Category Archives: God’s Word: The Bible

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December 11, 2025

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Bible Stories, God's Word: The Bible, Obedience, Wisdom & Guidance

THE PUPPET KING (Part 2)

Joash did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight throughout the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest. … But after Jehoiada’s death, the leaders of Judah came and bowed before King Joash and persuaded him to listen to their advice. [2 Chronicles 24: 2,17 (NLT)]

binding hempvineEarlier this week, I wrote of the Levites’ failure to protect Judah from idolatry but one Levite stands out in his loyalty to God and commitment to the temple: Jehoiada the priest. When Judah’s King Ahaziah died, his mother, Queen Athaliah seized Judah’s throne. The daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, she was as evil as her parents and tried to kill all of her son’s heirs. Unknown to her, Ahaziah’s infant son Joash was hidden by his aunt and survived. Raised by the high priest Jehoiada, the boy’s existence was kept secret while the priest plotted to put him on the throne. When the boy was seven, Jehoiada made a pact with five army commanders who covertly travelled throughout Judah to summon the Levites and leaders to a meeting at the Temple.

At that meeting, Jehoiada declared that the king’s son should reign. Once he introduced Joash, the rightful heir, the men planned to depose his wicked Athaliah. As they guarded the child, he was anointed and the crown placed on his head. After presenting him with a copy of the law, Joash was proclaimed king, Queen Athaliah was slain, the temple of Baal demolished, and its pagan priests killed.

With this successful rebellion, Jehoiada led the people and the new king in rededicating themselves to the Lord. The temple was restored, the priests and Levites again followed David’s instructions, and the gatekeepers returned to the temple. Unfortunately, after Jehoiada’s death, Joash made the same mistake his ancestor Rehoboam did—the young king listened to the wrong people and followed bad advice. The nation returned to idolatry, the temple fell into disrepair, and the temple’s treasures were used to pay tribute to the King of Aram. As the Chronicler wrote: “Because of this sin, divine anger fell on Judah and Jerusalem.” [24:18] The Lord’s judgment took the form of an invasion by the Arameans.

Sadly, even though the Judeans cleaned the temple of idols, they never scoured the idolatry from their hearts and the story only gets worse. The Lord sent prophets advising Judah to repent but they wouldn’t listen. Then, when Jehoiada’s son, Zechariah, prophesized that they were headed for destruction, Joash added murder and desecration of the temple to his sins. He had the son of the priest who saved his life stoned to death in the temple courtyard. Later, during battle with the Arameans, Joash was wounded, but his wounds were not what killed him. He died at the hands of his servants in retaliation for the murder of Jehoiada’s son, Zechariah.

Joash was a puppet king and only as good as his advisors. He may have held the book of law in his hands but he never placed it in his heart. As a result, Joash was dependent on man’s word rather than God’s. Let us learn from this story and take our advice from God rather than man.

Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do. [Psalm 1:1-3 (NLT)]

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. [James 3:17 (NLT)]

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November 13, 2025

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Bible Stories, God's Word: The Bible, Sharing Our Faith, Trusting God, Wisdom & Guidance

KNOWING IT’S TRUE

As was Paul’s custom, he went to the synagogue service, and for three Sabbaths in a row he used the Scriptures to reason with the people. He explained the prophecies and proved that the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead. He said, “This Jesus I’m telling you about is the Messiah.” … they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth. As a result, many Jews believed, as did many of the prominent Greek women and men. [Acts 17:2-3, 11b-12 (NLT)]

St. MatthewProof of the truth is no substitute for our faith; nevertheless, it is important to know the truth of what we believe. At some point, we will ask ourselves how we can believe the validity of what we’re reading in our Bibles. Fortunately, we have Christian apologists to help us see its truth. Rather than offering apologies for the wrongs committed by evil people in the name of Jesus, apologists share the objective reasons and evidence that Christianity is true and should be believed. The Apostle Paul was probably the first apologist when he showed that Jesus’ fulfillment of Scripture’s prophecies proved He was the Messiah. Paul knew that the truth could stand up to scrutiny and it still does today. As for those prophecies: by conservative estimate, Jesus fulfilled at least 300 prophecies while on earth.

