Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2776 to 2800 of 5000 results

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... sentence. The verbs in vv. 15–16 are all participles describing God’s actions. The main verb is remember in v. 18). Thus there seems to be a balancing truth—which is fairly characteristic of OT thinking on economic matters and is well illustrated in Israelite history—that sufficiency generates praise (vv. 7–10), but surplus generates pride (vv. 12–14). 8:17–18 The source of forgetfulness was the kind of pride that could ignore the incredible history of Israel with its God. Again, it helps ...

2777. The Only Place of Worship

Deuteronomy 12:1-32

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... verses, with renewed warning against the temptation to imitate Canaanite religious practices. Here the warning is intensified by reference to all kinds of detestable things that characterize their idolatry. The moral aspect of God’s judgment on the Canaanites is illustrated by the horrific practice of child-sacrifice. In Hebrew, the word even and the word order of the sentence emphasize the sense of revulsion at such a practice. In conclusion, then, although the historical issues addressed by the chapter ...

2778. Worshipping Other Gods

Deuteronomy 13:1-18

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... its covenant membership and rendered the town virtually Canaanite (cf. Craigie, Deuteronomy, p. 226, and Weinfeld, Deuteronomic School, pp. 91–100). Being an Israelite settlement on the land of promise did not guarantee immunity from God’s wrath. The law illustrates the precise opposite of the divine favoritism that Deuteronomy is sometimes accused of. If Israelites chose to go the way of Canaanite gods and cults, then God would do to Israelites, individuals and communities, exactly what had been done ...

2779. Clean and Unclean Foods

Deuteronomy 14:1-21

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... (v. 2) and ends with a renewed promise of Yahweh’s blessing (v. 29). In between these two fundamentals of Israel’s covenant relationship with Yahweh, it picks out, on the one hand, that factor of Israel’s life which most illustrated their distinctiveness from the nations at a symbolic level (the food laws), and on the other hand, the dual covenantal response—vertical gratitude to God (the tithes) and horizontal care and support in the community (the triennial tithes). The common theme between ...

2780. Cities of Refuge (II)

Deuteronomy 19:1-14

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... by all the parties, especially the elders of the cities, who were the primary judicial adjudicators. As to how the systern worked, Deuteronomy avoids the intricate details of Numbers 35:6–34. Instead it states the basic rule (vv. 1–3), explains and illustrates it (vv. 4–7), expands it where necessary (vv. 8–10), qualifies it with an obvious exception (vv. 11–13), and bases it on a fundamental theological and legal principle (vv. 10 and 13). It is this final principle that attracts interest. What ...

2781. Solomon's Throne Established

1 Kings 2:13-46

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... translation of v. 46b: The kingdom was now firmly established in Solomon’s hands. There is no now in the Hb. text. Verse 46b is simply a restatement of the God-ordained reality (Solomon’s grip on the throne is firm) that has just been illustrated by the events described. 2:19 Bathsheba went to King Solomon: If we were to regard Bathsheba as a calculating woman, then we could also consider that she may have had personal reasons (if she knew the facts) for wanting revenge on Adonijah’s associate ...

2782. Solomon Asks for Wisdom

1 Kings 3:1-15

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... will, in fact, be concerned to describe the riches and honor (3:13) that he accumulated in the course of his long life (3:14). Before that, however, we read of an occasion when Solomon’s new God-given wisdom in relation to his subjects was amply illustrated and Israel first came to perceive Solomon as the wise king par excellence. Additional Notes 3:2 The high places: The term refers to local places of worship, as opposed to the one place of worship described in Deut. 12 and taken in the book of Kgs ...

2783. The Man of God from Judah

1 Kings 13:1-34

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... which indicates that the prophecy is true (vv. 3, 5). The altar is split apart and its ashes poured out. The God who can ensure that prophecy comes to pass in the short term can surely do so over the longer term. The splitting of the altar is a graphic illustration of the truth that God is not and cannot be under Jeroboam’s control. No less graphic is what happens to the king’s hand when he stretches it out to give the command that the prophet should be arrested (v. 4). He has no more power over God’s ...

2784. Ben-Hadad Attacks Samaria

1 Kings 20:1-12

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... rejects them (vv. 5–9). Refusal elicits threat (cf. 19:2), followed by taunt (vv. 10–11). Battle becomes the only option (v. 12). 20:13–21 The mystery of God’s quiet ways, in guiding human affairs through politics, war, and the rest, is well illustrated in what happens next. So far, Ahab has known only prophetic opposition. Now, at the very point when (we know) the future holds only death and destruction for Ahab’s house (19:15–17), he receives from a prophet, for the first time, good news. The ...

