Imagine, even though the disciples are with Jesus, even though they have seen him miraculously provide food, even though they know better, the disciples still worry about simple provision. How like them are we?   Mark 8:4 And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?”... Continue Reading

If you’re waiting for God to answer a prayer, too, I trust He is teaching you something in your meantime. I’m reminded daily that God’s calendar is not my calendar. What seems like a long time to me is hardly long for an eternal God. He is never hurried nor late, never worried nor uncaring,... Continue Reading

By God’s grace, even in such deep sorrow, I came to understand that God was faithful and worthy of my trust in this dark valley—whether he answered my plea or not. Christians, our hope must be in the God who answers prayer, not in the answer we think we want to our prayers.   Trials.... Continue Reading

As Jesus did with the rich man (v. 18), he now makes clear to his disciples that, left to ourselves, ‘this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God’ (v. 27). God’s kingdom completely upends the economy of this world. And the shameful death of Jesus on the cross is its... Continue Reading

When you interact with others, do you speak of Jesus as if you were dying? If you’re dead, no scorn can touch you, no persecutor’s torments hurt. No jail can keep the dead locked up. “We died before we came here!” declared Stephen Foreman[1].   Have you ever tried to life your life like you... Continue Reading

“Image” and “likeness” are terms that signify our uniqueness and dignity before God, and the representative role we play for the entire creation as God’s servant priest-kings. The terms are holistic referring to humans as a whole, that indicate a vertical relationship between humans and God that can be described in terms of obedient sonship,... Continue Reading

The Word of the King is the source of all creation, the means of revelation, the authority by which we live, and the power by which we are saved. From the first “Let there be light” to the final “It is finished,” the King’s Word accomplishes all things.   The King speaks, and the world... Continue Reading

Mark gives a vivid portrayal of Jesus in His full humanity…he has given us an authentic picture of Jesus as “God with sandals on.” In Jesus, the Creator of the universe has become local.   Most New Testament scholars agree that Mark was the first of the four gospel accounts to be written. Mark’s gospel... Continue Reading

As much as the story of Ruth and Boaz sounds like a fairy tale, it is our story too. God’s redemption is for the far-off, the marginalized, and the outsider. He spreads His wings over us, at great cost to Himself purchases us, and gives us a kingdom and an inheritance. Like Ruth, we are... Continue Reading

The wisdom of the world will enslave you, but what appears to the world to be the foolishness of the cross of Christ will set you free: For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Corinthians... Continue Reading