Old and New

 New and Old

July 29, 2026

Isaiah 11:5 (NKJV)

5 And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

Isaiah 59:17 (NKJV) 

For He put on righteousness as a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head; He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, And was clad with zeal as a cloak.

Ephesians 6:13-17 (NKJV) 

13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded yourwaist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

There is a strain of thinking among Christians that model themselves after the New Testament church, and minimize or ignore the Old Testament. Of course it is good to emulate the New Testament church, but we must not ignore the foundation teaching that formed the concepts taught by Jesus and his disciples. One example of this is the teaching on the armor of God found in Ephesians 6. This is normally taught in isolation without acknowledging that this imagery comes directly  from the prophet Isaiah. You can’t fully appreciate the New Testament teaching without putting it into the context of centuries of Jewish revelation and teaching. Jesus said that he is the fulfillment of the law, so in order to understand Him, you need to study the context of His culture and the times in which he lived. The parables in particular are set in the context of first century life and were understood by the people who were familiar with farming, fishing and building and whose moral framework was solidly anchored in the temple worship of that day. Therefore, it is Important to study all of the Bible to fully understand the teaching of Jesus in the proper context.

All Scripture

 All Scripture 

June 27, 2026

2 Timothy 3:14-15 (NKJV) 

14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of,knowing from whom you have learned [them,] 15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJV) 

16 All Scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, forreproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Paul’s admonition to Timothy is good advise to everyone who wishes to lead a successful Christian life. “Continue in the things you have learned.” “All scripture is given by inspiration of God…”. Studying the scriptures and doing what they teach will make the man of God complete and “thoroughly equipped for every good work.” What better advise could be given to a young man? I don’t have much to add to that except to testify that this has been proven true in my life. Walk in the Word of God and you will be blessed.

O Foolish Galatians

 O Foolish Galatians

March 12,2026

Galatians 3:1-3 (NKJV) 

1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, beforewhose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? 2 This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3 Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?

If the Apostle Paul were to visit one of our contemporary churches in America, what do you think he would say? Would he say, “O foolish Americans”? The Galatians were struggling with disputes over the law and grace, which arose from difference between the Greek and Jewish believers. Paul called them foolish for wanting to return to old ways of doing things. What do we Americans do and believe that Paul would call foolish? I hesitate to start a list for fear that it would be a very long document! 

Paul’s answer was to return to the simple truth that he had taught them and to listen to the Holy Spirit. I think that advice still holds today. We need to return to the simple truths in the Bible and in our American founding documents. The words of Jesus and the apostles are still available to us in the Bible. It’s only our foolishness that leads us to think that we have progressed to a better way of living. The human spirit is still full of foolishness, just as in Paul’s day, but the Spirit of God is available to lead us into all truth, if we but listen.

The Nation’s Rage

 The Nation’s Rage

January 28, 2026

Acts 4:24-26 (NKJV) 

24 So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You [are] God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, 25 “who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: 

‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? 26 The kings of theearth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the LORD and against His Christ.’ (Psalm 2:1-2)

The nations raged against the Lord in King Davis’s time. They plotted against Jesus, and they still rebel against he creator of heaven and earth. So what can we do? Our answer should be the same as the apostles in Acts 4:

Acts 4:31 (NKJV) 

And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

They prayed and worshipped God in the Holy Spirit and continued to preach the word. In the passage in Acts, Peter and John had just been released from prison for healing a lame man in the name of Jesus. They didn’t let that discourage them as they continued to proclaim all that they had seen and heard. We can do the same. The world can rage and plot, but they cannot deny when we testify to the things that we have seen and heard. The Holy Spirit is still moving in the land and the angels are still at war with the forces of darkness. So when things look dark and discouraging, remember that the Lord sits in heaven and laughs. And pray that the Lord opens your eyes so you can say, like Elisha, “Do not fear, for those with us are more than those who are with them”. (2 Kings 6:16]

Psalm 2:1-4 (NKJV) 

1 Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? 2 The kings of theearth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the LORD and against His Anointed, [saying,] 3 “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.” 4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.

Strange Things

 Strange Things

January 26, 2026

Have you ever been reading the Bible, and you come across something that makes you go “Hmmmm “? Maybe it’s just the strange way my mind works, but sometimes I have questions. Like the plagues of Exodus… take the fifth plague where all the livestock of the Egypt died.

Exodus 9:6 (NKJV) So the LORD did this thing on the next day, and all the livestock of Egypt died; but of the livestock of the children of Israel, not one died.

 

That’s seems clear enough, but then in the seventh plague the cattle in the field died. 

Exodus 9:19 (NKJV) “Therefore send now [and] gather your livestock and all that you have in the field, for the hail shall come down on every man and every animal which is found in the field and is not brought home; and they shall die.” ’ ”

But if that wasn’t confusing enough, more cattle died in the tenth plague.

Exodus 11:5 (NKJV) ‘and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the female servant who [is] behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the animals.

I’m sure there is a perfectly good explanation, but my curious mind is wondering how some cows died three times!

Then in the New Testament there is the mystery of Matthias:. 

Acts 1:23-26 (NKJV) 23 And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they prayed and said, “You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen 25 “to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.” 26 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

So what ever happened to Matthias? Maybe he was the apostle to the lost tribes of Israel because he is never heard from again. Anyway, that is just some of the things I wonder about.

Of course none of this really matters, it’s just something to muse about on a cold winters day. The Bible is trustworthy and true and when we don’t understand, it is exactly that, we don’t understand. Our feeble brain is not capable of comprehending all the the truths about God so we need to be content with asking questions and understanding in part.

1 Corinthians 13:12 (NKJV) For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

One day we will stand face to face with Jesus and all our questions will be answered. But until the, I have questions…