DID YOU KNOW Scripture Readings: Hosea 6:1–7:16; Acts 2:42–3:26; Job 15:21–35 Most of us enjoy Scriptures that reassure us of God’s love, presence, and protection. We are less eager to linger over passages that question our priorities, expose our selfishness, or require costly change. Yet God did not give us His Word merely to affirmContinue reading “When the Bible Refuses to Leave Us Comfortable”
Category Archives: Did You Know
Pentecost Was Only the First Basket
DID YOU KNOW “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” —Acts 2:4 Beginnings awaken something within us. A new ministry, friendship, school year, or opportunity carries an energy that can be difficult to sustain once the unfamiliar becomes ordinary. ActsContinue reading “Pentecost Was Only the First Basket”
When God Turns a Broken Story into a Portrait of Grace
DID YOU KNOW Hosea 1:1–2:23; Acts 1:1–26; Job 15:1–9 Did You Know that Hosea’s troubled marriage was intended to make Israel see what its unfaithfulness looked like to God? The opening chapter of Hosea is among the most emotionally difficult passages in Scripture. God commanded the prophet to marry Gomer, whose unfaithfulness would become aContinue reading “When God Turns a Broken Story into a Portrait of Grace”
When Jesus Walks the Road Beside Us
DID YOU KNOW The road to Emmaus begins with two disappointed disciples walking away from Jerusalem. They had placed their hope in Jesus, but the crucifixion appeared to have ended everything they believed. Then the risen Christ joined them on the road. They spoke to Jesus about Jesus without recognizing that Jesus was walking besideContinue reading “When Jesus Walks the Road Beside Us”
When the Tomb Became the Doorway
DID YOU KNOW The resurrection of Jesus was not simply a surprising ending to a tragic story. It marked the beginning of an entirely new era in God’s saving work. Isaiah longed for God to tear open the heavens and come down. Job wrestled with the apparent finality of death. The disciples watched Jesus suffer,Continue reading “When the Tomb Became the Doorway”
Saved for More Than Survival
DID YOU KNOW When we hear the word “saved,” we often think first about what Jesus has saved us from—sin, guilt, condemnation, and eternal separation from God. That is wonderfully true, but Scripture also invites us to consider what Christ has saved us for. God does not merely rescue isolated individuals and return them unchangedContinue reading “Saved for More Than Survival”
When True Words Turn to Ashes
DID YOU KNOW “Your maxims are proverbs of ashes; your defenses are defenses of clay.” —Job 13:12 Job’s friends did not arrive empty-handed. They brought familiar sayings, accepted theology, and explanations drawn from their own observations. Some of their statements about God’s justice, sovereignty, and moral order were true. Their failure came when they assembledContinue reading “When True Words Turn to Ashes”
When Jesus Turns the Blues Into Beauty
DID YOU KNOW The blues grew from the need to give sorrow a voice. A singer could take an ordinary sentence—“I knew better, but I did it anyway”—and turn it into a confession carried by a bent note, a slow rhythm, and a weary voice. Scripture often does something similar. The prophets take common experiencesContinue reading “When Jesus Turns the Blues Into Beauty”
The Wealth Heaven Can See
DID YOU KNOW The world usually recognizes wealth by what can be displayed—possessions, influence, education, authority, or access to important people. Jesus, however, repeatedly asked His disciples to look beneath appearances. In Luke 20:41–21:24, He contrasted religious leaders who enjoyed public recognition with a widow whose offering appeared almost insignificant. The leaders possessed social standing,Continue reading “The Wealth Heaven Can See”
When God Refuses to Play Our Games
DID YOU KNOW The Sadducees approached Jesus with what they believed was an unbeatable riddle. They referred to the law of levirate marriage, under which a man was expected to marry his deceased brother’s childless widow so the brother’s family line could continue (Deuteronomy 25:5–10). They imagined a woman who had successively been married toContinue reading “When God Refuses to Play Our Games”