil appear to be victorious, or ... [Reading More]
The Good News of Jesus In Jonah
The name Jonah means “son of my faithfulness”; with such a name, you’d think his life would be one marked by faithfulness. Sadly, his life reflects nothing of his name. Instead, Jonah is the story of a man in self-imposed exile. With every opportunity to declare grace to others in trouble, he selfishly chooses solitude. Rebellion is never “just” personal As the narrative of chapters one and two reminds us, the great God of the Bible calls Jonah to mission among the peoples, but he initially ... [Reading More]
Take Heart as We Wait for the Day of the Lord
Wrath is not necessarily a bad thing. Think about it. In any epic, the good guys win precisely because they have poured out wrath on the bad guys. That’s part of telling a good story. The hero is victorious and the enemy is defeated. Good wins. Evil loses. Throughout the story of the Bible and of history, God, the ultimate “good guy”, wages war upon evil and anyone who wages war necessarily has wrath. And when it comes to pouring out wrath on evil, there is no question that it is a good thing ... [Reading More]
Considering our ways and the mission of God
I am the boldest evangelist I know. On paper. I have a great theology of evangelism. I theoretically trust that God will work through an ordinary guy like me to draw people to Himself. I know that whether someone comes to Christ ultimately doesn’t depend on me, but on Him. And yet when it comes down to it, I kind of stink at actually evangelizing people. My tongue gets tied. My mind goes blank. My confidence leaves me. (And sometimes, I just forget.) I often feel a mix of guilt and ... [Reading More]
Nahum, judgment, and Jesus
There have been several times in my life and ministry when I had to be the bearer of bad news. It’s never easy. But when it comes to serving the Lord, and bearing the burden of the gospel, these moments are inevitable. So what’s the worst news someone could possibly hear or tell? Probably news of a loved one dying, a job they’ve lost, or that his or her spouse is cheating on them. Yes, that’s bad news for sure. But what if it were your assignment to tell someone that God’s judgment is coming, ... [Reading More]
Finding Joy in God’s Judgment
I’ll admit, I tease about coffee cup verses and inspirational posters. A lot. I like to think of it as good-natured ribbing, but it probably comes off as curmudgeonly and jaded sometimes. After all, there are some verses and passages we should be inspired and encouraged by: Isaiah 45:22—“Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth. For I am God, and there is no other.”—fills me with hope as God declares his desire to see people from every nation turn to Him. Habbakuk’s confidence in ... [Reading More]
Sep
15
2016
Why We Need to Teach the Minor Prophets to Kids
I grew up in a home with a formal dining room that we rarely used. My family ate most of our meals around the kitchen table or hunkered down around the coffee table in the living room on Sunday evenings after church. The dining room was only used for special occasions, like Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. In fact, my brother and I knew that we weren’t really even supposed to go into the dining room. I don’t remember my mom telling us not to; but it was something that was just understood. I ... [Reading More]
Where is the good news in the Minor Prophets?
When I was a new believer, one of the biggest mistakes I made was trying to jump right into reading the Prophets. Not that reading them was a mistake, of course. My problem was I had no idea what to do with them. What did these books that seem so filled with judgment and doom, strange imagery, and painful truths written to ancient people have to do with me? Quite a bit, as it turns out. Despite the very specific nature of their message, the Prophets are good news for us today. In these ... [Reading More]