Most ancient works were written on perishable papyrus so we don’t have the originals of any ancient secular or sacred manuscript. But, with the New Testament, we do have more than 25,000 manuscript copies and fragments with a gap of less than 25 years between the time of the original manuscripts and the first existing copies! About 5,800 of these ancient copies were written in Greek and over 19,000 copies are in Latin and other languages. Running a distant second to the New Testament is Homer’s Iliad with fewer than 1,800 copies and a 500-year gap between the original manuscript and the first existing copy.

Unlike the Iliad copies, the New Testament’s manuscripts are remarkably alike. When those 25,000 plus copies and fragments are compared, they agree 99.5% of the time! As you’d expect with handwritten copies, there are some minor variations, most of which can be attributed to scribal error. Out of the 8,000 verses in the New Testament, only about two dozen (.3%) are in dispute and none of them affect doctrine. Moreover, even though we don’t have the original manuscripts or even the first copies, 2nd century church fathers, like Ignatius of Antioch, Clement of Rome, and Polycarp quoted from scripture so frequently that we could piece together about 95% of the New Testament just from their writings! We can be sure that the gospels and epistles we read today are nearly identical to those being circulated by the end of the 1st century AD.

How can we know Christianity isn’t more myth than reality? We can trust the writers because none of them had any motivation for perpetuating a lie. Rather than getting rich and powerful, they were persecuted and punished. They abandoned their long-held beliefs and practices, were banished from their synagogues, and (like the Apostles) suffered and died for their faith! Their words were written and circulated where Christ’s miracles occurred when witnesses to the events were still alive; they wouldn’t have succeeded if they were passing along a lie! Unlike the authors, liars wouldn’t put themselves in a bad-light by writing of denials, doubt, disagreements, and failures. Moreover, we have plenty of extra-Biblical documentation for Jesus in the ancient writings of Roman historian Tacitus, Roman governor Pliny the Younger, 1st century Jewish historian Josephus, Greek satirist Lucian, and even the Babylonian Talmud! In all, 39 ancient secular sources corroborate more than 100 facts concerning Jesus.

I’m not a religious scholar, historian, or an archeologist and I haven’t examined the Dead Sea scrolls or ancient papyri. Nevertheless, I do read the work of those who have. The more I study Scripture and the work of Christian apologists, the more certain I am that there is nothing unreasonable, irrational, or unfounded about my belief. The Bible can stand up to intense archeological and historical investigation so we have nothing to fear (and much to gain) when we look closely at God’s word.

As thinking Christians, we must never be afraid to ask questions and seek answers. When we seek the truth, as did Lee Strobel, we’ll be able to make a case for Christ. Like Josh McDowell, we’ll discover that Jesus was more than a carpenter and, like Tim Keller, we’ll know the reason for God. After atheist turned apologist C.S. Lewis examined the faith, he made the case for Christianity. After their research, Norman Geisler and Frank Turek didn’t have enough faith to be atheists! When forensic scientist J. Warner Wallace examined the claims of the Gospel as he would a cold case and lawyer David Limbaugh put Jesus on trial, our Lord withstood their intense scrutiny and cross examination. The closer we examine Scripture, the more we’ll believe that Jesus really is the way, the truth, and the life!

Socrates once said that the unexamined life is not worth having. We believe that the unexamined faith is not worth believing. [Norman Geisler & Frank Turek]

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. [2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NLT)]

Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. [1 Peter 3:15 (NLT)]

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November 3, 2025

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, God's Word: The Bible, Obedience, Salvation: A New You, Temptation & Sin

THE TIME HAS COME

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. [2 Timothy 4:3-4 (ESV)]

red-chouldered hawkBecause the literacy rate in the 1st century was around 10 to 15%, only a few people could read the Hebrew Scriptures or Apostolic letters. By necessity, the new faith came about through public reading and preaching. In his letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul warned of a time when sound doctrine would no longer be tolerated. Rather than reproof, rebuke, exhortation, and instruction, people would want to have their itching ears knéthó (meaning tickled or scratched). Rather than knowledge and doctrine, they’d be more interested in myths, sensationalism, and viewpoints suiting their desires. I fear that time has come!

We no longer need to consult our Bibles because we have AI Bible apps and video channels. I recently watched a 10-minute AI video claiming to be the “full story of Job’s faith;” it isn’t. Beginning with God and Satan making a wager as to whether Job will curse God, more than half the video is from the first chapter of the book. After plenty of impressive AI visuals, the next 40 chapters are summarized with one sentence not found in Scripture. While we see people speaking to Job, we never hear what’s said nor do we hear God’s words that cause Job to recognize and submit to God’s sovereignty and power. The video’s sole take-away seems to be that you’ll be rewarded richly in this world if you don’t curse God when bad things happen.

