“And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned, and saw them following.” (John 1:37-38) There are seven times in the Gospel of John where “Jesus saw” something which led Him to action. First, when Jesus saw the two disciples mentioned in our text, He invited them to come with Him, and their lives were changed forever. Then, the next day “Jesus saw Nathanael” (John 1:47) and also called him as one of the twelve disciples. At the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem, there was a man who had been crippled for 38 years. But “wh...

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14) Success has become a modern fetish, it seems–from selfhelp seminars, to multi-level marketing schemes, to the yuppie mentality. A motivational and success-oriented mindset has even spilled over into the church. Instead of employing such worldly methods, however, we should emulate the lives and methods o...

“And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.” (Isaiah 2:19) Ever since the convulsions of the Flood, the earth’s crust has been in a state of instability, causing earthquakes from time to time all around the world. But there are earthquakes yet to come which will exceed anything ever yet experienced. The earthquake prophesied in our text was also predicted in Revelation. “And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there w...

“That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children.” (Psalm 78:6) Each generation of people tends to regard its own times as the most significant of all, toward which all past history has been merely a preparation. The fact is, however, that God has “been our dwelling place in all generations” (Psalm 90:1), and He is equally concerned about any generations yet to come. This is why He stresses repeatedly that the great truths concerning God’s creation, His character, His great wo...

“And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow.” (1 Chronicles 4:9) Though neither his parents nor descendants are included, the name of Jabez has apparently been inserted in the genealogical lists of 1 Chronicles because of a notable prayer of his. In spite of its seemingly selfish nature, his prayer was answered when he “called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil,...