2785. The Widow's Oil

2 Kings 4:1-7

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... ; a God who brings life from death. It is also the final proof that the God of Elijah is now the God of Elisha. Elisha is unusually endowed with spiritual power and insight—as the marked contrast between his and his servant’s healing, cooking, and providing illustrates. We hear echoes of this story, of course, in the feeding narratives in the Gospels (Matt. 14:13–21; 15:29–39; Mark 6:30–44; 8:1–10; Luke 9:10–17; John 6:1–15); in the face of incomprehension, food is multiplied to provide ...

2786. Zechariah King of Israel

2 Kings 15:8-12

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

Israel’s Last Days: With the death of Jeroboam II, we have reached the “fourth generation” of the divine promise to Jehu (2 Kgs. 10:30). We expect a return to the unstable government, implied by 1 Kings 14:15 and illustrated in 1 Kings 14–16, that preceded the houses of Omri and Jehu. That is what we now find. Reigns change in quick succession, as Israel plunges speedily towards its doom. All deliverance has ceased, and judgment lies just around the corner. 15:8–12 Scarcely has Jeroboam’s son ...

2787. Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem

2 Kings 18:17-37

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... do so to protect the reputation that Sennacherib’s words have called into question (cf. 19:9–19, 34). God will also do so for the sake of David his servant (v. 34). This allusion to the Davidic promise (cf. 1 Kgs. 11:13, 32; 2 Kgs. 8:19) illustrates well the position in which Judah finds herself in these latter days. Hitherto in Kings this promise has been invoked only to explain why the Davidic line continued to rule over Judah even though a particular king was apostate (1 Kgs. 11:9–13, 32–39; 15:4 ...

2788. The Lord's Anger Against Israel

Isaiah 9:8--10:4

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... a danger to Israel (v. 12). Philistia has been a danger, too, even if it is not a present threat. But like Aram it is also well-enough known as a threat from the past to make a mention here rhetorically effective. Verses 11–12 thus illustrate the way in which international politics involves dog eating dog, the same people being at one moment aggressor, at another victim. And the talk of Yahweh’s anger not being sated (v. 12b) implicitly invites Judah to wonder whether it will be sated until it engulfs ...

2789. A Prophecy Against Babylon

Isaiah 13:1--14:23

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... OT assumes that events on earth reflect more than merely earthly factors, as is particularly clear when an army wins (or loses) a battle against all the odds. It is not mere human strength that decides these things. The classic story that illustrates this reality describes Moses directing the heavenly forces while Joshua directs the earthly forces against Amalek (Exod. 17:8–13). And here heaven joins earth in manifesting the signs of calamity (v. 10). The notion that war and holiness can belong together ...

2790. Woe to David’s City

Isaiah 29:1-24

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... 29:22–24 The further promise of this second kind of visitation comes to a close with a literal account of the point that verse 18 made metaphorically. Chapter 29 thus ends as chapter 28 did, as if this book belonged to Proverbs. It thus again illustrates Isaiah’s two-sided relationship with the teaching of Israel’s sages. He is against their pragmatic insight that thinks the sensible way to formulate policies is to leave God out. He believes in real insight that keeps God at the center. The concrete ...

2791. The Glory of Zion

Isaiah 60:1-22

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... of foreign kings will be expressed when their nations rebuild the city’s walls (v. 10a). Actually it would be Judean bravery, skill, and sweat that would accomplish that, to strong foreign opposition (as seen in Nehemiah). This provides an illustration of the way in which the prophets’ visions are not literal anticipations; Cyrus and subsequent Persian rulers made the rebuilding possible, but the believing community did the work. It also constitutes a reminder that the visions stand as embodiments of ...

2792. Ezekiel's Call

Ezekiel 1:1-28, Ezekiel 2:1-3:15, Ezekiel 3:16-27

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... self-revelation of God—a revelation all the more remarkable for taking place not on the mountain of God, but in the valley of the river Kebar, in the land of exile. The experience of God’s presence is at once wonderful and terrible. Illustrations of this idea abound in Scripture. After his encounter with God at Bethel, Jacob “was afraid, and said, ‘How awesome [the KJV reads, ‘How dreadful’] is this place’” (Gen. 28:17). At the burning bush, Moses “hid his face, because he was afraid to ...

