Israel’s first king, Saul, had the royal throne ripped away from him and given to David. He rejected God’s commands, and God rejected him as chief-in-command. But why does God respond so firmly to Saul and so graciously to David? If both Saul and David were sinners, why is Saul portrayed so negatively overall in and why is David portrayed so positively overall?
Continue reading 10 Contrasts Between Saul and DavidCategory: Bible study
Who was the prophet Samuel?
Samuel was “…the kind of leader that Israel actually needed. Their need was not for a great military hero or genius. God had demonstrated unambiguously that he could deal with their enemies without such a champion. Their need was not for a brilliant political giant who could organize the nation efficiently. Israel’s need could not be met by management abilities. Israel’s great need was a leader who would bring them back to God. They needed a leader who would lead them in righteousness. They needed a Samuel. And God gave them Samuel!”[1]
In many photos of Samuel online (such as the one above from Amazon’s series House of David), you might get him confused with Gandalf the Grey. Both appear old, wise, travel with a nice staff, and perform some pretty awesome deeds. But who was Samuel in the Bible, or what was his ministry to Israel?
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10 Things to Know about 1 Peter
- Peter, the Apostle, wrote the book and refers to it in his second letter (2 Peter 3:1).
- Peter likely penned the letter around AD 62-63 while in Rome (“Babylon” in 5:13).
- At the time of Peter’s writing, the famous (or infamous) Emperor Nero ruled Rome. Within a couple of years, he would have Peter killed.
- Although persecution at the time of writing was not yet widespread or officially sanctioned by the empire, it was taking place on a local level. Peter addresses these exiles experiencing opposition and suffering throughout his letter.
- Peter wrote to believers scattered or dispersed throughout Asia Minor (1:1), now modern-day Turkey.
- Most likely, the audience primarily consisted of Gentiles (see 1:14, 18; 2:10) who seemed to have been instructed in the Old Testament after their conversion. There is a lot of Old Testament theology and background Peter draws upon as he explains to them who they are, what Christ has done for them, and how they fit into God’s redemptive story.
- The theme of “exile” is prominent throughout the book and gives us a lens to understand much of what Peter writes. Whether they were physical, cultural, or spiritual exiles (or all of the above), Peter wants to remind them to see themselves and their role through God’s purposes and plans rather than the world’s evaluation and treatment of them.
- Another key theme is that while we don’t belong to this world we do belong to God, who has redeemed us to Himself (1:1-2, 18-19; 2:9-10, 25; 3:18). They are not just exiles, but they are “elect exiles,” known, loved, and treasured by God (1:1). Because they belong to Him, their lives display to the world what He’s like (2:12).
- The purpose of the letter is to encourage believers to both endure suffering and pursue holiness in an evil and hostile culture. Peter will repeatedly bring them back to who their living Savior is and who they now are in Him as an appeal to then live out their new identity and calling in Christ. Because they have hope in a living Savior, they can endure earthly hardships.
- At the end of the letter, we see that Peter was with John Mark. This is the same Mark who participated in ministry with Paul and Barnabas (Acts 12:25; 13:5, Col. 4:10; 2 Tim. 4:11), whose mother hosted a church (Acts 12:12), and who most likely wrote the Gospel of Mark through the direction and influence of Peter.
Seal: Small Word, Big Meaning
One joy of studying the Word rather than giving it a cursory reading is all the truth that starts to pop. Read through anything quickly and little will stand out. Read things slowly and thoughtfully, and you’ll experience reading in a whole new way. One thing slowing down forces us to do is to ask questions about the Bible. What does a word mean? Why did the writer use that sentence order or repeat that phrase several times? Where else from Scripture might they be drawing from? If we pause to chew on one word, one promise, one truth, or one phrase, we’re much more likely to be gripped by it and do something with it.
2 January Bible Reading Plans
Bible reading plans help take the off our shoulders deciding what to read each day. They also provide a reasonable amount of reading per day and a short enough plan (such as 31 days) that you can commit to it. That’s why I’m such a fan of them and have created a number of different Bible reading plans for myself or churches over the years.
Below are two 31-day reading plans to choose from to kick off the new year (or you could even read both). One goes through Proverbs, one chapter a day, in an attempt to begin the year with a focus on gaining wisdom. We’ll all need it in 2024. The other option wades through four of Paul’s letters: Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians.
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November Gratitude Reading Plan: The Psalms
November is always a great time to leverage the national focus on gratitude by leaning into thanksgiving. One way to keep gratitude on your mind and tongue is a reading plan. While The Grumbler’s Guide to Giving Thanks has a 30-Day Challenge which includes a reading plan, and you can find a daily devotional for each of those days here, below is another 30-Day Reading Plan. This one is exclusively in the Psalms. Each day, the chapter will includes themes related to gratitude, ingratitude, or thanksgiving. My hope is these psalms can lead you into giving thanks this November.
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Genesis Reading Plan
Here’s a Genesis Reading Plan that will take you sixty days, roughly a chapter a day with rest days built in. You can use these questions to ask when reading the Bible.
And here are a few recommended studies and commentaries on Genesis.
- Jen Wilkin’s God of Creation (Gen. 1-11) and God of Covenant (Gen. 12-50).
- Genesis: A 12-Week Study from Crossway
- Genesis (Tyndale Commentaries) by Derek Kidner
- Genesis: Beginning and Blessing by R. Kent Hughes
Holy Week Reading Plan & Resources
Today begins what the Church has called Holy Week or Passion Week. The time from Palm Sunday to Easter (Resurrection) Sunday has provided Christians with a week to give special attention to the person and work of Christ. It interrupts our normal rhythms and intentionally puts Jesus before us so we can reflect on the events leading up to and including his sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection. Below is a reading plan for the week, as well as activities and resources to help you leverage this significant week in the Church Calendar.
Bible Study Questions
We learn by listening, and good listeners ask good questions. While there’s no one-way to do Bible study, one thing we can do is ask questions as we’re reading to help us better observe, interpret, and apply the text. These questions should help us discover the meaning of the passage itself (“what did the author mean?) and move us to living it out? They should not only help us understand the Bible, but they should stir our love for God and neighbor because of what we discover in it.
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Ways to Meditate on Scripture
“If the Word does not dwell with power in us, it will not pass with power from us.” John Owen
Continuing the series of posts on Bible meditation, I wanted to list some practical ideas for how to do it. While meditation can be a result of reflecting on something in creation, life experiences, conversations, our future in eternity, or other things, we’ll focus on meditating on Scripture.
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