September 2023

The Siren Song of False Teaching

In ancient Greek and Roman mythology, the sirens were creatures who would sing in such an alluring way that sailors would be lured in and become shipwrecked on the rocks. In Homer’s Iliad, Odysseus saved his ship and crew by plugging his sailors’ ears with beeswax and giving instructions for them to tie him securely […]



Learning to Walk

The Colossian church to whom Paul wrote the letter that we find in our New Testaments would have been comprised almost entirely of new believers. Most of them were likely recent gentile converts who were probably not even very familiar with the Old Testament scriptures of Judaism. In the language of Colossians 2:6, they had […]



Christ’s Afflictions

During my recent vacation I read through the book of Colossians in my personal devotions. On July 31, I made the following entry in a journal of sorts that I keep, “This morning I spent time with God in Colossians. I struggled to concentrate though. I had to read portions over and over again because […]



August 2023

Thoughts To Make Your Heart Sing

The portion of scripture that we’ll be studying, Colossians 1:15-23, contains lyrics (verses 15-20) from what was probably an early hymn of the church. Peppered throughout the New Testament we find fragmentary evidence of the church’s earliest hymns. John 1:1-5, Philippians 2:6-11, Ephesians 2:14-16, 1 Timothy 3:16, 2 Timothy 2:11-13, Hebrews 1:3, and 1 Peter […]



Colossians

Unlike Corinth, Thessalonica, Rome, Phillipi or Ephesus which were large cities, Colossae was a small town. By the time Paul wrote his letter to the church in Colossae during the first century AD, the town had become a small and insignificant place located on the road between larger population centers. Today Colossae exists only as a heap of ruins near the modern-day Turkish town […]



July 2023

Mephibosheth v. Ziba

It’s kind of a murky tale that leaves a lot of readers wondering who to believe. It’s the case of Mephibosheth v. Ziba. For the full context you can read 2 Samuel 4:4, 2 Samuel 9, 2 Samuel 16:1-4 and 2 Samuel 19:24-30. The principal players of this confusing story are King David, Mephibosheth (a […]



A Woman Named Rahab

As we worship God through the study of His Word, we’ll be learning about a woman named Rahab. You can find her story in Joshua 2. It’s an interesting story filled with spies, danger, double agents, and narrow escapes. Rahab was a resident of the doomed city of Jericho and her life took an unexpected […]



A Worshipful Response

In Luke 7:36-50 we find an account of 1st Century party crashing. A woman who was known around town for her sinful lifestyle entered the home of a pharisee named Simon who was hosting a dinner party in Jesus’ honor. She was uninvited and unwelcome in Simon’s house but she came anyway. I imagine it […]



June 2023

True Sonship

This Sunday is Father’s Day and what could be more appropriate than to continue our study through the parables of Jesus by studying that of the prodigal son. You’ll find this parable in Luke 15. That chapter begins, “Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and […]



Maybe Today

Jesus is coming back. Maybe soon. Maybe even today. Perhaps last Sunday was my last chance to preach the Gospel from the pulpit and maybe, just maybe, it was the last chance for somebody to respond to it. The date of the promised day when Jesus returns has been set and is even now fast […]