2793. Signs, Sayings, and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 12:1-28, Ezekiel 13:1-23, Ezekiel 14:1-11, Ezekiel 14:12-23

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... once more evident (compare Jer. 14:14–16 and 23:13–22 with Ezek. 13). Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel met with opposition from prophets whose messages contradicted theirs (as the conflict between Jeremiah and Hananiah of Gibeon in Jer. 27–28 vividly illustrates). According to Deuteronomy 18:21–22 the proof of true prophecy is accurate prediction, but in practice this test was not particularly helpful: we can only know the truth of any prediction, after all, in hindsight. Though Jeremiah and Ezekiel knew ...

2794. Riddles and Metaphors

Ezekiel 15:1-8, Ezekiel 16:1-63, Ezekiel 17:1-24

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... , sometimes an ally, more often an adversary. If Aram is intended, the text would describe powerful, ancient enemies surrounding Judah: Aram to the north, Philistia to the south. Either way, the point is the same: Jerusalem has taken the place of Sodom as an illustration of the fate wicked cities deserve. 16:63 When I make atonement for you. God is the subject of the verb kipper (“make atonement, purge”) only seven times in the HB, including here. The oldest text is Deut. 32:43, where the land, not ...

2795. Miscellaneous Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 21:1-32, Ezekiel 22:1-31

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... the liver. Only the last is clearly attested as a Babylonian practice (M. Odell, Ezekiel [Macon, Ga.: Smith and Helwys, 2005], p. 269). See also the discussion on divination at 13:23, above. In the Bible, the story of Elisha and King Joash (2 Kgs. 13:14–19) illustrates divination with arrows, and we find casting lots to determine the divine will throughout Scripture (e.g., Num. 26:55; 1 Sam. 10:16–26; 1 Chr. 24:5; Luke 1:9; Acts 1:26; not to mention the sacred lot, the Urim and Thummim, the priests kept ...

2796. Epilogue to the Law of the Temple: River, Land, City

Ezekiel 47:1-12, Ezekiel 47:13-23, Ezekiel 48:1-29, Ezekiel 48:30-35

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... period the tribes no longer existed. Even if tribal identity had survived the exile, the precise, symmetrical divisions that verses 1–7, 23–29 describe make no allowance for the asymmetry and varying quality of the land itself. As the various attempts to illustrate this scheme reveal, the equal divisions that 47:13–14 calls for cannot realistically be made. But that does not mean that the plan for the division of the land is devoid of realistic content. For while the division itself could not actually ...

2797. Jesus the Messiah from Joseph’s Family Line

Matthew 1:1-17

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... the genealogy. By attending to the broad strokes of the genealogy, we also get a sense of the full sweep of Israel’s history portrayed in it. In the genealogy we “enter the narrative world,” hearing how Jesus is the fulfillment of Israel’s history.4 Illustrating the Text Jesus is the Davidic king, who will rule God’s people. Human Experience: Sharing one’s genealogy is not a common way of introducing oneself in our day and age. Yet we routinely ask the question “Where are you from?” to get a ...

2798. Jesus as True King of Israel

Matthew 2:19-23, Matthew 2:13-18, Matthew 2:1-12

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... emphasis on worship; he also provides a model for Christian practice. The proper response to Jesus the Messiah is worship. And accenting these portraits from Matthew’s story can draw our own audiences into deeper worship and praise of Jesus the Messiah. Illustrating the Text Jesus the Messiah brings the restoration of Israel from exile. Human Experience: From a young age, we are wired to make promises and expect promises from others. “I promise” is a vow routinely on the lips of children and adults ...

2799. Jesus’ Baptism by John

Matthew 3:1-12, Matthew 3:13-17

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... turn my thoughts to you in prayer, you are too quick for me; you have loved me first.13 Preachers and teachers cannot emphasize enough the initiating work of God, with all of life to be lived in responsiveness to that work. Illustrating the Text Jesus is God’s faithful son who brings restoration from exile and inaugurates God’s kingdom. Art: Jesus’ baptism has intrigued artists across the centuries. If your context allows, display a set of different paintings portraying Jesus’ baptism or use ...

2800. Jesus Tempted in the Wilderness

Matthew 4:1-11

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... as one who is able to say no to temptations to trust self or other loyalties and yes to following God wholeheartedly. So we might ask ourselves and the people we teach to examine our allegiances in light of Jesus’ own pattern of covenant loyalty. Illustrating the Text Jesus is faithful to God in spite of temptations. History: Mount Everest stands twenty-nine thousand feet above sea level. It is whipped by winds surging up to 120 miles per hour. Since it climbs high into the troposphere, no one presumed ...

Showing results