By David Faust Jesus never said, “Blessed are the powerful.” However our culture persistently communicates the message, “Assert yourself. Be the boss. Climb the ladder. Make a name for yourself.” The account of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26 cautions us about the perils of personal power. God made him successful. Precocious in his youth […]
By Sam E. Stone This lesson begins the final month in this quarter’s study about God’s desire for justice, as outlined by various Old Testament prophets. God expects his people to know right from wrong and then to do what is right. Justice is as serious a requirement for Christians today as it was for […]
By Michael C. Mack What injustices in the world are you most zealous about? Why? Read Isaiah 59:15-21. Here in Isaiah when God looked around at the world he created, what did he see? What did he seem most upset about? Most commentators believe that “his own arm” refers to the Messiah. With that in […]
By Sam E. Stone This month our study has focused on the message of another of the minor prophets—Micah. As Allen A. MacRae pointed out, “Micah’s message alternates between oracles of doom and oracles of hope. The theme is judgment and deliverance by God. Micah also stresses that God hates idolatry, injustice, rebellion and empty […]
By Emily Hill Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote some of the most freeing words I’ve ever read when he described what it means for humans to do good in light of the revelation of God in Christ: “The good consists of nothing more than allowing our action to be determined by the knowledge that it is not […]
