In Numbers 12:7 the Lord says about Moses, “He is faithful in all My house.” Here house denotes the nation of Israel. The Old Testament tabernacle and temple were outward signs of God&#…
God’s first and only covenant nation is Israel, and He called them His “firstborn son.” [i] And Israel is the only nation He sovereignly chose to reveal Himself to, not a giant and mighty nation, but so insignificant they appeared to be nothing more than a small, powerless family. It says, “You on
The Parable of the Mustard Seed is one of Jesus’s Parables of the Kingdom of Heaven, and it is found in Mark Chapter 4. When considering any teaching that deals with the Kingdom of Heaven, it might…
By Elizabeth Prata I was finishing my book by Scottish Puritan, The Scandal of False Teaching. I love the minds of the Puritans, deep thinkers, and as a result, it was an excellent book. Anyway, in…
It has bemused me for the longest time how we, as Americans, are enamored with royalty. In particular, we are fascinated with British royalty. Weeks ago, ten million Americans tuned in for the coro…
By Elizabeth Prata In the New Testament, Jesus pronounced oracular woes. He pronounced doom for peoples, individuals, nations, kings. He also predicted doom for entire cities! Atlanta, Georgia. Pho…
Peter tells us, “according to His promise we are expecting new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13). Outwardly the old creation, which became old becau…
Eliezer Gonzalez
James and John came up to Jesus and asked him to give them the leading positions in his kingdom, which they believed he was about to set up in Jerusalem. But there was a backlash! Of course, the other disciples were furious at James and John, because they had gotten in first with their request to Jesus. All of them wanted to have the best positions in the kingdom Jesus was about to establish. They were in the middle of an angry argument when Jesus intervened to correct their twisted thinking and teach them how it is in the kingdom.
Eliezer Gonzalez
Jesus was probably busy teaching, and the parents were bringing their little children to him. Anyone who has been to church with little kids knows that it has its challenges! And that’s what the disciples were facing in this story. The disciples rightly saw Jesus as a very special person, and even a holy person. But they didn’t understand his character or what he was about. And they’d forgotten what Jesus had said about welcoming little children.
Have you ever wondered what service most glorifies God? Have you ever considered that leaning on Jesus, trusting him in suffering, is a way to serve that expands the kingdom of God?Trusting Jesus in Trials: the Outcomes are Up to HimThose questions have been on my mind as I’ve been...
Jesus Christ gave the basic law of service in the kingdom of God. It is a beautiful revelation on why serving others is far better than being served. His disciples were, as usual, stunned by that revelation on service or serving in God’s kingdom. Related: Find more Action Power Devotional contents Law of service […]
After bring called by God (Acts 7:2; Gen. 12:1, 7), Abraham proceeded in steps “to the mountain on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and the…
Hebrews 3:5 says that the history with Moses was “a testimony of the things to be spoken later,” that is, the New Testament things. Verse 3:6 continues, “Christ was faithful as a Son over His…
In the Old Testament the descendants of Abraham were the house of God. At the beginning of the New Testament, Jesus was the house of God. John 1:1 says “the Word was God” and 1:14, R…
Genesis 28 records a journey taken by Jacob. One night he had a wonderful dream. When he woke up he said, “Surely Jehovah is in this place” (v. 16) and “How awesome is this place! This is none othe…
Eliezer Gonzalez
It’s been estimated that there are 2,350 verses in the Bible about money and generosity. We often don’t like to face the reality that Jesus had a lot to say
The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins one of Jesus’s parables of the kingdom of heaven. There are a few symbols to look at here. In this article, we are looking at one section at a time and c…
Eliezer Gonzalez
Jesus taught using a series of parables from the world of farming: a world his listeners knew well. He uses the mustard seed as a symbol of the kingdom of God. Again, the sower is Jesus himself. In this story, he is sowing something that seems small and insignificant: mustard seeds. The mustard seed was one of the smallest seeds known to people back then. Even though the mustard seed is tiny, when it grows, it becomes a tall shrub that provides shelter for the birds.
Eliezer Gonzalez
Now Jesus tells a parable about how the kingdom of God grows. It’s an important one with a beautiful lesson for us. The seed is the Word of God, and the man who scatters seed on the soil is Jesus. We’ve seen previously that we are the soil on which Jesus scatters his Word, and of course, we want to be the good soil. The Word of God is powerful in and of itself. That’s why, once the seed has been scattered, it grows and develops by itself. The first lesson of this parable is this “all by itself” principle: that if we let God do his work in our lives, there’s no need for us to do the work. If we are the willing “the good soil,” then God’s work in our lives will happen “all by itself.”