Matthew 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. People are not religious, but they are spiritual, supposedly. They don’t like church, but they do like God. People feel like religion is a private matter. The truth is that most people have invented their version of God. They […]

Photo by Davide Cantelli on Unsplash Genesis 41:39 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:  When God blessed Joseph by showing him the dream, Pharaoh recognized the blessing. Joseph has made it clear that it was not him that […]

Genesis 41:16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.  Joseph is about to interpret Pharaoh’s dream. Joseph wants it clear that God can do things that he can not. Joseph could have used it as a way to make a name for himself but […]

Psalm 105:42 For he remembered his holy promise, And Abraham his servant. God remembers. He doesn’t need a reminder. God makes promises, and He keeps them. He told Abraham something, and so it is as good as done. Nothing can change that. For those who wonder if Israel will ever possess all the land God […]

Matthew 13:35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world. God is at work in our world today. He has a plan. That plan has been revealed in stages. […]

Genesis 35:12 And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.  God always keeps His promises. He promised Abraham some land. God renewed that promise to Isaac. Now He tells Jacob that He is giving that land to […]

Genesis 33:9 And Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself.  Esau and Jacob have been enemies for a long time now. They are brothers, and their hatred has been extreme. Now as they meet Jacob sends gifts to appease his brother. The thing that gets my attention is that […]

Genesis 31:29 It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.  Here in this verse God again speaks to a pagan. He knows that God is talking. Laban […]

Psalm 40:17 But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: Thou art my help and my deliverer; Make no tarrying, O my God. Can you believe it? God takes the time to think about me. The psalmist recognizes that he is unworthy. The psalmist is poor and needy. He can add […]

Proverbs 9:16 Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: And as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, The fast, loose, woman calls to the young simpleton. He is not smart enough to realize that she wants to ruin his life. He goes in to sin proving his lack of intelligence. He […]

Genesis 26:35 Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah. Esau wanted to hurt his parents. He disobeyed them and their counsel about who to marry. Esau chose the opposite of who his parents suggested. He was angry and bitter. He wanted to hurt his family and ended up injuring himself as […]

Photo by Rose Elena on Unsplash Genesis 25:22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to inquire of the LORD. 23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, And two manner of people shall be separated […]

Photo by João Silas on Unsplash Proverbs 6:32 But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: He that doeth it destroyeth his own soul. Sex outside of marriage is not worth it. Adultery is sex with someone besides the person you are married to. You committed your life to one person. You are to […]

Photo by Alex Iby on Unsplash Proverbs 5:11 And thou mourn at the last, When thy flesh and thy body are consumed, The wise man warns his son about the dangers of sexual impurity. There are all sorts of hazards. You will lose your soul, your essence, your dignity. You will have a blemish on […]

Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash Genesis 20:3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man’s wife. In this very first book of the Bible, we find a lost man, […]

Photo by v2osk on Unsplash Psalm 33:18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, Upon them that hope in his mercy; So many times when people say that God is watching they use this truth as a threat. In this verse, it is a promise. God is paying attention to […]

Matthew 7:12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. How do you want to be treated? Do you like to feel respected and appreciated? Do you appreciate kindness extended your way? Do you wish people would […]

Matthew 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;  Jesus taught his disciples to do something radically different than anyone else in their culture. He taught them to do something that […]

Genesis 14:20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.  God had given Abraham victory. He then meets Melchizedek and gives him tithes of all. This tithe is given long before God gave Israel its law. This tithe was not a […]

Photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash Genesis 13:15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.  God promised Abram, Abraham, all the land that he could see. He promised him all the ground that his feet would touch. God promised to give Abram the […]

Genesis 9:15 And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.  God destroyed the entire world in a flood. Then He made a promise that He would not be doing that again. […]

Genesis 9:25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. Noah had gotten drunk. He had been naked in his tent. When Noah woke up, he was embarrassed. In this embarrassment, Noah cursed his grandson. God has allowed me to have twenty grandchildren. I can not imagine […]

Proverbs 31:29 Many daughters have done virtuously, But thou excellest them all. As I read Proverbs 31 today, I couldn’t help but think of my wife of over 46 years. She has been a virtuous woman both in position and practice all of our married lives. She raised her children to love and serve God. […]

Psalm 119:19 I am a stranger in the earth: Hide not thy commandments from me. This world is not my home. I am just passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. That was the song I sang as a child. I still believe it is true. I am a stranger and […]

Photo by Clever Visuals on Unsplash Genesis 8:21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, […]