Although the Nephilim warrant a brief mention only twice in Scripture with no clear explanation of their identity, these fantastic creatures are extremely popular in AI. Relying heavily on the apocryphal book of Enoch, one video blamed the flood on these evil giants who ruled the world. It called the flood a “cosmic reset against chaos induced by fallen angels” and an “act of defense for the souls of men.” Usually portrayed the size of King Kong, other Nephilim videos are even more bizarre and far-fetched. Let’s remember that it is subscribers (not necessarily believers) these sites want. Unfortunately, content faithful to Scripture that is historically accurate and theologically correct doesn’t necessarily make a video attention-grabbing or exciting to a viewer. Unless one is Bible literate, there’s no way to know where fact and truth end and fiction and fantasy begin. Nevertheless, like baby food, videos like these are easy to digest!

AI has even moved into the prayer business. When we want to “chat with God,” artificial intelligence can step in and answer for the Lord Almighty. On one site, we can get the god of our choice by choosing our religious affiliation such as Agnostic, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, or Mormon along with the topic to discuss. We can tell God whether we desire inspiration, comfort, or something else but correction or reproof are not an option. On another site, we can “embark on a spiritual journey and engage in enlightening conversations” by texting with Jesus, the Apostles, or “a multitude of other revered figures from the Bible.” The premium option even allows us to text with Satan! In theory, the responses from these chatbots or “godbots” are said to be “in line with the teachings of the Bible.” But, since AI is putting words in their mouths, are they? If we’re not Bible literate, how will we know when they aren’t?

One New York Post writer posited that AI might be “a beacon lighting the way for a new kind of spiritual exploration” and, perhaps it can be. Nevertheless, there is no substitute for the Bible! We can’t test what we see and hear on our screens against the Word of God if we don’t know what God’s word says! We must never forget that Satan will do anything to lead us astray. He has been perverting God’s words since speaking with Eve and his false teachers and prophets have attacked the church since it began. Jesus warned us: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.” [Mat 7:15] I suspect they may come to us dressed as AI, as well. Let us beware.

See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily. [Colossians 2:8-9 (ESV)]

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October 27, 2025

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Bible Stories, Challenges & Difficulty, God's Word: The Bible, Sharing Our Faith, Wisdom & Guidance

NEPHILIM

When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. [Genesis 6:1-4 (ESV)]

Beach sunflowerThose four verses are some of the most confusing ones in Scripture. Who are the sons of God, the daughters of men, the Nephilim, and how did they come to be mighty men (or as some translations say giants)? The Nephilim appear to be a race of formidable beings associated with extraordinary physical stature and fearful reputation. Mentioned briefly twice in Scripture, we find them in Genesis, just before the flood, and again in Numbers (post flood). Nephilim comes from naphal, meaning to fall. One school of thought holds that the “sons of God” were fallen angels who mated with human women (the daughters of man) and produced a hybrid race of giants called Nephilim. The apocryphal book of Enoch claims these offspring were giants standing thee hundred cubits (450 feet) tall. They had such insatiable hunger that they ate humans as well as one another. Having taught humans medicinal magic, astrology, divination, and other sinful practices, it was their evil ways that caused the flood! Written around 300-100 BC, the book of Enoch never was accepted as part the Hebrew Scriptures and never has been in the Christian canon.

Let’s look at the context of these confusing verses. The previous chapters are about man’s fall into sin and the genealogy of Adam’s line rather than fallen angels and their giant offspring. Moreover, describing the Nephilim as “the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown” hardly seems an apt description of evil beings. When Genesis 6:5 says, “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually,” there’s no mention of fallen angels or giant angel/men. Moreover, while they can take on human form, angels are spirit and Matthew 22:30 tells us they “neither marry nor are given in marriage.” Finally, Nephilim are mentioned again in Numbers. If this race of angel/humans existed post-flood, we must ask how they survived the great deluge. God vowed to “destroy every living thing” not on the ark with the flood and they weren’t on it!

