Instead of fussing and fuming over life’s inequities, “it is good for me to draw near to God” (Ps 73:28). We’ve been considering Asaph’s Dilemma (Ps 73:1-12). Notice that his problem isn’t really with these ungodly people; it’s with God Himself. He just can’t see why the Lord allows the wicked to prosper and to defy God in the […]
CHRIST the TENDER-HEARTED: “Through the tender mercy of our God, with which the Dayspring from on high has visited us to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Lk 1:78-79). Make no mistake, William Booth believed in the gospel. He […]
“Let, I pray, Your merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to Your word to Your servant. Let Your tender mercies come to me, that I may live; for Your law is my delight” (Ps 119:76-77). Certain words roll over the tongue like tasty morsels. Such are “merciful kindness” and “tender mercies.” Some have translated […]
Edward Hoare, son of a London banker, was a well-respected evangelical preacher in Tunbridge Wells at the end of the 19th century. One day a businessman requested a tour of the graveyard so he could select a spot for his “final resting-place.” After he had made his choice, Hoare turned to him and asked, “You […]
There seems to be something wrong with the equation of life. Isn’t it obedience = blessing? Our general outline of Psalm 73 is simple: Asaph’s Dilemma (vv 1-12) and Asaph’s Deliverance (vv 13-28). Asaph could have begun the psalm with the words, “Don’t panic! There’s definitely a problem here, but there’s a solution as well. So keep reading.” Instead, […]
CHRIST the CONFIDENCE-BUILDER: We have confidence in His unchanging PURPOSE: “According to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him” (Eph 3:11-12). We have confidence in His unchanging PROMISE: “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent […]
“…making mention of you in my prayers: that…the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working […]
When William Featherston wrote, “For Thee all the follies of sin I resign,” he reminded us of what Paul confessed regarding his days as a brilliant but lost Jewish zealot: “being exceedingly mad” (Acts 26:11). Sin is a waste, defiling, disappointing, a self-inflicted death wound. G.C. Berkouwer observes about sin’s fundamental senselessness: “Therefore, since every […]
CHRIST our INTERCESSOR (Heb 7:25): To make intercession (en-toong-khan’-o) for someone is to first meet and converse, then to petition or plead on that person’s behalf. How encouraging is this! If we fail to pray for ourselves as we should, or fail to ask for what we desperately need, Someone Else is praying for us! […]