Matthew 4:20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him. The early disciples, the apostles, left everything to follow Jesus. In this verse, the fishermen left their nets. They left their livelihoods. They gave up their lives to give Him their lives. They walked away from what they knew to follow Him and learn […]

Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. God said that those that hunger and thirst after righteousness would be filled. He blessed them. They were happy. Today too often we are not hungering or thirsting after God. We do not desire holiness more than food. […]

Photo by Kat J on Unsplash Psalm 30:5 For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. God will discipline sin. He hates to see us sin and be hurt by our sin. But the favor of the Lord gives […]

Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash Psalm 50:16 But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, Or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth? 17 Seeing thou hatest instruction, And castest my words behind thee. In Peru where we were privileged to serve for eighteen years […]

Psalm 118:23 This is the LORD’s doing; It is marvellous in our eyes. God is at work. He is doing great things. We live in awe of Him and His power. Are you seeing God work in your life? Can you think of how He has shown Himself strong on your behalf? I need to […]

Psalm 118:29 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever. God is good. He is merciful. He shows His mercy forever. We should give thanks for Him and to Him. The picture all too many have of God is a vindictive God. They think that God is […]

Proverbs 28:9 He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer shall be abomination. If you refuse to hear the Word of God, then you should never expect God to answer your prayers. You choose not to listen; then God will find your prayer to be an abomination.  That means that […]

Psalm 27:14 Wait on the LORD: Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: Wait, I say, on the LORD. The psalmist told us to wait on the Lord. The word wait means to “hope in.” That means we place our hope, our faith, our expectations in Him. The word wait is the […]

Proverbs 27:2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; A stranger, and not thine own lips. This verse will also be one of my favorites. Not because I have victory in this area but because when our youngest son was a child, he heard a message that affected him significantly. The actual […]

Photo by Tirza van Dijk on Unsplash Proverbs 27:12 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; But the simple pass on, and are punished. God can help you know what is going to happen before it happens. The prudent man or the man who has learned to be cautious and think wisely can […]

Photo by Walter Chávez on Unsplash Matthew 1:22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,  God sees to it that certain things happen. If He said it then it will happen, then it will happen. Everything that happens in the life of […]

Proverbs 26:11 As a dog returneth to his vomit, So a fool returneth to his folly. It is pretty disgusting when you see a dog go back to eat its own vomit. It feels the same when you see a fool return to his folly. Folly refers to weakness of intellect or lack of understanding. […]

Photo by Melanie Wasser on Unsplash Psalm 56:4 In God I will praise his word, In God I have put my trust; I will not fear What flesh can do unto me. The statement is made here in this verse that he will not fear what flesh, people, can do to him. How can you […]

Photo by Jonatan Pie on Unsplash Isaiah 65:17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: And the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. God will one day wipe away all tears from the eyes of His children, believers. He will create a new heaven and a new earth. We […]

Photo by Valentin Salja on Unsplash Isaiah 57:21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. God said that the wicked do not have peace nor will they. God will judge sin. Sin always hurts. People think that their rebellion is fun, but in the end, they hurt. They hate the way God […]

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash Isaiah 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: It shall not return unto me void, But it shall accomplish that which I please, And it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. God’s Word works. It accomplishes His purposes. There are […]

Isaiah 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are my ways higher than your ways, And my thoughts than your thoughts. It is impossible for a human to understand God. God is far bigger than us. There is a greater possibility that an ant understands you than that you understand God. […]

Isaiah 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, Call ye upon him while he is near: Many people think that they want to get things right with God. They want to be saved. They want their sins forgiven, but they plan on waiting till they are ready. Here is what God says. […]

Isaiah 55:2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? And your labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, And let your soul delight itself in fatness. Somehow people simply do not realize how we waste our lives. We spend our effort, […]

Isaiah 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; And every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD. God made a promise to the nation of Israel. I believe it […]

Isaiah 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, And carried our sorrows: Yet we did esteem him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. We know that Jesus died for our sins and failures. Most of the English speaking world at least knows this truth. We know that He was carrying our sorrows. We have seen […]

Isaiah 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. God loves the world. Jesus is the author […]

Isaiah 52:6 Therefore my people shall know my name: Therefore they shall know in that day that I am he that doth speak: behold, it is I. God wants people, His people, to know that He does speak. Today He speaks through His Word. You can trust that to be true. I love to come […]

Isaiah 51:12 I, even I, am he that comforteth you: Who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, And of the son of man which shall be made as grass; God promises His people that they do not need to fear any man. Men are weak. Men are going […]