Who were “the sons of God”? While angels are called the “sons of God” in the book of Job, Moses calls the men of Israel the “sons of the Lord your God” in Deuteronomy [14:1,32:8]. In Isaiah 43:6, God calls for the return of both His sons and daughters (meaning Israel). Indeed, Adam (meaning man) is the “son” of the one who formed him and gave him breath: God. On the other hand, woman is the “daughter” of man since she came from Adam!

While some posit that the “sons of God” descend from the godly line of Seth and the “daughters of men” come from the godless line of Cain, there really is no indication that Seth’s descendants were more godly or Cain’s more evil than anyone else. Nowhere else in Scripture are the terms “sons of God” or “daughters of man” used to indicate someone’s spiritual state. While there’s no evidence of them elsewhere, others believe the “sons of God” were early rulers who established royal dynasties. More likely, they were men of large stature and prowess who took women as their wives. Like their fathers, their sons (known as Nephilim) were people of considerable size who became “mighty men” because of their size and power. The Nephilim reappear in Numbers 13:33, when the scouts reported back to Moses. Seeing men of remarkable physical stature in the Promised Land, they called these descendants of Anak “Nephilim.” Elsewhere in Scripture, these descendants of Anak are called “a people great and tall.”

We don’t know the exact identity of the Nephilim and never will on this side of heaven. While I believe they were mortal men of extraordinary physical stature and military skill, you may disagree. Fortunately, our different interpretations do not impact our faith in Christ. Non-believers, however, love to take isolated verses like these as evidence that Scripture is filled with errors and ancient myths. The Bible, however, is inerrant which means it’s free from all falsehood, fraud, or deceit. But, that doesn’t mean the Bible is without difficulties and the Nephilim are just one of many. It’s our job to defend our faith. We can’t do that, however, without digging into those challenging verses and finding a rational and articulate defense of God’s voice as heard in Scripture.

“And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” [Numbers 13:33 (ESV)]

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October 13, 2025

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Attitudes & Behavior, Fear & Doubt, God's Grace & Love, God's Word: The Bible, Joy, Peace of God

PERFECTLY MADE

For it was you who created my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made. Your works are wondrous, and I know this very well. [Psalm 139:13-14 (CSB)]

Today’s socks tell me, “I am perfectly made” and remind me of Psalm 139’s affirmation that, “I have been remarkably and wondrously made.” All of my low-cut athletic socks have pithy affirmations woven into the toes. Depending on what pair I choose, I’m reminded that I have hope or that I’m loved, brave, strong, grateful, kind, powerful, blessed, or thankful. My favorite pair, however, tell me, “I am with you always!” It may seem silly, but there are times, especially during difficult days, when I recall the day’s affirmation on my feet and I stand a little more assuredly.

What we say to others matters, but what we say to ourselves matters even more! The way we speak to ourselves determines how we relate to everything and everyone else! Affirmations replace the negative talk we hear from others as well as the trash talk we say to ourselves! Shifting our minds toward the positive can change the direction we’re taking and lead us to a better destination!

I thought of my socks during church last week when the soloist sang Megan Woods’ lovely song, “The Truth.” The song opened with the sad words, “How many times can you hear the same lie before you start to believe it? The enemy keeps whisperin’ to me… Lord, I don’t wanna listen to the lies anymore.” The negative words we hear our heads are gifts from the enemy—Satan, the Father of lies. He might say that we’re not pretty enough, capable enough, or good enough. He’ll whisper that we’re too young, too old, too fat, too skinny, too tall, or too short. His words tell us we can’t when we can and we shouldn’t when we should. When we pray, he murmurs that God’s not there. Telling us we’re worthless sinners, he claims our past defines us, we don’t deserve happiness, and that we’re unworthy, unlovable, and unforgiveable! The enemy with his lies is camping out rent-free in our heads and his scorn, disparagement, and belittling can make quite a ruckus in there.

Our best defense against the enemy’s lies is keeping God’s truth in our hearts! While my affirmation socks can be found on Amazon, the God’s truth is found in the pages of our Bibles! It is filled with affirmations of who we are in Christ. Instead of socks telling us we are loved or have hope, we have Jeremiah 31:3 telling us that God loves us with an everlasting love and Psalm 62:5 telling us our hope comes from God! While my socks may say I’m strong, Romans 8:37 tells us we’re more than conquerors through Christ! When the enemy tries to take up residence in our minds, let’s remember that Scripture tells us we can stand against his schemes because we’re clothed in the armor of God (Eph 6:11). Our socks don’t need to say, “I am with you always,” because God promised He will never leave nor abandon us (Deut 31:6). God’s word reassures us that we have the peace of God guarding our hearts and minds. (Phil 4:7)

The Bible tells us truth—we are God’s beloved children! He lived and died for us! Never forget that we are God’s workmanship and God doesn’t make junk! Indeed, we are “remarkably and wondrously made.”

