For my money, Job 1:13-19 has to be the most ridiculously awful passage in the whole Bible.  If you know the story at all, Satan has contended before God that the only reason Job serves God is because He has made Job prosperous.  “Strike everything he has,” Satan says, “and he will surely curse you to your face.”  God proceeds to allow Satan to test out that theory, and what follows is the Job 1:13-19 nightmare:
Read more »

“When a man is revengeful, it is amazing how cunning he is to find opportunities to strike out.  When enmity thoroughly possesses his soul and pours its venom into his very blood, he will become exceedingly crafty in the means he uses to provoke and injure his adversary” [Charles Spurgeon (19th century British preacher), Spiritual Warfare in a Believer’s Life].

Ahhh, vengeance.  How true are Spurgeon’s words, that we are never more cunning and crafty as when we wish to inflict pain on someone.  We can come up with the most biting lines and the sneakiest ways to damage someone’s reputation.  We can damage them with ice-cold snubs and stares or red-hot words of anger and violence. 

Is it any wonder, in light of this, that Satan is first introduced in the Bible in this way:  Read more »

If you’ve never actually read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the four accounts of the life of Jesus – or even if you’ve never read them carefully – it can be easy to believe in a one-dimensional Jesus who fails to resemble the complex individual found in the gospels.  Some believe in the “just love and accept everybody” Jesus, others in the “fight for justice and speak against ungodly authority” Jesus, and still others for a human Jesus who never claimed to be divine.  But the truth is way more complex, and, rest assured, will offend everyone (including you) at some point.  One person will find Jesus too forgiving, seemingly letting people off the hook who deserve punishment.  Others will find him too narrow, demanding that people come to God through Him and treat His words as truth instead of allowing people to believe whatever they want.  In short, Jesus just isn’t like us, and often does not behave the way we wish He would.

One of the best examples comes in Matthew 16:13-23.  Read more »

Would it shock you to hear that this June, beginning this Sunday, there will be 1,263 churches, with a combined total attendance of roughly 750,000 people, who will be joining together to do the same preaching series?  One Prayer, the brainchild of LifeChurch of Oklahoma’s pastor Craig Groeschel, is an attempt to unite the worldwide church for one month in prayer, fasting, mission, and vision for what God could do if we would all seek Him together.  I remember when I first heard him pitch the vision – it couldn’t have been more than three or so months ago – and it has been staggering to see the number of churches who have signed up to be a part of this experience (six Connecticut churches, including East Hampton Bible Church, Fellowship Church of Middletown, and St. Paul’s Collegiate Church of Storrs, are among those taking part). 
Read more »