Category Archives: Faith

When Those Who Speak for God Stop Listening to Him

The Bible in a Year “I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing; they commit adultery, and walk in lies; they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none does return from his wickedness.” — Jeremiah 23:14 Jeremiah 23 is uncomfortable reading, especially for anyone who teaches, preaches, leads, or speaksContinue reading “When Those Who Speak for God Stop Listening to Him”

When You Try to Quit but the Word Won’t Let You

The Bible in a Year “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.” — Jeremiah 20:9 There are momentsContinue reading “When You Try to Quit but the Word Won’t Let You”

When Judgment Pauses at the Door

The Bible in a Year “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced judgment, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.” — Jeremiah 18:8 Jeremiah 18 gives us one of those passages that helps us understand both the seriousness of sin and the tenderness ofContinue reading “When Judgment Pauses at the Door”

GRACE GETS US HOME—FAITHFULNESS MATTERS WHEN WE ARRIVE

Heaven There is a distinction in the Christian life that we sometimes blur, and when we do, we either weaken grace or diminish the importance of obedience. Scripture keeps the two beautifully together: we are saved by what Christ has done for us, but God takes seriously what we do with the life He hasContinue reading “GRACE GETS US HOME—FAITHFULNESS MATTERS WHEN WE ARRIVE”

When the Word Becomes Part of You

The Bible in a Year “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart; for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts.” — Jeremiah 15:16 Jeremiah gives us one of the most vivid pictures in Scripture of whatContinue reading “When the Word Becomes Part of You”

THE GOD WHO IS NOT LIKE THE OTHERS

The Bible in a Year “But the Lord is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king; at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.” — Jeremiah 10:10 Jeremiah was speaking into a world crowded with gods. Every surrounding nation hadContinue reading “THE GOD WHO IS NOT LIKE THE OTHERS”

When the Season Passes and Nothing Has Changed

The Bible in a Year “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” — Jeremiah 8:20 There is something haunting about that sentence. Jeremiah is not describing a minor disappointment. He is looking at a people who have watched one opportunity after another pass by while still assuming that somehowContinue reading “When the Season Passes and Nothing Has Changed”

When God Plows the Heart

The Bible in a Year “Thus says the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.” — Jeremiah 4:3 If you have ever watched a farmer prepare a field that has been sitting untouched for a while, you know that planting does not begin withContinue reading “When God Plows the Heart”

Why Drink from a Broken Cistern?

The Bible in a Year “My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.” — Jeremiah 2:13 Jeremiah gives us an image his original audience understood immediately. In the dry climate of ancient Judah, a flowing springContinue reading “Why Drink from a Broken Cistern?”