The truth is I am my Father’s child
I make Him proud and I make Him smile
I was made in the image of a perfect King
He looks at me and wouldn’t change a thing
The truth is I am truly loved
By a God who’s good when I’m not good enough
I don’t belong to the lies, I belong to You
And that’s the truth!
[Jeff Pardo/Matthew West/Megan Woods]

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do. [Ephesians 2:10 (CSB)]

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September 18, 2025

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Attitudes & Behavior, Church & Worship, God's Word: The Bible, Sharing Our Faith, Wisdom & Guidance

IT’S NOT THAT DIFFICULT

When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, for he taught with real authority—quite unlike their teachers of religious law. [Matthew 7:28-29 (NLT)]

The gospel is so simple that small children can understand it, and it is so profound that studies by the wisest theologians will never exhaust its riches. [Charles Hodge]

Great Blue HeronAs much as I enjoy reading the works of authors like C.S. Lewis, A.W. Tozer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and N.T. Wright, I admit to not always understanding exactly what they’re saying. Nevertheless, thinking me an expert, a friend sent me an article written by a well-known Christian theologian and asked for my thoughts. Unfortunately, I had none because I couldn’t make sense of it. When I reluctantly admitted my bewilderment, my friend admitted the same. Although we both tried to understand the author, neither of us could discern his point. He appeared to have used a great many fancy words to say very little. While another scholar might make sense of his words, we two reasonably intelligent believers couldn’t. Unfortunately, some pastors, theologians, Christian writers, and fellow believers unnecessarily complicate faith and our relationship with God.

When I couldn’t comprehend a sermon or a Christian writer’s words, I used to think I wasn’t smart enough or my faith wasn’t deep enough. But, just because we’re not as theologically learned, philosophical, or contemplative as others, doesn’t mean we’re mentally deficient or have less faith. Being a follower of Christ doesn’t require some secret knowledge and there’s nothing wrong with us if we don’t always understand what a pastor says or a theologian writes. The Holy Spirit will help us understand all that we need to understand.

God didn’t make all of us deep thinkers; He didn’t have to! His message isn’t intended for a select few religious scholars and intellectuals. When Jesus gave His “Sermon on the Mount,” He wasn’t speaking to the religious elite; He was speaking to a crowd of ordinary people like you and me. His message was simple, straightforward, heartfelt, and God-breathed.

While we never will be able to fully understand God’s plan of salvation through Jesus, there is nothing mysterious, hidden, or cryptic about it. After years of listening to sermons in church, it was a simple pamphlet with stick figures from Campus Crusade that finally explained the gospel message for me! Before Holy Communion at our liturgical church, we proclaim the “mystery of our faith” by saying: “Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.” It’s really that simple!

During Saturday evening worship last week, the soloist sang “Yes, my Jesus Loves Me,” a beautiful song based on the well-known children’s hymn. Before starting her sermon, our pastor thanked the singer. She then told the congregation that if we took nothing more away from the service than the knowledge that Jesus loves us, we will have taken away all that we needed to know! Now, there’s a preacher who knows how to put her message in words we all can understand!

We should never disparage our faith or apologize because we’re not scholars or academically trained. Moreover, let us never allow our amateur status keep us from sharing the gospel message. Jesus spent His time with common people, not theologians and academics. Peter, the rock on which the Christian church is built, was a fisherman, as were most of the disciples. The Apostle Paul, as a Pharisee, was the only theologian in the group! What mattered was that they loved Jesus and spread His message far and wide. If all anyone knows after speaking with us is that Jesus loves them, they’ve taken away a powerful message, indeed!

As well might a gnat seek to drink in the ocean, as a finite creature to comprehend the Eternal God. A God whom we could understand would be no God. If we could grasp Him, He could not be infinite. If we could understand Him, He could not be divine. [Charles Spurgeon]

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. [John 3:16-17 (NLT)]

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