Lord—You are coming in power someday—and You are already here, near at-hand. You know us entirely—you know our wants and needs, our dreams and hopes, our disappointments and griefs--and yet You are no...
Mark 13:1-8, Mark 11:, Mark 12:, Ezekiel 10:18-19, Ezekiel 11:22-23
Context In the Book of Mark Mark 13 contains the “Olivet Discourse,” also called “the Little Apocalypse.” At the beginning of this chapter (and our reading), the disciples marvel at Herod’s spectacu...
Mark 13:1-8, Mark 11:, Mark 12:, Ezekiel 10:18-19, Ezekiel 11:22-23
Context In the Book of Mark Mark 13 contains the “Olivet Discourse,” also called “the Little Apocalypse.” At the beginning of this chapter (and our reading), the disciples marvel at Herod’s spectacu...
The world won’t end in a climate change apocalypse. The world won’t end in world war. The world ends in worship, neither a bang nor a whimper but a shout and song of praise.”
Ancient Lens What can we learn from the historical context? A Gospel for a Jewish Community Matthew’s Gospel presents a favorable view of the Jewish Law and its traditions. In contrast to Luke...
PRESS RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 1, 1993 We didn’t make a mistake when we wrote in our previous releases that New York would be destroyed on September 4 and October 14, 1993. We didn’t make a mistake, no...
General Context If you have ever been to visit magnificent architecture – St. Peter’s in Rome, the U. S. Capitol Building, the Hagia Sophia or the Taj Mahal, you can almost hear the chatter of camera...
Introduction: The Unexpected Guests Although it seems to be less frequent in the digital age, “drop-by” visits by neighbors, family or friends often leave us unprepared. We haven’t had time to vacuu...
God has wisely kept us in the dark concerning future events and reserved for himself the knowledge of them, that he may train us up in a dependence upon himself and a continued readiness for every eve...
When will he come and how will he come and will there be warnings and will there be thunders and rumbling of armies coming before him and banners and trumpets When will he come and how will he come an...
AIM Commentary Ancient Lens What can we learn from the historical context? A Gospel for a Jewish Community Matthew’s Gospel presents a favorable view of the Jewish Law and its traditions. In...
Revelation 22:12, Titus 2:13, John 8:12, Psalm 119:105, Proverbs 3:5-6, Psalm 34:18, Matthew 5:44
Lord Jesus–You’ve come, are coming and will come again. Whether we know it or not, we live on the edge of Your advent every moment of every day either with anticipation or with anxiety. As if stumblin...
AIM Commentary Introduction: The Unexpected Guests Although it seems to be less frequent in the digital age, “drop-by” visits by neighbors, family or friends often leave us unprepared. We haven’t ...
Isaiah 25:6-9, Daniel 7:13-14, Zechariah 8:4-5, Luke 24:36-43, Revelation 21:1-5, Psalm 16:11
One day when George MacDonald, the great Scottish preacher and writer, was talking with his son, the conversation turned to heaven and the prophets’ version of the end of all things. “It seems too goo...
Introduction There are two significant ways in which waiting is central to our passage today. First, there is the waiting to be reunited with the apostle Paul and the fledgling church in Thessalonica...
In the great drama of redemption, all arrows point down, not up. To say this more plainly, at no point in the biblical panorama is redemption a matter of our rising up to achieve a higher condition ou...
Introduction This text is used in the first week of Advent, but preparing for Jesus' return isn't something for just one time of the year. For a treatment that is more focused on Advent, see ...
1 Timothy 1:15, Romans 5:8, Luke 19:10, Revelation 3:20, Matthew 9:13, Luke 15:11-32
At the last Judgment Christ will say to us, "Come, you also! Come, drunkards! Come, weaklings! Come, children of shame!" And He will say to us: "Vile beings, you who are in the image of...
Luke 12:32-40, Romans 13:11-14, Matthew 24:36-44, Luke 21:25-28, John 5:28-29, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, Revelation 1:7
Brothers and sisters, the coming of Christ is near. The ultimate epiphany is just around the corner. If we think otherwise, we tragically impoverish our souls. Most Christians think little of Christ’s...
2 Timothy 3:14-4:5, 2 Timothy 3:14-17, 2 Timothy 4:1-5, Matthew 4:5, 1 Corinthians 9:13, Genesis 2:7, 1 Peter 2:4-5
Preaching Commentary Introduction In Paul’s second extant letter to his beloved Timothy, the passage of 3:10-4:5 records Paul’s final charge to Timothy. Calling on Timothy’s trust of Paul’s ministr...
The day of Jesus’s return will be a wedding feast—and Christians are invited to it not as guests, but as a bride. None of us will have to sneak into heaven through the back door—we’ll be walking up th...
Luke 19:41-44, Matthew 24:42-44, Revelation 3:20, Luke 19:5-6, Hebrews 3:15, James 4:8
One of the scariest questions in the Palm Sunday story…. How will I respond when Jesus comes riding humbly into my life? Will I recognize the time of God’s coming to me? Will I recognize and welcome G...
Context This passage takes a number of turns that may, at first, seem disconnected from one another. Our text is part of a larger teaching discourse of Jesus in Luke’s gospel that has been causing te...
Context This passage takes a number of turns that may, at first, seem disconnected from one another. Our text is part of a larger teaching discourse of Jesus in Luke’s gospel that has been causing te...
Advent means “coming,” from the Latin word adventus, and demarks a season of expectantly preparing to celebrate the first coming of Jesus, while eagerly awaiting His second coming to establish His kin...
2 Timothy 3:14-4:5, 2 Timothy 3:14-17, 2 Timothy 4:1-5, Matthew 4:5, 1 Corinthians 9:13, Genesis 2:7, 1 Peter 2:4-5
Introduction In Paul’s second extant letter to his beloved Timothy, the passage of 3:10-4:5 records Paul’s final charge to Timothy. Calling on Timothy’s trust of Paul’s ministry and character (3:10-1...
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with humanity. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be w...